You all know me as Cherie.

Writer Cherie, Cher-Bear, Cherie Larkins... (I also got dubbed other, uh, unusual nicknames such as Sparkly Pants, Bumpit Goddess, Sparkles, Vampy, but we won't focus on those names for now. Alright?)

Cherie is my childhood nickname. It's what my family and old friends call me. There's always been a sense of comfort with the use of this name because it's reminiscent of my days as a kid, running around barefoot while I play tag with my childhood friends. It's also easy to say and spell.

But even this kid has to grow up some time. And that time has come.

When I was asked to write an author bio, it suddenly dawned on me that I needed to decide which name to use. Should I stick to the name I've branded my online persona with, or should I go with my real name? I didn't really view Cherie as a pseudonym; after all, it was my name, albeit not the one my mother gave me after I was born. It was the name my friends shouted when they wanted me to come out and go climb trees with them. It was the name my cousins used to greet me at every family gathering. The name my mom would yell if I forgot to do my chores. But everywhere else--school, church, government forms and IDs--I wasn't Cherie. I was someone else. Someone who was more intricately me.

And so it is that I've decided to reveal the real me for all the world to see.