What Would You Do?

I started writing my very first book in April 2009 and finished it in July 2009. By October 2009, I decided to seriously pursue publication. Ahh, but under what name did I want to be published?

I first thought I'd use my maiden name. My husband even purchased the URL stacythurber.com before anyone else nabbed it. Then I Googled it.

My name didn't come up first. Some doctor in California (which is funny, since I was born in Santa Monica – who knew there were two of us from that state? Thurber is not very common) comes up first. So I Googled Stacy McKitrick. Hey – I was first. In fact, I had all the spots on the first page. So I decided to stick with my married name. My husband purchased the URL stacymckitrick.com and directed stacythurber.com to my new URL.

I also followed the advice of Bob Mayer (in a workshop I attended at the FF&P conference) and set a Google alert on Stacy McKitrick. I got a couple of hits (from other bloggers). All good, right?

Until the last couple of Google alerts I received were not me.

Seems there is a brand new country-western singer by the name of Stacey McKitrick. Her name now shows up first when MY name is Googled. And her concert announcements show up because Ticketmaster misspelled her name.

I've got to laugh over that, though. I can't count the number of times people have misspelled my first name (I tell them the E is my middle initial, not in my first name). I guess she gets the same problem.

So, should I be worried? Or is it a good thing? Maybe people will find me when they look for her!

What would you do? Hope for the best or go searching for a new pen name?

Thanks for Voting

For those few of you who voted, I appreciate it! 

Final results:  3 for Stacy McKitrick, 2 for Stacy Thurber and 2 for Either One.  Since one didn't appear to stand out more than the other, I guess I still have to think about it.  I will worry about that when the time comes. 

Right now it's more important to find an agent and write my second book.  And as you can see on the right, my word count is now official.  That's where it stands right now.  When I get to a certain chapter, the number will probably drop, since I have to remove a scene that is no longer needed (from an edit I made to Book 1).  It feels good to work on it, though.

And a bit of depressing news.  My short story did not win first place or honorable mention in the Dayton Daily News contest.  HEAVY SIGH.  So expect to see me post it on my blog soon for you to read.

Vote Please - Pretty Please?

I'm still undecided in which name I would like to publish under, provided I ever get that far.  But I raised an Eagle Scout, so I know all about "Be Prepared".

I originally thought I would use Stacy Thurber as a pen name.  It's my maiden name, it's kind of famous (if you are familiar with James Thurber, that is), and I would answer to it (even though I have been Stacy McKitrick longer than I was Stacy Thurber). 

So my husband went out and snagged the domain name.  You never know, right?

Then I wondered if it just wouldn't be easier to stick with my legal name.  It's what's out there on this blog.  And as I mentioned before, I have been Stacy McKitrick longer (eight years longer and counting) than I was Stacy Thurber.

So my husband went out and snagged that domain name, too.  Yes - BE PREPARED.

Of course, you can get to my website with either http://www.stacythurber.com/ or http://www.stacymckitrick.com/.  It'll go to the same site (I didn't want to confuse anyone, in the rare instance anyone actually wanted to visit my site).  Then I thought of a good way to use my blog - Take a poll!

So, on the column to the right is a place you can vote.  Which name sounds best to you?  And if you don't like either, then don't vote.  I thought about putting that as an option, but seeing as how I will write under one of those names, I didn't think it would do me any good.

The votes may help me decide, may help me lean more one way than the other.  If I ever snag an agent, they may have some imput as well.  But voting can be fun, and I wanted to put some reader interaction on this blog.  Hope you join in the fun and vote!