Sunday, December 14, 2008

Lives are meeting

I've often wrangled with whether or not to put this blog into my real name. Well, I'm not going to, nyah nyah.

I'm around and about under my real name - which I think most of you know, and if you're confused there's a whopping big clue on the book roast blog - but move fast, because I think I might delete that soon.

What's happening now is that, thanks to Facebook, you ethereal chums and my more earthly versions are meeting. Not a bad thing in itself, but while I'm perfectly content for you all to know my real name, I'd quite like to keep McKoala and this blog to my ethereal life. Very few people I see on a day-to-day basis know about my fiction writing, beyond the short stories and articles. I hate the thought of people asking me 'so how's the book going?' every day, possibly for forty years or more if I never get into print!

So I may try and blur the links between the names a little more.

Is anybody else having to think about this?

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's never been an issue for me, but I bet moonrat is in the same boat; and I know Precie's wrestled with it a whole bunch.

Sorry about the McK reference on FB; I will restrain myself in the future. You know, when I'm being snide about Pathwords and its addictive properties.

Sarah Laurenson said...

Erica Orloff has two pen names - one for MG, one for YA and her real name for the adult books. Her blog is under her real name. She has a website for her YA name and a separeate one for her real name. I'm assuming it's just a matter of time before she has one for the MG name. The first MG book is coming out soon.

And you thought you had issues...

PJD said...

So, how's the book going?

JaneyV said...

It's not something I'm overly concerned about. I've found that a natural divide occurred between the IRL friends and the bloggy ones. Most of the people I know who know nothing [and care nothing] about my writing also aren't FB friends or bloggers. The FB friends I have who are bloggers are the ones I would happily meet IRL anyway. I just use common sense really.

If the lines of real vs ethereal being blurred is getting uncomfortable you can do what Precie did and unfriend the people you don't know in real life. I wouldn't be offended. You should feel comfortable. Do what's best for you.

Whirlochre said...

I quite like the idea of being anonymous, though I realise at some point I may have to de-cloak.

But it's true — the McKoala identity has a certain fluffiness which I hope you hang onto. I'm sure those of us who know your real identity will be happy to play along ad infinitum. A mate with multiple berets is fun.

Blogless Troll said...

Bah! Pete beat me to it.

Precie said...

I was just about to say I've definitely thought about this...but I see people have already beat me to it! Even after unfriending blogfriends on FB, I still struggle with how much information about myself to share in various online areas.

As you might guess, I think you have to do what's most comfortable for you. :)

Heather Wardell said...

Well, clearly I go by my name everywhere. :) But I HAVE given it a lot of thought. I use it as a filter in a way: if I'm not willing to have something linked to me, I don't say it online. (Which is NOT to say that I think not using your name is a copout or anything like that - just that for me it keeps me from, say, whining about not having an agent. :)

I worry occasionally about being stalked, but I figure these days it's so easy to find someone if you want to that not using my real name isn't a lot of protection.

I do NOT use the real names of the people in my life, though... my husband is Mr. W on my blog (since it goes with Wardell) and my friends get made-up names too. I get to choose to share my own identity, but I can't choose to share theirs as well.

Heather

Robin B. said...

I use my father's mother's mother's last name, or the first initial, really, on the blogs, and then I have an email address with and without my actual last name, and the only people who have the real one are people I trust and know (I'm one of those people who believes that you can know someone very well through the internet, not right away, but after a while).

I'm OK with that and how it looks to be working, but what I do wonder now is if I should take my picture off. So I know what you mean - I'm just in a different place than you are - I'm just now getting ready to go out in the world with my manuscript.

I don't talk much about writing either, with non-wrigting friends. Of those, only a few know. I don't like being asked 'how it's going' or 'when I'll be finished' by people who have no idea how difficult it is to write something worth another person's paid reading time.

Chris Eldin said...

LOL at PJD! ahahahah! I just posted something in this vein.

You'll always be 'hairy beast' in my book, no matter where you are on the internet.
;-)

fairyhedgehog said...

I've always tried to keep my real name and my fairyhedgehog name separate. I don't really want potential counselling clients or my family seeing me let my hair down quite as much as I sometimes do.

It doesn't always work out smoothly and Facebook is a real pain for that. I would happily leave it, except for the few times I need it to get in touch with people. I could learn far more than I need to know about my son's social life from it.

Robin B. said...

I haven't done a Facebook thing. My girls told me I wasn't allowed to - said I was a Mom and that was a no-no. Hmmmph.

McKoala said...

Sorry I haven't been back for a while!

Aerin, I don't think anyone would know what McK refers to, other than somebody who's been here! And have you noticed the improvement in my scores? I'm coming after you!

Sarah, I remember asking Erica about this at some point. Can't remember what she said though.

Book? What book? Did I write a book? I think that answers that question...grrrowl.

Janey, similarly, I like all the people who come here, and to me Facebook is an extension of that. So no unfriending here! (I beat ya! I beat ya!) Unless you now want to unfriend me...

WO, my real hair is kinda fluffy, like a koalas...

Precie, I know you struggled over that decision, and your blog too.

Yes, Heather, I try to keep family names private, but I think Facebook may end that.

FH, did not even know you were on facebook, so it's working!

'Hairy beast'. Chris, I may have to unfriend you...

Robin, tell them all the other moms are doing it, then they'll shriek something about it being really uncool, un-Facebook themselves and leave it to us...

fairyhedgehog said...

I don't mind you folks meeting me on Facebook! It's my real life friends getting involved in my fairyhedgehog life that I feel uncomfortable about.

My email address (with my real name) can be found on my blog. It's a picture, not a link, in the hope of avoiding the spambots.

Ello - Ellen Oh said...

well shoot I feel left out because I admit to being clueless. Or am I just dense? I will admit to being quite dumb at times too!