One of the most baffling things surrounding chick lit (and undoubtedly other genres) is the pseudonym. I can absolutely understand why some authors like to choose themselves a pseudonym when changing the genre/tone of their books - Madeleine Wickham/Sophie Kinsella is a prime example. What I don’t understand is the secrecy surrounding some well-known pseudonyms. I could reel off quite a list of authors I know for sure are pseudonyms as well as a list of possible authors writing under a pseudonym. I won’t, because I respect their privacy, but I sure as heck will question it.
There are a few authors whom we know about who write under pseudonyms. Madeleine/Sophie is a prime example. Chris Manby also writes under Olivia Darling and Anna Maxted now writes under the name of Sasha Blake (which was probably the worst kept secret in publishing history). All of those were for a genre change. Madeleine Wickham’s earlier books were more women’s fiction than chick lit whereas her books under Sophie Kinsella are light-hearted chick lit books. Chris Manby and Anna Maxted’s books under their own names are chick lit whereas their works under Olivia Darling and Sasha Blake are big, fat blockbusters of books. Josie Lloyd also fits under the same category. She wrote novels by herself before writing with husband Emlyn Rees before a genre change means she now publishes under Jo Rees. I find all of those name-changes perfectly acceptable because the fact is we now know who exactly they are.
What really gets me is when there’s so much secrecy about an author changing her name to help promote her books because her books under her own name didn’t sell well or whatever the reason may be. As a reader I want to know who these authors are. I want to be able to do an author interview with them or email them to tell them I loved their book without feeling cheated because they aren’t who they say they are. If, for example, Katie Fforde wrote under a different name I would want to know because I adore her books and would want to read anything she’s written. The same goes for a number of authors I suspect of having different pen names - I, the reader, would want to know so I could seek out all of the books a certain author has had published.
Surely if a well-established chick lit author decided to write something different to her usual stuff then the best way to market her new stuff would be to tell everybody exactly who that person really is so that people who love the author can buy her new work? The entire Anna Maxted affair was really stupid. We were told that she was writing under the pseudonym of Sasha Blake but that the publishers didn’t want anybody to know. Why? Why, why, why? The fact is, it has all come out now so why did the publishers feel so strongly about keeping it a secret? Wouldn’t the publishers have been better off telling us all from the off that Anna Maxted had decided on both a genre change and a name change and that if we wanted to buy it, you could find her under the name of Sasha Blake? Easy. And there’s no need for secrecy. I felt a bit of a fool when we posted up our interview with mysterious author Sasha Blake only to find that everyone knew it was Anna Maxted.
What makes it even worse is that when I buy a book I always look for an author photograph and a biog just to get a feel of the author. When they’re missing, it becomes blindingly obvious the author in question is undoubtedly writing under a pen name. They might as well have a neon sign on the cover declaring “I am not an actual person, I’m writing under a pen name!” in big letters. I would very much like if anyone could tell me just what use using a pen name is. People are more likely to buy a book by an established author than they are an author they’ve heard absolutely nothing about and can’t find any information about, either. Be honest, authors, and tell us who on Earth you are. We don’t care if you had poor sales or if you’re writing a different genre now, just tell us who you are so we can get all of your books. Easy.
When Carla Kelly marries Robert Gardiner after a whirlwind romance, their happiness is complete when Carla discovers she’s pregnant. Tragedy strikes two days after baby Isobel is born, though, when Isobel is snatched without reason. Meanwhile, Susanne and David Dowling are celebrating the birth of their miracle child Joy. However Susanne is hiding a terrible secret and in her bid to keep her secret a secret, she rears Joy in near-isolation. 
