From there, I pretty much spent three full days doing nothing else. My agent suggested I keep my first name, so all I had to do was find a last one.

I tried a few family names, but everything had already been taken as far as domain names go. I called friends for suggestions. I practiced signing the different names. I looked up other romance novelists of the same last name. I tried to factor in different ways it would get pronounced. And finally, finally, I picked one.

And you know, the longer I have the name now, the happier I am with it. It fits, and I often give my pseudonym a different personality. She’s pretty awesome.