OLD POST ALERT! This is an older post and although you might find some useful tips, any technical or publishing information is likely to be out of date. Please click on Start Here on the menu bar above to find links to my most useful articles, videos and podcast. Thanks and happy writing! β Joanna Penn
I have been debating the gender issues in the perception of books for a while now, and I have finally made a decision.
Joanna Penn is now J.F.Penn for thrillers/action-adventure/ anything I write that is in a genre that is dominated by men.
I will use Joanna Penn for my non-fiction and other works I have in the pipeline. Why am I doing this?
Feedback and reviews that I write like a man
Pentecost and Prophecy have some pretty violent scenes. I burn a nun to death on the funeral pyres of Varanasi and disembowel a psychiatric patient in the first few chapters.
It's not horror but it is thriller with a high body count and I make no apologies for that.
I like action movies. I like Lee Child's Jack Reacher. I love James Bond. In fact, one day, I'd like to be the first female writer to pen a Bond novel – move over Jeffrey Deaver! But apparently it's worthy of comment when a woman writes this type of thing.
Here's a comment I received by email about Pentecost.Β ‘It seems funny knowing you – I would definitely have thought the book was written by a man…”
and a lovely review stated:
“…this kind of sprawling, globe trotting, religious themed, action adventure thriller is historically the province of men; retired marines, mercenaries or CIA analysts. Or Dan Brown. Itβs what you expect. And Joanna is, self evidently to my well trained eye, a woman. So then my not entirely foolish expectation when perusing her first novel was of something a little more, you know, delicate in character….But wow, beneath her pleasant and chirpy demeanour lurks the black heart of a terrorist interrogator, a fearless adventurer.” [Thanks for the great review Phil!]
I don't mind being compared to a man. It doesn't offend me. In fact, I find it kind of liberating.
But I don't want any consideration of my gender to come up when someone reads my books. I want them to have a great fun read and escape the world for a time.
So if changing my name to initials stops any second thoughts, then it's worth it.
Evidence that the categories I want to rank in are dominated by male names
As I write this, both Pentecost and Prophecy are in the Top 100 Action Adventure titles for the first time. (#5 and #82 respectively but you know it changes every hour!)
I'm excited as this is a category I like to rank in. I also rank consistently in Religious Fiction which is a more varied category.
Action Adventure is certainly male-dominated. Stieg Larsson, George R.R. Martin, John Locke, Steve Berry, Clive Cussler, Lee Goldberg, Tom Anthony, J.A. Konrath… these are the names from the Top 20 as I read them right now. There are a few scattered female names but it's an overwhelmingly male group.
I don't know whether there are more male readers in this category. I certainly buy these authors but I don't think women readers are that hung up on the gender of the author. But apparently men are and they are less likely to buy from a female name. Feel free to say otherwise, male blog readers!
Men also get more attention and reviews. But I won't be changing my gender, for now at least!
Evidence of other female writers who use initials or male names
A number of women writers of successful women writers use initials. The reader doesn't know who they are until they look behind the curtain which, I think, is how it should be.
- NYT bestselling thriller author C.J. Lyons
- Baroness P.D. James, whose honours come from services to literature and who is still putting books out aged 92. ‘Children of Men' seriously rocked.
- J.K. Rowling. A woman in a man's fantasy world.
- Romance author Nora Roberts turned into J.D.Robb for her suspense/crime novels, a more male dominated genre
- Others include M.J.Rose, J.T.Ellison…I could go on…
Using a male name is an option. A now-famous example in the blogging world is James Chartrand who came out as a woman on Copyblogger.com after years of writing as a man. Her business is ‘Men With Pens' and writing as a man totally changed her business. I'll be interviewing James on the podcast and we'll discuss this further.
Does it matter?
The author doesn't matter. The reader matters.
The author's gender shouldn't impact the way the story is read so it's best to make it a non-issue. Initials are neutral. They have no gender bias and I like that approach.
I know there will be some people who disagree. But I do consider myself a feminist in the truly inclusive sense of the word. Men and women are different but equal and we should all have the same opportunities. I want to be a bestselling, name-brand author. This will clearly take some time but I don't want my gender to be an issue either way as I write the books I want to write.
What do you think about gender in publishing? Are initials acceptable for women to write under? Are male buyers influenced by a female author name?
Turndog Millionaire says
first of all, i do like J.F Penn. It’s really strong and stands out
I do find it quite sad though that this happens. It shouldn’t make a difference whatsoever whether the author is a man or woman, young or old. It does seem to happen though and hopefully it helps you sell more
Matt (Turndog Millionaire)
Joanna Penn says
I never liked my middle name but the ‘F’ is pretty strong – it could stand for anything π But it actually stands for Frances. There you go, that’s a little secret about me π
J S says
Is this part of the “Men with Pens” back story? Now, you _could_ go with “Frank Penn” as it’s very straight forward. but turning this around .. how many women would read a Romance book written by a man?
Rather than change your name .. how about updating the sub-title? Make it longer and more descriptive, based on a two second scan of your Amazon page: “Paranormal Thriller of Hostages and Murder solving an old-world Mystery” (then use “arkane series #2” under the title or as a “star sticker” in the corner).
Avik says
I really don’t care about the gender of the writers. There are many examples where female writers used their full name and became famous. I only care about the content whether it’s worth to read. I haven’t read any of your book till now, but I would certainly love to read the one where you burn the nun in Varanasi. Best wishes for your forthcoming thrillers.
Joanna Penn says
That’s in Pentecost Avik – I love Varanasi, it’s one of my most favorite places π
Jane Rutherford says
I have mixed feelings about switching to initials. I mean it’s difficult enough to get noticed, it would be awesome to see more and more women in the men-dominated genres. I don’t think initials are gender neutral, for that matter. We are conditioned to think that (since it’s a men-dominated genre) JF Penn is a guy. Especially, since people pointed out to you that you write like a man.
I suppose I’m one of those people who disagree with you on this subject. You write: I want to be a bestselling, name brand author. This will clearly take some time but I donβt want my gender to be an issue either way as I write the books I want to write
Does it mean that you think you wouldn’t be able to achieve that without switching to initials? If the author’s gender is irrelevant, why switch at all?
Joanna Penn says
Hi Jane, I’m glad you disagree – I expected people to have different opinions. But yes, I do believe I will be more successful in the thriller genre writing as initials, so gender doesn’t even come up.
Jane Rutherford says
Either way, I will keep my fingers crossed for your success π
Joanna Penn says
Thank you Jane and mine are crossed for you too π
Trish Loyd says
It tend to agree with you. I recently saw a documentary called “Miss Representation”, it’s about how the media and culture have really damaged the way women see themselves and how challenging it still is to branch out of the traditionally defined roles. I would love to see more women write for the genres that have been dominated by men, and prove that gender doesn’t matter at all. I understand your reasoning Joanna, and I would be tempted to do the same. Perhaps this is one way to accomplish more equality in these genres, I just wish you didn’t feel that you had to this to have people read your books. Part of me wants to encourage you to just say “Screw it, I’m a woman, deal with it!”. But I’m not in your shoes. I wish you boundless success under whatever name you write under.
Emmie Mears says
I think that she means gender is irrelevant to her but to many readers it might not be. I think absolutely she should be able to achieve that without switching to initials, but in the realm of thriller/suspense novels, that is a massively male-dominated genre. Whether it’s conscious or not, I think readers make a judgment based on name just as they do based on covers, so switching to initials could allow her to reach an audience that could slip through her fingers.
Gender bias still exists.
J.D. Hughes says
You have done the right thing. Men don’t believe that women can write thrillers despite evidence to the contrary.
Gender should not be an issue, but it is, so writers have to react to that reality. If I were writing for a female audience I might be tempted to use a female name, but my dog, who is diligent with the truth would almost certainly object.
JD (male)
Joanna Penn says
Thanks JD, all evidence seems to point to you being correct about this π
I will use Joanna for non-fiction where there is less of a gender bias (I believe anyway)
KA van Wyk says
Wow, this post makes me feel so much better. After months of debating the exact same issue I am currently going through the process of changing my author name for my YA martial arts themed books to my initials rather than my first name.
It will be interesting to see if we find a difference over time.
Joanna Penn says
I’m so glad this helped you. I have been debating it for ages and have just taken the plunge. For martial arts stuff, you could connect to @AlanBaxter who writes awesome fight scenes in his novels as he’s an instructor.
Colin Marks says
J.K. was told to use initials by an early publisher as she was writing in a male dominated sector; it didn’t do her any harm so good luck to you!
I know you’ve been kicking the idea about for a while but I was a bit surprised that you made the change. You’ve achieved excellent success with your first novel, where all the pundits say you need at least three to get any traction, and to have the second and first in a top 100 list is very impressive. You were obviously doing something right already, so fingers crossed the change will continue that success.
Anyway, I hope the new ‘brand’ works! Let us all know how it goes…
Joanna Penn says
Hi Colin,
I think the early success has come from my marketing and then getting good rankings in Religious Fiction – but Action Adventure is where I want to be as well as the more hard core Thriller category. So I want to break into the bigger numbers in those categories where men dominate. Pentecost is heading towards 17,000 sold but that’s not numbers that the big thriller names are selling – I’ll get there π
Thanks for the support.
Mars Dorian says
Wow, interesting choice.
My first thought was – why the hell
But then I looked at my bookshelf and found 99.99% was written by men. I even remember wanting to buy a fantasy book (Called Tintenherz in German, maybe “Ink Heart” in English) and I DIDN’T, because of the female author name. I thought the book would turn out “girly” and cheesy.
I know this is presumptuous, but that’s the first thing that came to my mind and I’m not the only one. World views and perceptions are tenacious, and takes insane momentum to change ’em.
I think you’re doing it right, Joanna – building that name as a new take on your brand. Once you become famous, the gender issues will vanish into oblivion anyways. I know macho-like guys who started reading J.K. Rowling (knowing that she was a woman), because of her fame. Because once you make it, you’re in a league of your own.
Good look, Joanna…eh…J.F. !
Joanna Penn says
Thanks Mars – I’ll still be Joanna on this blog, but most of my fiction buyers don’t hang out here π You guys know me as a woman anyway but I’m more targeting fiction buyers on Amazon with the change.
I’m glad you checked your bookshelf before commenting. It’s amazing what real data will show you about your ‘unconscious’ preferences. I don’t think I am girly or cheesy π hence the change!
Paris Franz says
I’ve been pondering this on and off for a while, as the book I’m writing at the moment is in the action adventure genre. But my name is so weird (and, originally, a male name anyway) that I think it might be better to stick with it, just for the stand out from the crowd, oddness factor! I may use initials for non-fiction work.
Joanna Penn says
I think Paris is a man’s name – as in Paris and Helen of Troy – but I guess others would immediately think Paris Hilton π
But it’s a good name, definitely standout.
Matthew Chan says
I noticed you went to initials. I thought you did it simply because of the genre you were in and that it is the convention, not because of a gender issue. I also thought you wanted to have 2 different personas: the novelist vs. the teacher/consultant/advisor. That way your novel fans didn’t have to “trip over” your Creative Penn endeavors.
Whether anyone wants to acknowledge it or not, there are perceptions with male vs. female authors and genre. I like Star Trek (science-fiction) and Dorothy Fontana used D.C. Fontana as her pen name for the very same reason that the perception was that women couldn’t write good science-fiction (which has obviously been proven wrong for decades). We all choose the battles we want to fight. If you feel that you want to remove that little obstacle in your journey to be a best-selling author, more power to you.
Pen names have and continue to serve a good purpose in creating another identity/persona but also a marketing/brand niche. So, J.F. Penn and Joanna Penn is great. In the future, if you decide to adopt yet another pen name because you want to pursue another publishing genre, go for it.
You are keeping the eye on the prize as should we all.
Joanna Penn says
Thanks Matthew – I also did it to separate from The Creative Penn in some way – but I will use Joanna Penn for my non-fiction e.g. career change book soon to be rebooted. I am finding an increasing separation between me as an author and this business as an entrepreneur and speaker.
I like keeping Penn as it still ties me together – but you’re right, I have also considered other names for other projects that I may want to keep more private π
Natalie Wright says
Well said Matthew.
Abigail Nussey says
I’m a woman trying to break into science fiction, so this hits close to home for me.
I agree that it may very well help a writer to change out the female-obvious bits of her name in order to get more casual reads, not distract readers with her female-writing-bits, and so on. But though it might be good for your career, it’s bad for the rest of us women yet to be published in male dominated genres.
Until readerships become used to women writing thrillers, science fiction, and other male-dominated genres–by us not obscuring the fact that we are women–they will find a female-obvious name distracting. It’s about breaking through and normalizing, about being a pioneer and taking the knocks for the next generation. That’s not easy, surely, and you might lose out some sales, reviews, ranking. But every woman in our situation has to choose what matters most to us.
It’s sad that we still have to be pioneers in the twenty-teens, but do we want our daughters and granddaughters to still have to be pioneers in the twenty-thirties, -forties, and onwards because we wanted a few more sales and reviews that ignored our gender?
Joanna Penn says
Hi Abigail,
I think I am a pioneer in many ways. I am standing out as a female indie author in the publishing world. I have physically had arguments defending indie against the nay-sayers. I stand out for empowerment of authors every day on this site and when I speak and within my online presence.
But I’m a fiction writer so people can enjoy my stories. I don’t need it to be a battle-ground for feminism. At the end of my books is a section about the author where I clearly am a woman, so I’m not hiding. I also think success is the best form of ground-breaking. J.K. Rowling is well known as a successful female in a man’s genre. I intend to follow her example.
I wish you all the best in sci-fi – Ursula K. Le Guin would be an example of a woman sticking with her female name – it takes all sorts. I’ve made my decision and part of being a feminist is being free to choose.
I hope you understand. Thanks.
Abigail Nussey says
Hi Joanna,
I do understand. I’m a size activist in addition to my other causes, and I’ve made the argument before when it comes to getting by in a weight-biased world as a person of size it might just be best to hunker down and live life and not see every choice as a stance or battle.
I wish you the best. By the way, I think J. F. Penn is a cool name on its own merits, and certainly fits what I know of the genre.
Joanna Penn says
Thanks Abigail – it sounds like you’re a fighter too π All the best with your battles.
J S says
You can’t get much more famous than Ursula K. Le Guin in SF – so don’t sweat it.
I’ve read ‘both gender’ authors over the years and found good and bad with the stories.
That’s the key. Get the story right for the market.
When I was twelve and saw Swords & Sorcery book blurbs going more after ‘faeries and unicorns’ I put them back on the shelf but if more standard wizards and sword fighters I’d buy. It was only after I read a couple of books I liked by an author that I’d start seeking out more of their material.
One of which back then was Barbara Hambly (darwath trilogy & ‘those who hunt the night’).
Whom I had started reading after seeing the covers released on the 1980s paperback editions (one had a wizard in a modern kitchen holding a can of beer – I thought it was funny, I read the blurb, the first page, and … hey! all the tricks we self-publishers are trying now). The author’s name wasn’t an issue leading into that. The Publisher’s name was even less important. It was about the story and the characters.
Phil South says
Hi Joanna,
Thanks so much for the name check. π I very much approve of your decision. It’s expectation, not discrimination, that leads human beings to expect certain jobs to to be done by certain people. Think builder you can’t help think of a man, think nurse you can’t help but think of a women, it’s decades of programming at work. It’s an honest mistake but it gets in the way. Sometimes it’s sexism, but mostly it’s just expectation, what you’re used to.
I abhor sexism, or any ism, but in my view when one is writing books one isn’t in the “training people to be less sexist in their expectations” business. One is in the “politely inviting as many people as possible to purchase and enjoy your books” business. Any ways you can clear the road between customers and your wares are good, in my view, short of deception.
Your solution is excellent in that it isn’t gender change but gender neutrality. I imagine men who write romance books may come to a similar conclusion.
Just my 2p
Phil
Joanna Penn says
Thanks Phil, I appreciated your honest review and now, your opinion. We’ll see how it goes with the next books π
David says
Hi Jo,
You already know my opinion-it’s a wise decision. It’s a shame that the prejudice exists, but it’s there, so you’re making a wise decision. (I’ll add C.M. Palov to the list of talented female action-adventure authors writing under initials.) You could certainly choose to be a crusader for female first names in action-adventure but, as they say, martyrdom is its own reward. I suspect you could have a greater impact on that issue somewhere down the road when you have a large catalog and even more readers. I also like the branding angle. Sometimes a successful podcaster will struggle as a writer because people think of her/him as a “podcaster who has written a couple of books” rather than a serious author. Good luck! (Off to change the name on the blurb you gave me…)
Joanna Penn says
Thanks for your support David. You know where I’m coming from with this as we love the same types of books. Thanks for changing my name on your blurb π
S.A. Archer says
I completely agree with you on this Joanna. I love the urban fantasy series by Rob Thurman, which shows a wonderful relationship between two brothers dealing with some pretty nasty paranormal creatures. Rob is a woman. How many people would have looked at the book and thought, “What could she know about gritty urban fantasy, much less the relationship between brothers?” But she does a fabulous job. I was a few books into the series before I found out that Rob was a woman when I heard her giving an interview.
I know the reverse is definitely true for men writing in the romance genre. I have spoken to many romance readers who have confessed that, with all other factors being equal, they would buy a romance written by a woman before one written by a man.
Joanna Penn says
Thanks S.A – I like having all these comments by initial authors π I shall have to start doing that soon. I wonder how many “male” writers are actually women… we know who the big brand names are but most authors are ‘silent’ in many ways. Who knows what the demographics really are π
Colby R Rice says
Hi Joanna! Thanks so much for this awesome post! I’ve always loved writing and have always wanted to be a novelist. Early on I made the decision to write under my pen name “Colby R Rice”, because MY genre, science fiction and fantasy, is a total dude fest! Lol! Not that I have a problem with that, but realizing that my field is extremely male-dominated, AND that it has very little representation of people of color as well, I took on a name that I liked, but that also wouldn’t necessarily deter potential readers from picking up my book. Not trying to push the “chick card” or the “race card” (and I even loathe when people throw those hackneyed terms around to deter political talk), but I do have to realize the reality of my endeavors. Writing is a beautiful vocation, but publishing and selling is a business (a beautiful one as well, but a business nonetheless!). I don’t feel as though my pen name takes anything away from my work; I own it and love it, and it’s aalll mine! On the other hand, my pseudonym was also very much a business decision. π No shame in my game. Thank you so much for bringing this topic to the forefront!
Joanna Penn says
ooh, I like Colby as a name – and yes, this is a business and I need to pay the bills. This was a business decision based on the data available. It clearly brings up a lot of issues for discussion too.
Kate Happenence says
We have such gender stereotypes and if you can’t change them then you’re just going to have to adapt to them. It’s sad that we have such ideas ground so firmly into our heads.
One of my closest friends who studies English literature brought one f her friends, a friend of one of my housemates, around for dinner last week. All she really knew of me was that I was a physicist. I opened the door to them, no make-up on, hair tied back in a ponytail. We manoeuvred around the bikes, the mass of wires and into the kitchen where we made tea. I offered a tour of the house. When we got to my room, her eyes opened in wonder at the room. Origami birds hang from fairy lights strung around bookshelves filled with books, many romance or historical fiction. A sewing mannequin stands in the middle of the floor semi dressed in a short floral dress. The walls are covered with pictures, quotes, decorations, paintings. Fabric, in pretty patterns and colours, is everywhere. High-heeled shoes stand in rows. The Universityβs Naked Rowing Team calendar hangs on the wall.
“What subject did you say you did?” she asked.
Physics.
Joanna Penn says
I went out with a physicist for my University years, and one of my best friends was a physicist – she was an extremely hot blonde and always flustered the stereotypes π So I love physicists. We are a diverse bunch aren’t we!
Brittany Westerberg says
I have thought about what would happen if I used initials instead of my name. I have the added versatility/choice of having just gotten married this past year (Westerberg is my maiden name) while being first published the same year. I’ve decided to stay with my maiden name for my writing for now, though in the future, if I branch out into other genres than fantasy writing, I will look at either using my married name and/or initials.
Frederick Fuller says
What gender is the author? Who gives a rat’ asno? I’ve read fascinating books without ever knowing the author’s gender. Don’t care. Story is all that counts.
As for you, Joanna Penn, use your name. Joanna is a beautiful name, and your novels–I’ve read “Pentecost” and bought “Prophesy” immediately after finishing–are first rate. Gotta find out what happens to Morgan! BTW, please stop writing such page-turners; you’re using up my writing time! Just kidding. Please don’t stop.
Joanna Penn says
Thanks so much Frederick, I appreciate your kind words. I have finished the first research phase of Exodus, the next novel so there will be more kick-ass Morgan adventures soon. I still love my name, but I want to reach readers who don’t even know who I am. I want that NY Times bestseller list π
Leonie Lucas says
While I find it kind of sad that gender does affect perception, I think it works both ways. We see certain genres as male and others as female. I read a fabulous blog post the other day by a guy who had felt somewhat outnumbered at an RWA conference. He wanted to write romance but knew as a guy it would be a challenge.
That said, my personal view is that if it gets you to the reader without making you feel like you are ‘selling out’ (I hate that phrase, btw) then I say go for it!
Oh and I have nominated you for the Versatile Blogger award. I think you rock! π The rules are here: http://leonielucas.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/versatile-blogger-award/
Joanna Penn says
Thanks so much Leonie, I appreciate your nomination – and I do feel for the romance writers who are men – although I think there are more of them who just don’t do conferences π
This is all an experiment – so I shall just keep being honest with you guys and see how it goes – I shall report back. If I sell 200,000 copies all of a sudden, I reckon everyone will be “selling out” !
Brooks J. Young says
Joanna,
It’s been a long time since I’ve been on your blog. As always, you are giving writers and readers food for thought thought on the publishing world. J.F. Penn stands out BIG TIME! For those who only prefer to read books my male writers in the thrillers genre, it gives them pause to guess if you are a man or woman. You can’t tell by the name. Genius!
Love your work. Adore your blog.
Joanna Penn says
You’re lovely Brooks and I know you’ve been a reader and a commenter for a long time so I really appreciate your support. Thank you.
Keith Allen says
I saw that your book images on the site changed last week, and I was thinking, why would she do that? She is Joanna “Friggin” Penn. She fictionally kills nuns and realistically shoots guns, my kind of lady. I kind of get it now after you posted this article. You’ve just chosen to use a pen name for your thriller line, I use a pen name, lots of people do, so go for it! You’ve spent a lot of time building name recognition with Joanna Penn, do you think the switch to initials will have an impact on that one way or the other?
Are you going to spill on what the ‘F’ stands for? I assume its friggin…
Joanna Penn says
The ‘F’ is for Frances but hey, I like ‘friggin’ – maybe I’ll keep that instead π
My recognition for Joanna Penn is all about publishing and the blog which centres around writers. The fiction name is more about reaching people who aren’t in this community at all i.e. the millions of Amazon readers who find authors through the Ranking lists and Amazon algorithm recommendations. They don’t know who I am and I don’t want them to care, or question that my books won’t be a good read.
I’m glad you think they’re fun books though! Thank you.