Living vicariously in writing (and name thoughts)

[HollyHC]

My most precious hobby is my writing.

For about five years now, I've been authoring little novellas of the sci-fi or fantasy variety. I devise ensembles of characters, and play out an intricate plot against a thought out setting.

But even though each story I think of takes place in different places, or even in seperate fictional worlds, one or more of the characters in each seem to receive attributes directly from me.

I didn't realise I was doing it until I realised I was transsexual, but once I did, I understood that I was living through these characters.

That's how I found the name Holly. It belonged to the most recent of these characters. I used to look through lists of feminine names, not realising that I was picking a name for myself as much as the character.

But anyway, I took on the name without really thinking. It just felt natural, I suppose. So I had a thought. I'd always accepted the name Holly because it felt right. Now I'm surrounded by other names I like as well.

I'm in the middle of thinking out another story, longer this time, and I invented a troubled character called Amberlee Teace.

So I was thinking, what about Amberlee as a name for me?

It's feminine. I could always spell it 'Amberleigh' just to eliminate any remaining confusion.

And it's flexible, I could use Amber or Lee.

And if I'm in a situation where I can't present myself properly for whatever reason, I could just go by a gender-neutral 'Lee' without technically lying (even though I have a postmodern attitude to names at the best of times).

Are there any other unusual names like that that you know of?
Post Merge: March 19, 2010, 08:49:16 PM
Oh, and since I'm here...

I'm coming out to the rest of my family in two weeks. For several months now, only my mother has known, but I want to move forward and this is the most obvious way.

And in case anyone read my previous despairing posts, I feel better now. I have a new place lined up for my last two years of secondary education, and I'm already looking for universities that offer neuroscience undergraduate courses.

My hair still looks terrible though.

[placeholdername]

I did the same in writing -- I'm actually a creative writing major.  One of the things I always noticed was that I was much better at writing stories about girls/women than I was about male characters.  Whenever I tried starting a story with a male character I got bored with it quickly and didn't finish.  I think in the back of my mind I always knew "I'm better at writing female characters because that's actually how I think".  And I was always very happy when one of my female classmates would comment on how well I wrote from a female perspective (if only they knew!).

I've actually sort of stopped writing since I started actual transition stuff -- it's lost some of it's appeal now that I'm starting to do in real life what I could only pretend to do in writing.

[Carlita]

I always knew "I'm better at writing female characters because that's actually how I think".  And I was always very happy when one of my female classmates would comment on how well I wrote from a female perspective (if only they knew!).

Hahaha ... totally relate to that! I write professionally and my books are promoted as very 'male' action thrillers. But I enjoy writing my heroines far more than the male lead and I get that 'You know so much about women,' line a lot. I always say, 'Oh my wife helps me out with that stuff.' But, as you say, the truth is rather different!

Since I came out to my wife and close friends though, my writing has changed. Not in any obvious way, but subtly. For example, I put the book I'm working now through the Gender Genie, which is a totally fascinating algorithm that analyzes male and female writing patterns and detects the gender of the author. It really works in my experience. Anyway, my previous books all come out male (though with a heavy female element) ... the new one, however, is being written by a woman.

You can find the Genie here. It's great!

http://bookblog.net/gender/genie.php

[rejennyrated]

Oh WOW!  We have a nice little writers community starting here.

Ketsy I too now have a new shiny MA in Creative Writing from one of the UK's top universities. Much good may it do me as I'm really struggling to find a publisher in the UK for what I write. My original degree was in Physics which I think sometimes gives my writing a slight twist.

Carlita I'm very jealous that you are published already. As I read pretty widely from ultra girly chick-lit (think Helen Fielding, Jenny Colgan, Anna Maxted etc.) through classic literature (Goethe, Tolstoy), Modern literary (Jacob Ross, Philp Hensher), sci-fi (Marion Zimmer Bradley) and indeed action I may even have read some of your stuff. I've certainly read the well known action writers like, Ludlum, Clancy, Clive Egleton, and Patrick Robinson etc. But don't worry discretion is my middle name.

As a writer I now tend to specialise in Urban Fantasy, look up Kim Harrison, Richelle Mead and Vicki Pettersson, who I have the privilege to have as an online friends, for examples of my sort of stuff.

HollyHC - I also used to write transfiction, my first screenplay was a trans story, and my first novel was a comic tale based loosely on the younger life of my partner, but sadly I have concluded that the market is no longer interested in Trans stories. Everyone said the same things in feedback "very nicely written, but it's all been done, and is no longer a commerical proposition." In any case I have probably written that subject out of my system now, hence my move to pure urban fantasy. By the way I think Amber is a lovely name if you don't like Holly.

@Everyone - I'm currently putting the finishing touches to a trilogy which I have been working on for about two and a half years. So if any of you has any hints and tips about finding a publisher and/or agent and indeed any useful contacts I would be really grateful.

Actually I'm wondering if we should move this thread, or start another one in another section where we could have a "writers corner" a sort of online coffeeshop for us creatives... Anyone?