Donna Schlacter
By Donna Schlacter
Leeann, my alter ego, and I were chatting the other day.
She wanted to know why I created her.
“I was writing and hoping to publish in two different genres: historical suspense and contemporary suspense. I didn’t want to confuse my readers by writing in different genres.”
“How did you pick my name?”
“My husband’s middle name is Lee, his mother’s middle name is Ann, and my mother’s nickname in nursing school was Betts.”
“Isn’t making up a name illegal?”
“Not unless I’m trying to avoid a legal claim or defraud somebody.”
She chewed on her bottom lip, a funny habit she has. “How do you keep us straight?”
I smiled at her. “First of all, you’re cute and perky and all the things I’m not. Second, you write different stories than I write.”
Leeann Betts
“Such as?”
“Most of my historical suspense are stories about women who have made some bad choices, and now they want to straighten out their lives. Your stories are about stronger, quirkier women who are driven to excel.”
“Sounds like you.”
Now it was my turn to chew my bottom lip. Maybe she inherited that trait from me. “But the women you write about don’t know they are strong. Or quirky. And the women I write about are just like me. Hoping it’s true that God is a God of second chances. And finding out He is.”
“So we’re different but the same?”
I patted her on the head like she was an obedient puppy. “Exactly.”
Question for readers: Leave a comment in response to the following question, and enter a random drawing for a free print (US only) or ebook version of Leeann’s latest release, Silent Partner.
Do you feel that an author who uses a pen name is lying in some way, or do you like the fact that you know what kind of book you are picking up because of the author name?
About the Author:
Donna lives in Denver with husband Patrick, her first-line editor and biggest fan. She writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts. She is a hybrid publisher who has more than 25 published books under her pen name and under her own name. Donna is also a ghostwriter and editor of fiction and non-fiction, judges in a number of writing contests, and teaches online and at conferences. Donna loves history and research, and travels extensively for both.
You can find Donna online at:
www.HiStoryThruTheAges.wordpress.com
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/DonnaschlachterAuthor
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/DonnaSchlachter
Books: http://amzn.to/2ci5Xqq
Echoes of the Heart: http://amzn.to/2lBaqcW
And you can find Leeann online at:
Website: www.LeeannBetts.com Receive a free ebook just for signing up for our quarterly newsletter.
Blog: www.AllBettsAreOff.wordpress.com
Facebook: http://bit.ly/1pQSOqV
Twitter: http://bit.ly/1qmqvB6
Books: Amazon http://amzn.to/2dHfgCE and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2z5ecP8
Thank you, Cindy, for having me on your blog today!
Great post. What a cute way to get the information across! Creative and witty. I love the “dialogue.” : )
I appreciate it when authors do that! I started reading Elizabeth Peters’s books thirty years ago. I loved them. Then I learned that she also wrote in another genre as Barbara Michaels, and I did not like those books! That made it easy for me to find the books I would like and avoid the others.