How do you like to be referred to in the third person? (names, not pronouns)

No worries. Tbh I’m not sure whether an appreciable number of people even use it anyways.

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I’m not picky, but I always appreciate being called “Her Eminence.”

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lol did you read my reply before posting this, or did we independently make the same dumb joke?

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Reminds me of doing historical research, where you have to keep in mind that even within the past 150 years people’s names did NOT have consistent spellings across all records, meaning someone you know of as Charles Lantry may be Charles Langtry in some places and Charles Lanntry in others…

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‘In 2026, many of these authors, including Plotkin, N. Comier, Her Eminence, His Eminence, Their Eminence, The Rat King, B̴̨͍̦͍̞̤̥̋o̷̳͗̌̀̅͐̿̀́̒̾̽̇͝͝͠͝b̴͉̭̻̫̑̓́̌͊̄͑̅̌̉͂͂͜͝, and The Big Cheeze collaborated on a game…’

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Actually answering the thread topic, I tend to prefer just “Tabitha”. alyshkalia is my username here and on itch, and I don’t mind being called that, but Tabitha is preferred!

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I just fired that off without reading the whole thread! Well, it should be entirely clear what the power structure is around here now. Those who fail to comply with appropriately worshipful toadying will be subject to my well-honed Teacher Glare.

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Great minds think alike! And then there’s whatever we are.

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Aster Fialla is fine, then whatever the standard being used (first name or last name) is for other folks’ names.

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I’d suggest when in doubt, you’re probably pretty safe on here using the forum handle people have chosen. And only use the first name/real name if you’re well-acquainted with them and they identify themselves with that name. If they do not list a real name in their profile I’d avoid referring to them by real name if you know it - both for confusion’s sake for people who don’t know the person’s actual name, and for potential privacy/security issues.

For a review, I’d use the listed author’s name because they have chosen to express as that, potentially on purpose for separation from their forum identity.

I keep my real identity far from online social media. I chose a pretty obscure pseudonym mainly because it’s safer for online security, and because my real name is generic enough to be confused with lots of others online (My pseudonym is SO Googlable!), and because I write erotica that I wouldn’t want associated with any mainstream writing I do. Most people refer to me as Hanon or HanonO and that’s totally fine.

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Anonymity is important to me, so I go by Exemptus or Greymagick (my other alias). These have been chosen to minimize ambiguity, but even so there is sometimes. I have one of those double-barrelled-no-hyphen surnames that always lead to confusion, though this is relevant only in very formal settings.

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What about HanonOhOhOh! :wink:

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I hear you, but it can’t be more common than “Jim Nelson.” Hell, I answer to “Hey, you over there.”

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If I’m being talked about as friend or a personal interaction, I prefer Jess.

If I’m being talked about as an artist or a professional interaction, I prefer Joey.

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Okay, you’ve got a good point!

The craziest coincidence I’ve seen is this guy:

He’s called Brian Rushton, he’s the same religion as me (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints), he’s a programmer, and he’s the author of several published sci fi books. We’ve never met (though I messaged him once), but I have to wonder if anyone’s every thought he’s me (even my family might think it’s me!)

(on a less happy note, I just googled Brian Rushton Washington to get more info on this guy and found another one there who was arrested as a sex offender :frowning: there’s a lot of incarcerated Rushtons out there)

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The worst is when your name also works with animal names, and you’re walking with your friends, and a dog owner shouts from a distance “your name” and “Get yer nose outta that dog’s ass!”

Now that’s annoying… and sadly, still annoying to this day. :wink:

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Bit of a drag if you travel a lot.

For several years, every time I travelled to the US I was unceremoniously taken away at Immigration and questioned just because my name was a partial match with someone on their list. This happened despite my name being correctly written in my passports (I have more than one) and being spelled differently. This went on for a while until, suddenly and without explanation, it no longer happened. Maybe they got the other guy in the end?

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They caught him, but let you go, leaving you…

Exemptus

(coming soon to a theater near you)

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Y’know, if anyone on this forum discovered that they were trans and were trying to think of a way to come out with their new name in this space, this thread would be a pretty badass way of doing that.

I would also like to repeat the usual disclaimer that nobody is required to come out of any closet, and while it’s a celebrated moment, it’s also terrifying for a good reason, and it’s only something that you should do when you are ready and feel safe doing so. I’m just saying, though, if you were struggling with how to word the message, Brian has given you a stage, spotlight, and welcome invitation, lol.

Also, any authors who want to change to a (different) pseudonym. Again: badass method. The announcement literally writes itself.

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Rob is not bad.

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