What’s in a name?

I don’t keep a journal to document my thoughts on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. I just never got into putting everything down on paper. Some of my friends find it cathartic, others find meaning that they hadn’t seen before. Every time I tried, it felt as though something wasn’t quite right. So I stopped.

Now, why in the world am I creating a journal here for everyone to see? That is a good question. My goal is to curate a space to bring to life, and unmask, N.L. Blandford. So often people put forward the “filtered” or “cleaned up” versions of themselves to the public. I am hoping that this space will allow you to get to know a little bit about me, and my journey as an author, without all the layers. 

Let’s get started. 

As the reality of actually self-publishing a book set in, I needed to decide if I would use my married name, my maiden name or an altogether new ‘pen’ name. I admit that part of the reason I considered not using my married name was fear of retribution if people didn’t like what I had written. I let go of that fear, but another took its place. People would sometimes mispronounce my last name by replacing the “a” to an “e”. This resulted in a last name that wasn’t mine at all and could be very confusing if people were trying to ‘find’ me. 

I thought about using some form of my grandmother’s name. However, I discovered existing authors with those names. I couldn’t wrap my head around designing a name that was not in some way connected to me. Would I even be able to get used to being called “Alice” or “Penelope”? Nope. I needed to stick as close to myself as possible. 

That’s when I decided I would use some of my initials and my maiden name. N.L. Blandford. It’s an authoritative name, fitting for an ambitious woman who creates strong female protagonists.  Married name versus maiden name, they all belong to the same person. Both are me and I am them. 

There were no outside influences in this decision. Just the inner voice saying “be you, and only you, however you decide to be her.”

N.L. Blandford
February 14, 2021