Photo from www.2pep.com
For an idea of just how ubiquitous co-authored fiction has become, take a quick look at Wikipedia’s Literary Collaborations, as incomplete a list as it is a daunting one.
It’s no accident that genres that tend to spawn collaborations are a little bit out-there and lots of fun to plot. Sci fi, fantasy, paranormal, thriller, romantic suspense. They often require more than one head. (Just how to put those heads together is the subject of another post!)
Co-authors are of particular interest to me because I’m part of a team writing a YA paranormal. It’s a real kick, due, in part, to the freedom we feel to let our imaginations run wild in brainstorming sessions. The plot, in fact, comes easy. Our biggest decision is what to call ourselves. Do we come up with a pseudonym or list our names?
The hardest thing about a single nom de plume, it appears to me, is how to introduce the writing team. Do we speak in the singular or plural? Take this bio, for example, from the wonderful P.J. Parrish’s website (then check out our Laura's review of Parrish's latest on Criminal Element):
“P.J. Parrish is the New York Times bestselling author of ten Louis Kincaid and Joe Frye thrillers. The author is actually two sisters, Kristy Montee and Kelly Nichols. Their books have appeared on both the New York Times and USA Today best seller lists. The series has garnered 11 major crime-fiction awards, and an Edgar® nomination. Parrish has won two Shamus awards, one Anthony and one International Thriller competition. Her books have been published throughout Europe and Asia.”
Might it be easier to just spill it? Let the world know you’re a team from the get-go, as in Sci Fi’s The Golden Key, by Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson, and Kate Elliott. All three names appear on the cover.
These two: C. T. Adams and Cathy Clamp (“also writing as CAT Adams”) use both approaches. Then there’s Charles Todd, who is actually Charles-Todd-along-with-his-mother, Carolyn, who appears to have sacrificed something in the hitch up.
Most recently, and in keeping with the hype about Swedish thrillers, was an interview on NPR’s Morning Edition with the Swedish author Lars Kepler who wrote The Hypnotist. Ahem. In this review by Barry Forshaw, we learn:
“There were those who felt that the writer ‘Lars Kepler’ was notably overhyped in Sweden ahead of this debut crime-fiction novel. The concealing pseudonym became a major news story. Just who was the mysterious Kepler? After the publication of The Hypnotist – which enjoyed acclaim and bestseller status in Sweden – local media inaugurated a frantic search for the enigmatic author. It was subsequently revealed that 'he' was a husband-and-wife team, both hitherto literary authors, writing in tandem: Alexandra and Alexander Ahndoril. Unveiled and pressing the flesh in London, the two Alexes turned out to be a charming couple who admit that their ‘serious’ careers have stalled since the Frankenstein's monster that is Mr Kepler entered their lives.”
I recall from Morning Edition that this husband and wife used to argue fiercely until they came up with a pseudonym, began thinking and talking about - and to - “him” as a person, and fed him tea and lemon biscuits, although they themselves prefer coffee. Apparently the three of them now get on famously.
(Read the whole fabulous story about how Lars Kepler was outed, written by the author him/herself on Criminal Element!)
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