The Lowdown on Writing Under a Medium Pen Name

Enough of you have asked, so here are the goods

I’m not the first person to write under a pen name on Medium, nor will I be the last. And by far, I’m not the most prolific pen name writer here but I’ve definitely learned enough about it to share.

I published this in my Journal of Firsts not because it’s the first time I’m mentioning it, but because I like to mindfully track progress. If that includes helping others progress, then I’m happy to do so.

In the past couple of months I’ve received plenty of inquiries from other writers about what it’s like, how to do it, and whether or not it’s complicated maintaining two Medium profiles. I’ve written this so I have somewhere to direct future inquiries.

When I started my second account I had nothing to refer to. I just winged it and tried things out. Here’s what I’ve learned that others will inevitably ask me again in the future.

Why write under a pen name?

I did it for a few reasons. One of the main reasons is because without my pen name, it felt like writing with only half a brain. Having two accounts allows me to write EVERYTHING, not just some things.

In a way, I wish I would have started out with two accounts from the get-go because I’ve written a few pieces as myself that could have been written much more earnestly as someone else. But we live and learn, right?

My pen name also protects identities. Not everything in my life is as cut and dried as I make it out to be in my own stories. Other people are involved and they deserve privacy. If I had written about them under my own name, anyone who knows me personally may be able to identify these people.

My pen name gets to write as an angry woman, a sexual woman, an opinionated woman, and as someone with a gritty past life.

If I had to summarize my experience writing under another name, I would say it has offered me unparalleled freedom as a writer and as a woman. I’m not as ‘square’ as I may appear in what I write as myself.

Take caution while writing under a pen name

You need to adjust your writing style and voice when writing under a different name. This is something I learned very early on in this game of dual personalities.

It took less than a week for another writer to spot my second identity and call me out on it. I used to have a tiny writing quirk that I was unaware of, which was obvious enough to one person that he picked me out immediately.

He is someone who followed my main account so he already knew my writing. He was also kind enough to email me privately and point out the quirk so I could stop doing it. Thank you, kind sir. You know who you are.

Another cautionary piece of advice — you should adjust your tone and style. You may not be aware of readers who have become familiar enough with your own writing to be able to peg you under another name.

I read several writers under dual profiles and can see how certain ones have adjusted their writing accordingly, so as not to be discovered.

How do you actually set up the account?

This is probably the most frequent question others have asked me, and it’s simple. Log out of your main Medium account and create a brand new one from scratch. Choose whatever name you wish to use.

I highly suggest creating a brand new Gmail account that matches the name of your pen name profile. A) So there’s no risk of being found out by an email address, and B) Because Google/Gmail makes it easy to log in and out between accounts on the Medium login page.

Both of your Medium accounts can be linked to the same Stripe account, so your Medium payments come to you in one single lump each month.

Do you pay for two Medium memberships?

Absolutely, and you should. Why? Because it’s only fair.

If you’re expecting others to read your writing, resulting in earnings for you, it’s only right that your second account is helping other writers earn their living too. If you don’t want to pay for your second account, you shouldn’t have one.

This is a community of opportunity for everyone, so treat it accordingly.

How do you promote your pen name stories?

When I first started out I didn’t promote at all. I just wrote and hoped for the best, using the knowledge I’d already gained from many months of writing as myself. My pen name was not on social media and the funny thing is, she did wonderfully on her own.

Building a following has been slower but by reading and interacting with other writers under that profile, it’s getting there.

My second profile is now on Twitter and has a small core group she interacts with, but aside from that she still just writes whenever inspiration hits her. Surprisingly, she’s actually cashing in far better than my real account. I have found this to be the case with other pen names as well.

Part of the beauty in writing under another identity is the freedom away from all the social promoting. I just write, publish, and enjoy the ride with no pressure. Sometimes she hits, sometimes she flops. Either way, I still feel freedom and joy from putting it out there.

Does Medium penalize dual accounts?

Not that I’m aware of, and why should they? If you’re paying your dues under multiple accounts it only benefits the community as a whole.

As a writing platform they probably realize that pen names are a thing among writers. Anything you write under a pen name could have easily been written as yourself, except now you’re paying for the ability to write it as someone else.

Are there down sides to it?

So far, the only drawback is the Medium app. I can’t seem to be able to flip back and forth between accounts within the app.

This is only frustrating when I’m not at home in front of a laptop. Sometimes I’ll receive emails under my other account notifying me of comments and I can’t address them as my pen name within the app. I have to wait until I get home to log on.

This is actually a cautionary tip too. Avoid clicking through from those emails on your cell phone because the app will open as your main account. The last thing you want to do is forget who you are and make a comment as yourself by mistake.

What is the biggest benefit?

If you’ve been writing on Medium for a solid length of time as yourself, the biggest pro of creating a pen name is having a chance at a do-over.

We learn so much about navigating this platform over time. By the time you create a second account you’re no longer a beginner. You’re able to do all the things you wish you had done in the beginning, as yourself.

For example, the very first thing I did as my pen name is start a personal publication to house nearly all my stories. I’m able to organize them the way I wished I had in my own beginnings, except I didn’t know the benefits of it back when I first started out. Now I do, so this is a very different and intentional journey.

Another example; I knew about curation the second time around so I immediately geared my writing toward it rather than fumbling my way through. My very first pen name article was triple curated, partially due to the fact that I already knew what I was doing.

I think that covers everything I can come up with in answer to the many questions I’ve been asked. If you have more, feel free to comment below. I’m sure I, or other pen name writers have useful information.

Thanks for reading this entry in my Journal of Firsts:

If you enjoyed this story, here’s my non-intrusive way of ushering you toward my newsletter. When you subscribe, I’ll know you’re cool with hearing from me once in a while.