When I began writing, I used my maiden name of Masterson, and my first two initials, C.A. I wrote mostly literary short stories then, but a few mainstream/literary novels too.
Then a friend suggested I submit to one of the online publishers which had accepted one of her stories. A romance publisher. I did, but decided to shorten my name so it was a little snappier. So I became Cate Masters. (Seriously, I think of myself more as Cate Masters than anyone these days - a strange identity crisis.)
I'd already put up a Facebook identity as C.A. Masterson, and so had to make a page for Cate Masters, but whenever I post, I show up as C.A. Masterson. (Confused yet? Join the club!) It seems to confuse and/or disappoint some readers who download my mainstream/literary shorts, and find no romance.
I have some story ideas that are not romance, but wondered - as a reader, does it confuse you to have authors you like write across genres? Do you prefer they keep separate pen names for separate genres, or is that more confusing than one pen name?
Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh for launching the Insecure Writer's Support Group! I need all the support I can get. :)
