I've been thinking about pen names for awhile, and while I think I've come to a decision, I'm still uncertain. Shakespeare of course has his famous line "What's in a name? that which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet" (R&J II:ii [by the by, Juliet had all the best lines in that play. Romeo was a wuss]). And in this information age, it's not like people would not find out who I am, so is it better to use a name which might sell better, or to be me (or not to be me, that is the)? I know not for certain, though lean towards mine own name (Blame Shakespeare for my linguistic style slipping).
In the past I leaned towards a pen name because I didn't believe my own name sounded flashy enough to garner attention, but now I'm believing that using my own name might be more beneficial, particularly in efforts to gain representation. If I put myself out there under my pen name, then various bloggers and twitterers will not recognize the name of some unassuming querier, but if I use my real name, there might be a spark of recognition. More than that, I've been considering my placement on bookshelves, and have come to realize that I would receive placement next to the revered, vaunted man who dared to describe humanity as "Mostly harmless".
So, I shall put it out there to ask commenters (of which there are almost none), is a pen name better to use than a real name? I'll put a poll up to make voting convenient, and probably leave it up a week.