#pseudonyms — Public Fediverse posts

I Rented a Car using a Private Digital Identity

https://apertatube.net/w/r9eZXioUmKKKgVSChiD9Pn

Tues. June 30, 2026: A Little Bit of Many Things

Tuesday, June 30, 2026

Last Day of Full Moon

Pluto & Mercury Retrograde

Sunny and warm

Welcome to a new week. Tomorrow, a new month begins. Everything feels very fast right now.

The Community Tarot Reading for the Week is available here.

All hail Gracie the Giraffe, who went on the lam for two weeks. How can one lose a giraffe anywhere, but in Texas? Giraffes are kind of. . .noticeable.

She escaped from a ranch where exotic animals are bred and hunted for sport. I hope she’s garnered enough support so she’s not taken back there to be murdered, and I hope that enough people now know about that evil “ranch” to do something about it.

Friday, I folded and put away laundry and tended the plants. Then, I sat down and got the June newsletter out, which should have gone out on Thursday, but did not. So it went out Friday morning. Mailer Lite made two changes within a week that makes things less palatable. I’m hoping I can hang on and do the big switchover in January or February before the March newsletter, and hang in there for this year’s September and December newsletter.

I’m honestly tempted to just do it from an email account again at this point.

I set up the document for September’s newsletter, so I can add to it as things happen, and I’m not scrambling the day the newsletter is supposed to go out. I’ve been doing that for a good stretch now, and it works. I add in the greeting and the writing tip the day I prep the final copy, but the rest is done, and just has to be finagled into the template, with the appropriate graphics added. Makes the whole process much smoother. It means getting the newsletter out takes only an hour and a half, instead of a half a day.

I was paid for the latest batch of book reviews, which was good.

I worked on the short story. The story is coming along fine, but the word count in the submission guidelines is weird, so I’m not sure how I can adjust without padding too much. Or if I have time to come up with something else. I’d rather have a whimsical piece of flash fiction. This piece feels like it’s better aimed at a different market.

Gave the first two episodes of the radio series a thorough polish. They are in good shape. The third episode got some work done on it, and is very close. Wrote about 6 pages on the 4th episode. I still need a pithy name for it.

Got notes back from the ghostwriting client, but it was too late in the day to start tackling that, so that went on Monday’s schedule.

My mom heard back that her chest Xray was clear, so that’s good news.

Cooked dinner, read a colleague’s novel in the evening. It was stuffy in my room when I went to bed, so I put on the cooler and Charlotte was delighted with her light show.

Up a little later than usual on Saturday, but still before 5:30. Morning routine was fine. I sat in meditation for 40 minutes rather than 30, which was good. The free-write session was more organizing my brain than getting anything useful done, but sometimes that’s the most useful thing.

Dashed down to Cumberland Farms for a quick errand, waving to the new neighbor moving into the upstairs apartment in the green house across the street. Caught up with a couple of other neighbors out walking their dogs.

Got some housework done, some writing that had to be done to catch up on a couple of things (without being project-related). It was a little more humid and much warmer on Saturday, with predictions we will hit 95 degrees by tomorrow. Ick. Just ick.

I really wanted some time off. I took most of the morning for myself, enjoying it. After lunch, I took a look at the ghostwriting notes, some of which make me very unhappy, but too bad for me. I need to turn it around and have it signed off so I can invoice.

I also contacted an agency I’m signed with for freelance work and demanded that they delete my information/take me off their roster. They are pushing their freelancers toward AI, which means they are an unethical company and can fuck right off. It was my intent anyway to part ways with them soon – they’ve gotten steadily more useless for me over the past couple of years – but this email telling me I should “upgrade” my list of skills by listing AI just sent me over the edge.

I have worked with dozens of temp agencies all over the country since I was old enough to start working. A good temp agency knows their list of contract temps individually, with detailed information on the individual’s skills, availability, and what they’re looking for. And then they matchmake with clients who need people with those skills to fill in for whatever amount of time.

This agency ignores all of this. Every time they send an opening, you have to go through the entire process, including re-uploading the resume and answering all the questions and doing a cover letter again. It’s the computer age – they should be able to click my name and the information is there. If they need more specifics about something, get in touch and ask, but don’t expect me to go through the whole rigamarole for every listing when I’ve already got a profile on your company’s site. That is offloading YOUR administrative work on me as unpaid labor. If a supervisor could walk over to a file cabinet and pull out a paper file in the days before computers and get my information, a hiring agent can click a button to pull up my resume and look at what I’ve listed as what I’m looking for/good at in relation to different positions. Not to mention that I listed myself as available for very specific types of assignments and ONLY for remote. Not hybrid. Not on-site (especially not across the country on-site). Remote and asynchronous. I am not working until 8 PM my time because someone on the west coast can’t get their act together before 5 PM my time (2 PM their time). They had come highly recommended to me several years back, and my initial discussions with them were fine, although I didn’t land any work through them. But the last few years? Every exchange is a total nightmare, disrespectful, and a waste of my time. Done. Buh-bye.

I mean, I contacted them on a weekend, nothing would have happened until yesterday, anyway, but I felt so much better for telling them to remove me from their mailings and database.

The earthquakes in Venezuela are horrific, and, typically, our country’s response is inadequate, especially after the grift and damage the administration inflicted on the country earlier this year.

Heated up leftovers for dinner, had a quiet evening.

Slept well (surprisingly) and was awake early on Sunday even before feline demands. Sunday is my longer morning yoga practice, and then I sat a 40-minute meditation again instead of a 30-minute. In the morning free-write session, I drafted a whimsical piece of flash fiction. Structurally, it’s similar to Sarah Addison Allen’s drabbles that she posts on Sundays.

I typed it up, revised it a few times, and sent if off ahead of the June 30th deadline (today). I will go back and work on the other story I originally thought I would aim at this call and let it be itself instead of forcing it into a different box, and aim it at other publications. If this flash fiction is rejected, I already have a list of other markets that pay more to which to aim it.

Anyway, that was all done and out the door by 7:30 in the morning, while biscuits baked in the oven. This is probably the last time I can use the oven until September.

It’s supposed to hit 100 F by Thursday, and just the thought of it is overwhelming.

Did the chores, and tended the plants. Did the Community Tarot Reading for the Week, which you can read here. This is our last week with the Mystic Mondays Tarot. I love the modern interpretations and the bright colors.

I realized that I don’t have to come up with an episode title for the 4th episode of the radio series, because I already did so in the pitch document. And it works!

I turned around the ghostwriting notes (yes, I know, I shouldn’t be working on a weekend, but. . .) and sent them off. With some complications coming up this week and Mercury going retrograde, I wanted to get it out the door.

So I did, and they will have it waiting for them when they start their Monday workdays. The ghostwriting client is really good about workday boundaries. It’s one of the things I appreciate about them.

I read a bit in the afternoon, including the weekend edition of our local paper, THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE, which I’d picked up as a print edition. It was better than the issue of the BOSTON GLOBE I picked up a month ago. I got my act together and put on Real People clothes and some make-up, got my umbrella, and headed to Bear & Bee Bookshop, which was having a 5th anniversary celebration. They opened only a week or so after I moved here, and we are both still here, which is a good thing!

It was raining lightly on the walk down, but I had the umbrella, so it wasn’t bad.

I caught up with a bunch of people I knew and met a bunch more people who love books, so there was lots to talk about. There’s always lots to say around people who love books. There was a book exchange and ice cream cake and trivia. It was a really fun time, and I’m glad I went.

It was lovely and sunny by the time I trotted home. In the book exchange, I got a book about Vermont’s natural life, and I’m looking forward to reading it.

A long-time friend of mine, with whom I’ve collaborated in the past, has a terrific idea for a project. I’m so thrilled she thought of me, and I think we can have some fun with it.

Heated up the dinner, and had a quiet evening. Slept reasonably well, and didn’t even get up until 5:30 on Monday morning. It’s kind of sad when 5:30 leans toward “sleeping in” but here we are. I had the fans running to cool things down as much as possible before it got hot, and it was really lovely and pleasant at the start of the day.

Mercury Retrograde reminded me it started by not starting the coffeepot in the morning, but we got it sorted.

In the morning free-write, I decided on a different direction for one of the multi-book arcs in the Nina Bell series which I think will serve the overall series better. I will have to adjust my notes. It starts in Book 6 and will wrap in Book 8.

The agency got back to me about their whole involved process about removing me from their roster. Yeah, whatever, let’s get it done. I found it interesting that they didn’t ask any questions about WHY I wanted to be removed. If they do, they are going to get an earful. By mid-afternoon, though, it seems everything is going through.

Caught up on a friend’s blog about her recent move in hot, humid weather. Yup, I can relate. I’m so glad she and her husband and the dog are in their new place that they own. Big relief once the old place is in the past, always, even when there are good memories.

Got some admin done, then had to go out and deal with something in person this morning. It went smoothly, but I did not have the energy to deal with the other thing that needs dealing with, so I will try to get that done today. That’s not in-person, just emails with cc’s to the appropriate regulators so they can stay in the loop and bitch slap where needed.

I ordered some books on the topic for the collaborative project and emailed back and forth with my friend about it. I read some background material that will be useful on several projects, and there will definitely be a reference to at least one of it in the 4th episode of the radio series.

It was warm, but not too humid, and really quite lovely.

Wow, okay, the situation where author Kennedy Ryan was doxxed by some twatwaffle angry that she uses a pen name needs to be addressed. Authors have been using pen names since there were authors. I bet some of the cuneiform creators used them on the clay tablets. There are dozens of reasons why someone chooses a pseudonym. I work under several. There are both business and personal reasons.

The only time it’s been an issue was when I lived in my previous location. Way too many people treated me similarly to the way doxxing twatwaffle treated Kennedy Ryan. Whether it was refusing to put the name of choice on an event flyer, posting photos of me when I specifically asked not to, etc., etc., every event became a fight. Those actions caused me to lose at least one series contract, because the information made public was considered a breach of contract, and allowed a stalker to find me after I’d managed to evade him for several years. So I have Very Strong Opinions about twatwaffles who doxx creatives.

The only thing authors owe readers is a good book. And every book isn’t going to be right for every reader. You don’t like a book? Put it down and move on. There are books you will love. But authors do not owe you all the details of their lives. They owe you good stories. And have the right to separate their lives from their work.

If a corporate asshole can literally cost someone their life (as insurance agents do daily) and hide behind “company policy” then an author can have the privacy wall of a pen name that doesn’t affect anyone’s experience of the book.

More and more authors are leaving the public space, knowing sales will take a hit. Heck, I’ve pulled back from social media a lot in these past couple of months (including marketing) and I don’t intend to do a full content calendar again until August. Is it affecting my sales? Yes. Is it helping my creative life and general well-being? Also yes.

I miss the old bulletin board days on CompuServe! (And I still have friends I made there).

I got stung by a wasp last night. I treated it first with Witch Hazel and then with lemon juice. Someone once told me the acid in the lemon juice counters the alkaline in the wasp venom. I don’t know if that’s true, but it helped the sting. Vinegar is also supposed to work, but it was easier to grab the lemon juice. Wasps don’t leave stingers in the sting site, so at least I didn’t have to worry about that. I was worried my throat would close up, but that didn’t – huge step in immune system improvement from previous years. Having to pay a $2K ambulance fee (and then ER fees) because I got stung by a wasp was not an option, and I was in no shape to drive myself. But it was handled. I had some nausea and dizziness, but my airways stayed clear. Which is a good thing, since insurance no longer covers EPI pens. I dosed the sting site every couple of hours with lemon juice, and it made a big difference.

You know, the whole not dying and all.

The sting site looks like I got a COVID shot and the arm hurt the way it does about 12 hours after such a shot for most of the night. It’s still sore this morning, but the heat and the swelling have gone way down.

Charlotte started fussing around 3:30 this morning, so I put her in her playpen. She was having so much fun in there that she didn’t even notice when I unzipped the flap so she could come out for breakfast. And I got about an hour and a half more sleep.

On today’s agenda is writing, since I gave myself the day off yesterday. I’m still waiting for the all-clear to invoice the last ghostwriting project. I need to deal with the issue I didn’t deal with yesterday, because I was too worn out with dealing with the other issue. I will work on the radio series and BETTING MAN.

I was sent the link to participate in BreakUp 250, the large collaborative art project, by a artist colleague from Boston, and I will play with ideas for that.

It’s supposed to be warmer today. Starting tomorrow, we’re in a 3-day heat dome. Ick. Just ick.

Stay cool and hydrated.

💁🏻‍♀️ TIL: ✍️🎭 #BenjaminFranklin kept creating fictional characters – Silence Dogood, Poor Richard Saunders, Sidi Mehemet Ibrahim – to publish opinions his real name couldn’t carry.

These alter egos let the Founding Father critique authority, satirize slavery apologists, and experiment with #ideas, all from behind a mask. Historian David Waldstreicher says it gave Franklin "the most freedom" he ever knew.

👉 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/among-all-great-things-benjamin-franklin-invented-discovered-alter-egos-gave-him-most-freedom-180988824/

#history #inventions #satire #pseudonyms #philadelphia #london #freespeech #abolition #almanac #printing #science #media

#xAI Asks #Court to Strip Alleged #Grok #Deepfake #Nudes Victims of #Anonymity

Four people suing Elon Musk's #AI firm under #pseudonyms due to the risks of being #identified may face a difficult choice: Reveal your real names, or drop the lawsuit.
#musk #privacy

https://www.wired.com/story/xai-asks-court-to-strip-alleged-grok-deepfake-nudes-victims-of-anonymity/

⚖️ Companies are trying to use #pseudonyms to get out of GDPR compliance. This could soon be made easier – at least if the EU Commission's #DigitalOmnibus passes. Watch now to learn more!

👤 featuring data protection lawyer Levan Lobzhanidze

#GDPR #EU

Does #mastodon.social #instance / #server #rules include any specific rule against #ageism or #age #discrimination? I am not finding any. Have I simply overlooked it?

This instance’s #moderation seems to condone or even encourage, through lack of #enforcement , #age related #abuse of #seniors #elderly and those who have been around long enough to have actually #witnessed some stuff. And it typically comes from accounts using #pseudonyms to hide behind as they hurl their #attacks

Timeless #Female #Authors Who Wrote Under #Male #PenNames

A look inside the lives of several female authors who used male #pseudonyms to shape #literature and bypass #societal boundaries.

https://www.mentalfloss.com/literature/authors/female-authors-who-used-male-pen-names?utm_source=RSS

🚀 Welcome to Freakpages: where your IP becomes your new best friend and you can finally learn about the mating habits of the lesser-spotted, double-backed lemming. 🦆 Because who doesn't want to scroll through a Wikipedia knockoff with more #pseudonyms than a spy novel? 🤔
https://freakpages.org/ #Freakpages #IPlearning #LemmingMating #WikipediaKnockoff #HackerNews #ngated

Sometimes I Wish I Used A Penname

Confessions and confusions of writing under your own name Continue reading on The Writing Cooperative »
https://writingcooperative.com/sometimes-i-wish-i-used-a-penname-f314187723d

#writingcareer #theshortofit #writerspenname #writingcommunity #pseudonyms
@indieauthors

My sister suggested I open a pseudonymous #Facebook account through a #VPN.

I told her Facebook doesn't allow #pseudonyms

#SocialMedia

#WritersCoffeeClub
Day 21: Have you practiced your autograph or your selfie pose for your best seller?

Have I practiced those things for when I'm a best seller? No, because becoming a best seller isn't my goal in the publishing industry.

I have practiced my autograph though. It would be kinda of odd if a fan ran up for an autograph and I signed my real name instead of the pseudonym that's on the cover.
#AmWriting #pseudonyms

a dilemma of personae: 🎭

0. public communication should be adequate, relevant & timely;

---

1. situational #pseudonyms make good sense.

all in one basket? no! the risks, crucially, depend on *future* circumstances. eek

---

2. information available to adversaries only ever increases;

identities can merge, voluntarily or not, but easily; hardly split.

---

3. areas of interest don't compartmentalize.

cut the web anywhere, miss
valuable connections!

---

it's all about tradeoffs

So the #times #tol now wants all comments online posted under real names rather than "whatever name U choose".I am annoyed about this.

This after years of failing to weed out the obvious #trolls. Many people use #pseudonyms to avoid having future issues with employers.

@oryansBelt @philosophy

What context do you mean specifically about changing names? (marriage, for example?)

#ID in general is a huge, and mostly overlooked part of our #complex societies. I have a particular interest in the use of #pseudonyms in our abstracted #digital world.

The topic immediately explodes into our entire universe when we expand this naming #philosophy out to #language & #linguisics, with special importance attached to our choice of words as #knowledge creators & refiners, when we record our work, enabling the transmission of it to other humans. This is the scaffolding for the #Information_Paradigm.

We came to this concusern https://theconversation.com/online-anonymity-study-found-stable-pseudonyms-created-a-more-civil-environment-than-real-user-names-171374 more than 10 years ago for the #OMN project.

#pseudonyms is healthy balance in social tech.

It avoids the #geekproblem of "trustless" computing and gives humane freedom that are so important to social thinking/life.