Blogging Insights — What’s In a Name?

Fandango

Blogging insightsFor this week’s edition of Blogging Insights, Dr. Tanya is interested in names. She writes, “The name that you blog under is the calling card which introduces you to bloggers and readers across the globe. Some bloggers use their first name and some use their full name. Others prefer to keep their identity unknown, blogging under a cool made up name.” And then she asks us these questions:

Do you use your own name for blogging?

Yes, my parents named me Fandango and as soon as I was old enough to understand what they had done to me, which was when I was about five, I killed them both. Can you blame me?

If you use a psuedonym, what are your reasons for this and what led you to choose that particular name?

This is my fifth blog and I’ve used pseudonyms for all of them, albeit not the same pseudonym for each of them. When I started my first blog in 2005, I worked for a very strait-laced, conservative company. I wanted to be able to freely express my liberal-leaning views, opinions, and perspectives on my personal blog without having to worry about someone at work stumbling upon my blog, reading my leftist, godless posts, and ratting me out to anyone at the company.

I had retired from that job when I started this blog in 2017, so I wasn’t worried about being “found out” by my uptight, conservative bosses. But I had been the victim of identity theft twice and thought that it would be prudent to not use my real name for my latest online endeavor. So, as I describe below in my answer to Dr. Tanya’s next question, I came up with “Fandango.”

(Okay, you caught me in a lie. My parents didn’t really name me Fandango and I didn’t actually kill them when I was five. That didn’t happen until I was a teenager.)

Is there an interesting story behind your User Name?

Here’s the story, but I don’t know how interesting it is. One of my favorite songs of all time is Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” There’s a stanza in that song that goes:

“I see a little silhouetto of a man,
Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango?
Thunderbolt and lightning,
Very, very frightening me.
Galileo, Galileo, Galileo Figaro,
Magnifico-o-o-o-o.”

At first I though of using “Scaramouche” as my pseudonym, but every time I typed it, those squiggly red lines beneath the name showed up and autocorrect kept changing it to “scary mouse.” So I decided to go with “Fandango.”

I wanted to find an avatar to go with my chosen pseudonym, so I Googled “Fandango” and discovered that there was a computer adventure game from 1998 titled “Grim Fandango.”I’d never heard of nor played the game, but as soon as I saw the image of Fandango, I decided that I had found the perfect avatar for my blog.

31 thoughts on “Blogging Insights — What’s In a Name?”

  3. Sadje November 23, 2020 / 7:18 am

    What an interesting back story to your blog name and avatar.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  4. newepicauthor November 23, 2020 / 7:53 am

    With those boney hands of yours, you could have been in the Grateful Dead Touch of Grey video.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  6. rugby843 November 23, 2020 / 8:22 am

    Actually my favorite avatar of all the blogs I follow…you must have made a comment or put a like on one of my posts and when I saw it, it was love at first sight! For me and the avatar that is😂 And then I think I misread Fandango as Fernando, and commented as such. Such a blunder, but ypu forgave that and I’ve loved your blog ever since.

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    • Fandango November 23, 2020 / 9:56 am

      Thanks, Cheryl. I’m glad my Fandango (or Fernando 😉) avatar pulled you in. I was also I intrigued by your dragonfly.

      Like

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  8. Lisa M. Boyd November 23, 2020 / 9:45 am

    I love the response to your name. I dislike my name Lisa Marie because it is so generic, and the story behind it even more generic. So I did my parents in too! Great share!

    Liked by 1 person

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      • Lisa M. Boyd November 23, 2020 / 10:09 am

        I wish it might make it better, my mom had no name for me. She was from a strict military family. She got pregnant with me at 22. She was dating an officer in the Air Force. When she told him she was pregnant he was relocated the next day. Then her parents sent her to live in an unwed mother’s home. She had no plans to keep me. The nursing staff talked to her about how she could keep me, and make a good mom. So when the surgeon was delivering me she said I don’t have a name picked. She asked him what his daughters name was, and it was Lisa Marie. You would think I would be like oh she kept me, but my name in the 70’s was so common. I had 4 Lisa’s in all my classes. So I always had to go with my initials Lisa O. It hasn’t grown on me, and I am 46. So not sure if I will ever be in love with my name. A lot of people make the Lisa Presley joke, it’s a pretty good one lol. 🤣. I am super sarcastic, and should be more sentimental that my mom chose to keep me. Just caught up in the name Lisa though 😊

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          • Lisa M. Boyd November 23, 2020 / 11:14 am

            You should change your name to it…totally kidding thank you very much you are very kind. I hope for the day I too like it. Have a rad day! I hope to do your flash fiction prompt this week. I seem to get a lot of positive feedback when I do those. I had never tried them until about a month ago. A fellow blogger encouraged me to. It has added a nice touch to my very non-fiction blog. I love writing them. I get so carried away in my head. So yeah I hope to participate in yours. 😃😊

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  10. Melanie B Cee November 23, 2020 / 10:26 am

    I always think of “Bohemian Rhapsody” when I read your screen name. I also time to time wonder if you’re hawking cut price movie tickets (or WERE. I don’t think movie tickets are a big money maker just now..) Fandango suits you well I think. That avatar is great!

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    • Fandango November 23, 2020 / 11:07 am

      When I first Googled “Fandango” it was that ticket hawking site that first came up. I almost decided to not use Fandango but then I found inspiration with “Grim Fandango.”

      Like

      Reply
  13. Pingback: Blogging Insights — What’s In a Name? — Reblog from This, That, and The Other – Salted Caramel
  14. leigha66 November 29, 2020 / 1:16 am

    I knew you liked Fandango from the song but all the rest about your screen name was all new fun facts. I had never heard of the game before either,,, might have to look into it.

    Liked by 1 person

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