A Note on Names

I've been personalizing between one and two hundred books a day for most of this month, a process that means I have to spell people's names correctly, a lot. Names, unlike most words, can be spelled pretty much the way the owner (or their parents) wants. As a result, first names are a hotbed of creativity. And I assure you all, you Jazmyns and Shons and Madelens, that I applaud your innovation and uniqueness. The minor chaos these mutations cause for me during signings is a small price to pay for a world full of unexpected variation

In fact, my new game is to figure out which common first name has the most spellings. And at the moment, I think it's Caitlin, with forty-eight. Here's my logic:

There are six first halves of the name:

Cait

Cayt

Caet

Kait

Kayt

Kaet

And eight endings:

-lin

-linn

-linne

-len

-lenn

-lyn

-lynn

-lynne

And thus, six times eight is 48 ways to spell the same basic name, all pronounced exactly the same way. (In normal speech, anyway.)

Does this seem right to you guys? Or am I missing any?

But anyway, shine on you crazy Kate-lynns. And fill out that post-it clearly.

Here's the rest of my tour this month:

MONDAY, OCTOBER 25

7:00PM

Joseph Beth Booksellers

2692 Madison Road

Cincinnati, OH 45208

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 26

4:30PM

Blue Marble Bookstore

1356 South Fort Thomas Avenue

Ft. Thomas, KY 41075

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 27

7:00PM

Anderson's Bookshop

123 West Jefferson

Naperville, IL 60540

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28

7:00PM

Borders

43075 Crescent Blvd.

Novi, MI 48375

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29

7:00PM

Ann Arbor District Library

343 South Fifth Avenue

Ann Arbor, MI 48104

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 30

12:00PM

Provo County Library

550 North University Avenue

Provo, UT 84601