Which Initial in Publications - Maiden or Middle?

[RachelAKP]

Hello, all! I'm about to submit a manuscript and am sort of agonizing over how I'd like my name to appear in the citation.

My maiden name is Rachel Anne K----. I don't have any journal articles published under this name, but I have done a number of oral and poster presentations under this name. For those, I am cited as K----, R. A.

When I married, I adopted my husband's surname but kept my maiden name as a second middle name. So now my name is, legally, Rachel Anne K---- P-----.

My question: When I publish, should I use my original middle name or my maiden name as my middle initial? Should I be P-----, R. A. or P-----, R. K.?

Maybe this is of no consequence; I'm not sure. Have any other women dealt with this? Or am I the only one indecisive enough to keep two middle names?

[harpyemma]

Honestly? If it were me I would keep publishing under my maiden name.

[RachelAKP]

Since my maiden name is no longer my legal surname, that isn't really an option. Professionally, I use my married surname. I made that decision for personal reasons, and professionally, it actually works out well because my married name is much less common than my maiden name. My question was more about my middle initial-- but thanks.

[Ennue]

Can't you just be P------, R.A.K. ? Would that be so weird? in my home country many people have multiple middle names and I am used to seeing a string of letters after people's surnames...

[UnlikelyGrad]

My advisor--whom I call Dr. Hand-Waver--lists her pre-marriage pubs on her CV as follows:

MaidenName [Hand-Waver], T. M.

eta: She hasn't used the initial of her maiden name since she got married, as far as I can tell.

And honestly, it must have worked, because she got an amazing post-doc + lecturer position with this on her CV. (Of course, that was years ago...all of her heavily-cited papers are under the name of Hand-Waver.)

[RachelAKP]

Thanks to all; I appreciate the insight!

[socialcomm]

I'm in the same position as you -- my maiden name is my second middle name -- and I just use both middle names. But it's really up to you!

Edited September 10, 2011 by socialcomm

[palmyra]

In the same boat here. I had two middle names in addition to my maiden name, which I decided to keep after marriage and publish under. My Master's thesis contains the two middle name initials. Now, because of family circumstances I am deciding to do away with middle initials altogether (still early on in career, here--have not started PhD, yet. And, I like the idea of my middle names being not so public, anyway.) and take my husband's last name. So now I will be publishing under: first maiden married. I'm pretty happy with the decision.

[Medievalmaniac]

I just go by my first name, then my maiden name and last name, no hyphen. My middle initial is left out of the equation. it took me a number of tries to settle on this ultimately; my earliest publications are under first + middle initial, last name and first name, maiden-last name hyphenated. But I like this solution best. It's honestly such an individual decision to make, I'm sure whatever you decide will be fine for you.