Pick a Nick

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So you’re ready for your first post, right? You’ve either been lurking on the 'net for a while, or you just surfed on in. You know exactly what you want to say or, maybe you have a burning question. Herein lies your first challenge. You have to pick a nickname. No need to panic – that’s what I’m here to help you with. Choosing a name.

First of all, don’t wait until you’re trying to post to pick a name. Chances are, you’ll look up and pick something in the room, like Mac or PC. Do a bit of work beforehand, and you’ll be much happier in the long run. Remember that all your new friends will be identifying that nick with you for a long time.

In any case, the first thing you want to do is think the fact that this represents you, not a generic person. So,

What are your interests? What image do you want to project? What do you want your new forum family to know about you even before they read that first post?

There are several directions you can to go when picking a nickname:

Mythology

There are a lot of resources on the net to help you learn more about all kinds of Mythology. Take your list of interests and match them up. This is a good place to start because there are lots of mythologies, and there’s bound to be one with a name that has a particular calling for you – here are just a few:

One of my personal favorites is Bulfinch’s Mythology

Here are a few more

There are several good pages with links to Mythological sites:

For more detailed information:

Ancestry/ Background

Where is your family from? Where would you like to travel? Do you have an affinity for a particular time and place? Incorporate that into a name.

Science Fiction/ Fantasy

Usually, if you’re thinking about a sf/f name, you have a favorite book, series or author already and are most of the way to picking a name.

A name you already have

A variation of your own name or nickname or your nick from elsewhere on the net.

Things to remember:

Your name needs to be at least 5 characters long to be accepted by the registry at the Universal Classic forum - but since *that* forum is no longer in use ...

Capitalization makes a difference.

Have a second, third, fourth, even fifth choice picked out. Chances are, your first choice has already been registered.

Comments:

Be aware that at some point, you’ll be asked the background of your name. It’s a good icebreaker and can be very revealing

Try not to pick a name very similar to one already in use on the forums you intend to post on – it will be confusing all around

Once you pick a name, you’ll be typing it… a lot. So, you’ll eventually be using a short version of your nick to stick at the end of your posts. If you don’t come up with a short version, someone eventually will.

If you pick a gender neutral or cross gender sounding name, be prepared for a little bit of mistaken identity at first.

See you at the Forum!