Maia Jose - the Pen Name

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I never thought that a pen name would become so much a part of my life. But that's exactly what Maia Jose has become. I now consider it as much a part of my identity as my real name which, by the way, is Maria Teresa Cruz San Diego or Tessa, for short.

Why the pen name?

When I started writing romance novels in November 1991, I wasn't really sure if I'd be good at it. Also, I wasn't quite sold on the credibility of the genre yet. Thus, I hid behind a pen name.

I gave a lot of thought to the choosing, though. Of course, I wanted it to sound romantic - to me, at least. Then I wanted it to have significance.

Maia is a variation of Maria. I remember my Mom saying that as a toddler I used to pronounce my name as Maia Tessa Cute (Maria Teresa Cruz). Well, it was prophetic. I was given the nickname Tessa. I chose Maia as my pen name. As to the last word...well... :)

Jose, on the other hand, is my husband's first name. I really am a sucker for romance, as you can see. I just had to add his name to mine even in my pen name.

So the name Maia Jose was born.

What began as a mask to hide my identity later became a matter of pride for me.

I soon saw the significance of romance novels and how they can be used as vehicles to raise literacy and plant seeds of progressive ideas among readers, even as they are affordable sources of entertainment. I grew to love the genre and began to proudly proclaim that I am Maia Jose.

Things came to a head when another writer plagiarized one of my novels and submitted it to another Philippine publisher, claiming to be Maia Jose. The work was published and, fortunately, a loyal reader noticed the plagiarism and alerted my publisher to it. That writer has since been banned from the major publications and my publisher decided to print writer photos at the back of our books. That move firmly established the link between me and my pen name.

Now I don't mind being interchangeably called Tessa or Maia. Both names resonate completely with me.

When I write, I use Maia Jose for fiction and Tessa Cruz San Diego for non-fiction. I guess Maia is my more creative self while Tessa is my more logical self.

By the way, did I tell you I'm a Gemini?

Now I just have to make sure this doesn't get out of control and turn into split personalities :D