Monday, September 25, 2006

Imogen says 'Thank you and goodbye!!'

THANK YOU all so very much for the messages of congratulation you've posted both here and on other blogs. Reading them all has been so fabulous and touching and... well, I'd better stop myself right there before I come over all Gwyneth Paltrow. May I just say in a very British, stiff-upper-lip kind of way that it has made the whole event even more special and memorable, and I am truly grateful to everyone. And not just for the congratulations over the past few days, but the support and encouragement beforehand too. Thank you. (sniff. xxx.)

So now I've come to the bit when I have to say goodbye. Well, not me exactly, but Imogen.

The day after I got the call my lovely, lovely editor (eek-- will I ever get tired of saying that??!) rang again. Given that I was fully expecting her to apologise and say that they'd changed their minds about accepting the book it came as something of a relief to find that the only thing they wanted to reconsider was my name. Imogen was thought to be too difficult for non-English speakers to read and pronounce. Could I think of another one?

I wasn't going to say no. (I think she could have asked me to run down the M6 in my underwear and I would have agreed. Happily.) Besides, I've always found the whole idea of changing my name enormously appealing. When I was in the infants I remember yearning passionately to be called Rosebud, though by the time I had achieved the vast maturity and sophistication that comes with being about 7 I had swung more towards Cynthia... Anyway, sadly neither of those seemed quite right anymore. And I'd already decided I wanted to keep my own initials.

Did you know there are surprisingly few girls' names beginning with I? (apart from the obvious-- Isobel which is lovely, but has family connections.) In a way I suppose that made it easier to arrive at...

India.

India Grey.

So. What do you think?

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11 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Absolutely fabulous, darling :-x

1:42 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I like it!

11:23 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I LOVE it!! What a gorgeous-sounding name. And LOL on the M-6. I don't think they'd go that far...

12:08 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Thank goodness! If I'd had more time I would have put it up for the public vote here, but alas, a decision had to be made quickly. (plus, I just don't have your technical wizardry sharon!) Thank you for your reassurance ladies! (and your politeness and tact...)

5:54 pm  
Blogger Annie said...

Hmm. Love 'India' but think it might be more memorable if you were 'India Garden' or 'India Garage'. However, I suppose the choice is yours. At least it's better than Rosebud, which sounds like a pet cow, or Cynthia, a lady famed for the success of her London brothel. Then again...

As for running down the M6 in your underwear, do I really have to remind you what happened the last time you did that?

6:05 pm  
Blogger Amanda Ashby said...

Annie, that M6 incident is obviously why Imogen had to morph into India to avoid unwanted publicity! Oh and thumbs up from me for India Grey. I like.

6:39 pm  
Blogger Eva said...

I already offered my opinion on the name, which was a resounding 'Sounds great!'. Totally missed the M6 event, however. It must have been after I left the country. Blast it all!

6:43 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Ooh Annie, you are a tease. Anyone who has even the vaguest familiarity with me would know that I NEVER run anywhere!

8:11 pm  
Blogger Annie said...

So, okay, you strolled languidly down the M6 in your underwear, India. (That's probably why you got caught.) And your point is?

5:58 pm  
Blogger Susan Rix said...

I LOVE the name India - I can see why you needed something totally different after your antics on the M6... ;-)

10:47 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

India Grey sounds fabulous!!

4:16 pm  

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