Here’s kind of an interesting little page, whereupon you can listen to “brief recordings of authors and illustrators saying their names.” I must confess that I don’t recognize most of the names on the list, and also it seems that some of the names are pretty self-explanatory — really, who can’t figure out how to pronounce “Ann M. Martin“? — but I like the idea here. It would be especially useful in science fiction circles, where many authors seem to flaunt esoteric and/or eccentric noms de plume.
(Manys the time I’ve encountered some doughy geek-boy in a Doctor Who t-shirt — the sort who claim to despise the original Star Trek but secretly covet Captain Kirk’s skill with the ladies, green-skinned and otherwise — who defiantly insists that Author X says his or her name this way, and anyone who would dare to pronounce it differently is obviously a complete ignoramus. It’s a sci-fi thing, I guess, that unique combination of obstinate arrogance and screaming insecurity.)
In any event, the web site did help me clear up one nagging question for me: Neil Gaiman, author of the amazing Sandman comics among other things, says his last name “GAY-mun,” not “GUY-mun.” Good to know…