Nom De Plume
"I don't see why I have to take elective courses when I want to be a vet," Leia Kinnard complained when she enrolled in college to study veterinary medicine.
"I'm sorry, but if you want to get a degree in this school, you need to earn one hundred twenty-eight credit hours, including general education courses, major-specific courses and electives," the student advisor explained.
"How many electives are we talking about?"
"Forty credit hours. Here's a list of the classes and the credit hours for each."
Leia looked at the classes being offered and grimaced.
History and philosophy: boring! Web design. Not interested. Photography. Who needs that when you have an iPhone?
Only one of the courses remotely appealed to her.
"Creative writing," she muttered. "That might be fun."
Halfway through her freshman year, Leia discovered that despite having a lifelong love of animals, she might not be cut out to be a veterinarian. While she was getting decent grades in biology, she did poorly in chemistry. And she did not realize she would need to study math as well. Surprisingly, the only class she enjoyed was her creative writing elective.
When she went home for mid-term break, she brought with her a copy of a short story she had written.
"How's school?" her older sister, Marcy, inquired when the family gathered together for Sunday dinner.
"So-so," Leia replied unenthusiastically.
"That bad?"
"I'll tell you what I do like. My creative writing class. Here, let me show you a story I wrote."
She went to her room and returned shortly with a printout of a story she called The Calico Cat in the Bookstore.
"I take it from the title that it's a children's story," Marcy assumed.
"Yes. It's about a cat that sneaks into a bookstore as two men are bringing cartons of books in through the back door. They unknowingly lock the cat in overnight. To make matters worse, the following day is Christmas, and the store is closed. Go ahead and read it. And let me know what you think."
When her sister, a kindergarten teacher, finished reading the last paragraph, a smile appeared on her face.
"My students would love this! Would you mind if I read it to them?"
"Not at all. In fact, I'd like the feedback."
Three days later, Marcy returned to her parents' house to see her sister.
"I read your story to my students and those in the other two kindergarten classes." "How did they like it?"
"They loved it, as I thought they would. Being five-year-olds, they like picture books, so I did some quick illustrations to go with your text. Here, see."
Leia was impressed to see the ten full-page watercolor drawings her sister made of the Calico Cat, shivering outside in the snow and making a mess inside the bookstore.
"These are great!" she cried. "I didn't know you were so artistic!"
"I always liked to draw."
Since she did not have to go back to school until the middle of January, Leia created a picture book using her sister's illustrations and her text, which she reprinted in a larger font. She then submitted a digital copy of the completed manuscript to Amazon's self-publishing service. Rather than use her own name, she chose a nom de plume: Cindy Starling.
A week after classes resumed, she received a package delivered to her dorm room. She immediately recognized Amazon's smiley arrow logo on the box. Inside were fifty copies of the book she and her sister had created. What began with the distribution of those fifty copies to family, friends, coworkers, classmates and students soon snowballed into thousands of sales across the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Eventually, The Calico Cat in the Bookstore found its way into the home of an editor at Kidz Press Books. Morgan Lindley, unable to locate a writer named Cindy Starling, contacted a former colleague who now worked for Amazon and learned that the book was submitted by a college student named Leia Kinnard.
* * *
A week before the end of the school year, Marcy was looking forward to having the summer off. Not only did she need a break from teaching, but she had recently become engaged to her high school sweetheart and wanted to use those two months to begin planning the wedding. She was putting away the crayons and drawing paper in her classroom when her cell phone rang.
"Hi, Sis," she answered, seeing Leia's name on the screen.
"Wait until you hear the good news," her sister cried.
"What is it?"
"I got a call from a woman named Morgan Lindley. She's an editor at Kidz Press."
"I've heard of them. They hold book fairs in our school every year. Why did she call you?"
"Somehow, she got a copy of The Calico Cat in the Bookstore. And—guess what—they want to publish it! Not only that, she wanted to know if I'd written any other stories."
"Did you?"
"No, but I can. I've been thinking of writing one where the same cat gets locked into a music store. Think of the trouble he can get into being around all those instruments."
"Weren't you planning on working at the animal shelter during the summer?"
"I was, but with the advance the publisher is offering, I'll make more money. Don't worry, I'll split it with you. After all, you did the illustrations."
"I don't care about that."
"Don't be silly! Your drawings contributed to the success of the book. Besides, you're getting married. I'm sure you can put the money to good use."
"That's true. Weddings are a big expense. I'm thinking I ought to get a summer job to help pay for mine."
"Instead, when you're not searching for photographers, cake decorators, florists and deejays, you can illustrate our next book."
"Our book? Don't you mean your book? I didn't see my name on the cover."
"Mine wasn't on it either," Leia pointed out. "I'm not Cindy Starling. That's a name I gave to our collaboration. It's as much a nom de plume for you as it is for me."
When the lawyers for Kidz Press prepared the contracts for publishing the Calico Cat series, they insisted that both sisters sign their names. It was also decided at that time that all royalties would be shared equally.
"As for the author's photo ...," began Morgan Lindley, who was also in attendance at the meeting, "we'll need a 'face' for Cindy Starling. It will appear on the back cover of all the books, on the author's website and Facebook page. It could be either of you, but it must be only one person. To the reading public, that person will be Cindy Starling."
"It should be you," Marcy insisted. "The Calico Cat was your idea."
"No, thanks. I'm going to be a vet someday. I don't relish having my photo in bookstores and on the internet."
"No problem. I can hire someone," Morgan offered. "An unknown model or actress. Better yet, I'll have one of our computer people create an AI image."
Thus, a computer-generated image of a woman with Leia's blond hair and Marcy's brown eyes and aquiline nose came to represent the children's author Cindy Starling, who was as much a fictional character as the Calico Cat.
* * *
On Labor Day weekend, Leia Kinnard moved back into her dorm room. By that time, The Calico Cat in the Music Store was ready to go to print. Kidz Press had already released The Calico Cat in the Bookstore, and it would be included with their selection of books available to schools throughout the country. No sooner did classes start for the fall semester than Morgan Lindley arranged a phone interview between Leia and a journalist from Modern Parents magazine.
"I'm going to email the biography I've prepared for you," the editor declared.
"What biography?"
"The interviewer will want to know who you are: where you were born, where you work, if you have any children and so on. You'll have to learn how to answer all these questions."
"Can't I tell them the truth?"
"No. When you talk to the journalist, you'll be Cindy Starling, not Leia Kinnard."
After unpacking her clothes, the sophomore student put her laptop on her desk and checked her email. Opening the attachment to Morgan's message, she hooked up her printer and printed a copy of the bio.
"Interesting," she opined after reading it. "Apparently, Cindy Starling is single. Went to a state college where she got a teaching degree—sounds more like my sister than me. She got the idea for the Calico Cat books when she volunteered at a local animal shelter. This seems straightforward. I shouldn't have any difficulty remembering any of this."
Over the next few weeks, despite having to familiarize herself with new classes, professors and a new roommate, Leia managed to write another story. Once she completed The Calico Cat in the Ice Cream Parlor, she sent the Word file to Marcy. Although she was busy with both the start of a new school year and the ongoing preparations for her wedding, her sister found the time to create ten watercolor illustrations of the adventures the cat had in the ice cream parlor, including her favorite one in which the animal falls into a mixing bowl filled with whipped cream.
When Leia came home for the Thanksgiving holiday, she incorporated her sister's drawings and her own text into a pdf file and sent it to Morgan Lindley. She also gave her sister the latest story, The Calico Cat in the Haunted House.
"Where do you find the time to write?" Marcy wondered. "Aren't you taking five classes this semester?"
"It's not as if I'm writing a novel!" Leia laughed. "It's a short story. More like a short, short story. This last one I wrote in one sitting. When most of the kids on campus were going to a party on Halloween, I stayed in my dorm room, writing."
"Hopefully, I can have the illustrations done by the time you come home for Christmas."
"At which time, I'll most likely have another story for you."
"Good. The royalties I've received so far have paid for my wedding gown."
"By the time you and Lucas get married in June, you may have enough money to pay for your honeymoon."
Leia's prediction proved to be true. Once all four books were available for sale, Marcy was able to afford a week-long Hawaiian cruise with her share of the royalties.
Meanwhile, two more books were at the publisher. One, The Calico Cat in the Christmas Market, was ready to go to print, and the other, The Calico Cat in the Bakery, was sitting on Morgan Lindley's desk, waiting to be edited. A third book, The Calico Cat in the Antique Shop, was currently being illustrated.
"Do you think you can finish it before your wedding day?" Leia asked her sister.
"Barring any unforeseen circumstances. I only have two more pictures to do."
"Good. And when you get back from Hawaii, I'll have another manuscript waiting for you."
"How many books will be in this series?"
"As many as will sell."
"But what about your long-range plans? How will you be able to write children's books when you're working as a vet?"
Leia turned her face away.
"I wasn't going to say anything until after the wedding," she said softly.
"What is it?"
"I quit school."
"You did what?" Marcy exclaimed. "Why?"
"Because I like being a writer."
"I don't want to discourage you, but how many Calico Cat books do you think you can write?"
"Who knows? But there are over 300 Berenstain Bears books, 370 Thomas the Tank books, 119 Curious George books ...."
"Okay. I get it. Some writers have had long, successful careers in kids' literature. But how many stores can one cat get into? Sooner or later, you'll run out of ideas."
"Then I can introduce another character: a dog, a horse, a mouse, a rabbit .... The possibilities are endless!"
The frown on Marcy's face bothered Leia.
"Why are you so worried about my writing career? Do you think I'll someday regret not becoming a vet?"
"It's not that," the kindergarten teacher answered. "If that's what you really want to do with your life, then I'm glad for you."
"Why do I sense there's a but here?"
"I'm not sure how long I want to keep illustrating these stories."
Shock, hurt and anger fought for dominance in Leia's emotions.
"What do you mean?" she argued. "I thought you liked drawing."
"I do, but I have dreams of my own. Soon I'll have to juggle a husband, a home and a full-time job. I don't know how much time I'll have for illustrating."
"Full-time job? You're a kindergarten teacher. You have holidays, weekends and the entire summer off!"
"You told me you can write a story in one sitting, but it takes me a lot longer to illustrate it. Remember the picture of the Calico Cat getting stuck in the Christmas tree? It took me four evenings to complete it. Lucas and I want to eventually start a family. Once I have a child, I won't have any time for drawing."
"I suppose when that day comes, I'll have to find someone else to do it."
Marcy illustrated five more of her sister's books: The Calico Cat in the Candy Store, The Calico Cat in the Movie Theater, The Calico Cat in the Tea Shop, The Calico Cat in the Beauty Parlor and The Calico Cat in the Pizzeria. After the fifth book was finished, a new contract was signed. Cindy Starling was no longer a collaboration of two sisters; it was the nom de plume of Leia Kinnard only.
Nate Trammell, an aspiring comic book artist who worked for Hallmark Cards, was hired to do the artwork and was duly credited as the illustrator. The first book written under this new contract was The Calico Cat and the Siamese Kitten. While it differed from the other books in the series in that the title character was not locked anywhere overnight, it was well-received by both young readers and their parents.
Given that Nate's illustrations of the main character closely resembled Marcy's, only a handful of people were aware that the artwork was done by two different people. It was generally believed that Nate had illustrated all the Calico Cat books. No one, least of all Leia or Nate, bothered to correct this misconception.
Following the publication of The Calico Cat and the Easter Bunny, Roland Lillet, the producer of three award-winning animated children's movies, approached Leia Kinnard, wanting to make a full-length Calico Cat film. Several A-list celebrities auditioned for the role of narrator. Thanks to the shrewd negotiating skills of Morgan Lindley, who quit Kidz Press to become Leia's agent, not only was the producer offering a substantial amount to purchase the movie rights, but he was also willing to give her a percentage of the box office take.
While the writer was already a wealthy woman, the movie deal made her a multimillionaire.
* * *
Marcy and Lucas Hawes divorced after eight years of marriage. Marcy and her two children, ages seven and five, moved to a two-bedroom apartment in Pennsylvania. Alimony and child support did not cover all her bills; therefore, she was forced to return to teaching. Unfortunately, her salary did not pay much. After rent, utilities, food and other necessities, there was little money left over for emergencies.
"Can we go to the movies this weekend, Mom?" Cheyenne, her older daughter, inquired.
"I suppose so."
"And go to McDonald's afterward?"
"No. I can't afford both."
Seeing the disappointment on her children's faces saddened her.
"What we can do is go to Dollar Tree before the movie, buy some candy bars and sneak them into the theater."
The girls smiled, the prospect of chocolate candy appealing more to them than hamburgers.
"What do you want to see?" Marcy asked. "Have they come out with a sequel to Barbie?"
"No. We want to see The Calico Cat in London."
Mention of her sister's latest triumph caused her heart to flutter.
This is what ... the Calico Cat's sixth full-length feature film? The seventh?
Marcy had lost count. She hadn't seen Leia in seven years, not since she married Nate Trammell, the artist who illustrates her books. Other than a Christmas card every December, the sisters did not keep in touch. In fact, her daughters did not know that their favorite writer, Cindy Starling, was actually their aunt, a woman who moved to the West Coast when Cheyenne was two months old.
"So, the Calico Cat is now in London?" she laughed.
"The movie is based on the first book in a new series," explained Cheyenne, who had read every Calico Cat book ever published. "He's going to go to Paris next. Then Tokyo, Sydney, Stockholm and New Orleans. I imagine Cindy Starling will write about all the wonderful places she and her husband visit."
"Why does Cindy Starling travel so much?" Keira, the younger daughter, wondered. "Does she work on a cruise ship or an airplane?"
"No. She's a writer. I never told you this, but Cindy Starling is my sister. Her real name is Leia Kinnard-Trammell, and she writes all the Calico Cat books."
"Your sister?" Cheyenne echoed with disbelief.
"Yes. She started writing in her first year in college. Back then, I used to do the drawings in her books. Together, we made a team that went by the name Cindy Starling."
"You did? Why did you stop?"
"Once you were born, I didn't have the time to do it."
"Can we meet our aunt someday?" Keira asked hopefully. "My friends see their aunts and uncles all the time."
"I don't know," Marcy admitted. "She lives in California, and she's rarely ever home because she travels all the time."
"Please, Mommy!" her daughters pleaded in unison.
"Maybe I'll send her a letter, asking her to stop in Pennsylvania when she and her husband are visiting New York. But don't get your hopes up. Your Aunt Leia is an extremely busy woman."
* * *
Marcy was straightening the tables in her classroom shortly after the dismissal bell rang. Keira, who attended the kindergarten class next door, appeared in the doorway.
"Hi, Mom."
"I'll be right with you. I want to put the picture books back on the shelf first, and then we can go."
On their way out of the building, second-grader Cheyenne joined them.
"How was school?" Marcy asked during the drive home and listened to a recap of the girls' day.
When she pulled into the driveway, her older daughter was the first one out of the car.
"I'll get the mail," she offered and headed down the driveway toward the mailbox.
"What's for dinner tonight?" Keira inquired.
"Chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese," her mother replied as she unlocked the front door.
"Here's the mail, Mom," Cheyenne announced, tossing the pile of envelopes and periodicals onto the kitchen table before heading for the living room to turn on the television.
It wasn't until the frozen nuggets were in the oven and the store-brand mac and cheese was in the microwave that the tired mother looked through her mail. Kohl's circular. Electric bill. Checking account statement. Newsletter from the teachers' union. The return address on the last envelope took her by surprise. It was one she only saw in December.
My sister wrote back to me, she realized with surprise.
She quickly tore open the letter and read it. Ignoring the beep of the microwave, she ran into the living room to share the good news with her daughters.
"Guess what?" She did not wait for a response before continuing, "Your Aunt Leia is coming to visit us at Christmas."
"Can't she come any sooner?" Keira whined.
"No. She's about to go on a Mediterranean cruise. When she gets back, she's going to stop in Philadelphia. From there, it's only a two-hour drive to our home."
"We only have two bedrooms," Cheyenne pointed out. "Where are she and her husband going to sleep?"
"They'll stay in a hotel."
"It must be nice to be rich."
"Hotels aren't just for rich people. Some hotels are reasonably priced."
"Can we stay in a hotel?" Keira asked eagerly. "One with a swimming pool?"
"Someday maybe."
For weeks, the two girls thought of nothing but their aunt's impending arrival. The excitement and anticipation leading up to Christmas paled in comparison.
"Who cares about Santa Claus?" Cheyenne joked when her sister began writing her annual letter to Kris Kringle. "He comes every year, but this might be the only chance we'll get to see Cindy Starling."
"Do we have to call her Cindy Starling?" Keira wondered. "Shouldn't we call her Aunt Leia instead?"
The second week of November, Marcy received another letter from her sister. The first paragraph was bad news. Leia and Nate were unable to come to Pennsylvania for Christmas. The balance of the letter, on the other hand, was much better.
"You're never going to believe this!" she exclaimed as her daughters stared up at her, wondering why their mother was so excited.
"Instead of coming here to Pennsylvania, Aunt Leia has invited us to go to California for Christmas. She's sending us the plane tickets by FedEx."
When mother and daughters sat down to a turkey dinner on Thanksgiving, they had a lot to be thankful for.
* * *
The plane arrived at LAX on the afternoon of December 22. The next day, Nate volunteered to take Cheyenne and Keira to Disneyland while Marcy and Leia remained at home, catching up after a seven-year separation.
"You two must have a lot to talk about," he said. "And I'm sure these girls wouldn't want to hang around the house when they can ride Space Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean."
The girls' squeals of delight proved his point.
After her husband left with her nieces in tow, Leia sat in the living room with her sister. For half an hour, they drank coffee and engaged in mundane conversation.
Then Marcy announced, "I brought something to show you. It's in my suitcase. I'll go get it."
She returned with a sketchpad, which she handed to her sister.
"What's this?" Leia asked.
"Some line drawings I did of the Calico Cat in Philadelphia."
"My husband has been my book illustrator for the past seven years."
"I know that. I was thinking you could use them to make a coloring book."
"I'm sorry, but Nate has sole rights to draw the Calico Cat and all the other characters I've introduced."
"Look, Leia, I've got two kids to raise, and teaching doesn't pay much," Marcy said, swallowing her pride. "I could really use the money."
"Why don't you ask Lucas for help. He's the girls' father."
"He pays child support, but he doesn't make much either. You've got millions. And have you forgotten that my drawings helped get you published? That I was one half of Cindy Starling?"
"Nor have I forgotten that you walked away years ago," the writer answered, her eyes narrowed with barely contained anger. "You broke up the team. Now, you want me to take you back because you need the money? Sorry, but no."
"You can't refuse! I drew the initial images of Calico Cat. He looks the way he does because of me. Surely, I have some right of ownership of his image. Maybe I'll contact a lawyer ...."
"Go ahead," Leia shouted. "We may have both signed a contract and worked under the nom de plume Cindy Starling, but the copyright was in my name only. Because you were paid for the drawings you did while under contract, your work was classified as being one of pay for hire."
"And I'm supposed to take your word for it?"
"Do you honestly think that Nate agreed to replace you as illustrator without consulting an attorney first? He was advised to copyright the images, which he did. You've got no legal basis to sue anyone."
The argument quickly escalated from accusations and name-calling to physical blows. In the heat of the moment, Marcy picked up a large plaster figure of the Calico Cat from off the coffee table and struck her sister over the head with it.
"Leia?" she sobbed, instantly contrite when her sister fell to the floor, her head bleeding profusely. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."
"The hell you didn't!" the writer screamed.
In retaliation, Leia picked up the bloody figure and delivered a more forceful blow to the artist's temple, killing her instantly. Her rage spent, the wounded writer lay her head down on her antique oriental rug and quietly bled to death.
* * *
It was nearly ten o'clock when Nate Trammell's Mercedes pulled into the driveway. In the back seat, Cheyenne and Keira, who had spent the entire day at Disneyland, were sound asleep.
"Wake up, girls," the illustrator called, turning off the engine.
When he got out of the car, he opened the trunk and collected the shopping bags containing Disney Princess T-shirts, Mickey Mouse ears, two Constance Hatchaway plush dolls from the Haunted Mansion and two Disneyland 70th Anniversary souvenir cups.
"Come on, sleepyheads," he urged, opening the car door. "Your mother probably wants to get to bed. She's still on Eastern Standard Time, which makes it about one in the morning in Pennsylvania."
Nate Trammell put his key in the lock and opened the front door.
"Hey. We're home."
"It's about time," a voice called from the master bedroom.
"Is that you, Marcy?" Nate asked, not recognizing the voice as belonging to his wife.
A strange woman came down the staircase and walked into the living room.
"Leia?" he muttered with confusion, seeing his wife's long blond hair.
"Mom?" the two girls asked in unison, recognizing their mother's faded jeans and Pocono Mountains T-shirt.
"No. It's me, Cindy."
The blond hair may have been Leia's, but the brown eyes and aquiline nose were those of her sister, Marcy.
"What ...?"
Nate could not find the words to form the question. The bizarre transformation was far beyond his ability to understand. He would never know what happened to his wife or his sister-in-law. There was no blood on the oriental rug or on the plaster figure of the Calico Cat that had been wiped clean and returned to the coffee table. Furthermore, there were no bodies to be found because both sisters were absorbed in the body and mind of Cindy Starling.
Salem insists he was the inspiration for The Calico Cat in New Orleans.
