Today was my first day back at work after being signed off to recover from an illness — and nothing says “welcome back” quite like your colleagues immediately wanting publishing updates. I walked in with a Dropbox full of advertising media, final edits, and the kind of excitement that makes you forget you’re still a bit wobbly.

Naturally, the first question was: “Is your website just your name?”

So they googled it.

The first result: ✔ My author website ✔ My social media ✔ My actual writing life

The second result: ❌ “Eleanor Whitlock, 1871 murder case — husbands buried upright.” On YouTube. With dramatic music.

We laughed. A lot. All afternoon.

Of course, due diligence was required — just to make sure I didn’t have any dormant Victorian‑murderess DNA waiting to activate. Thankfully (and somewhat disappointingly), it turns out the story isn’t real. It’s one of those fictional Victorian murder tales that circulate on YouTube, the kind presented as “true history” but are really just gothic creepypasta with very committed narrators.

So no, I am not secretly the reincarnation of a 19th‑century husband‑burier. I am simply a romance author with an unfortunately atmospheric name.

But honestly? If my pen name is already starring in fictional Victorian crime stories, I feel like my branding is working.