Donna Djinni....lol. I always wondered about your last name! But it seemed rude to ask. Now the questions are answered. ;)
I love playing with names. You seem to be leaning towards using your first name and a surname that starts with G or leans towards a gee/jee sound. What I would suggest is that you pick out a Dutch surname that starts with G- that would link the name to your real identity and heritage, without being directly identifiable or making you feel like a poseur. Dutch surnames seem to be fairly simple, so you shouldn't run into a spelling/pronunciation problem that will turn off readers, and unlike French (which has definite erotica connotations in a lot of American minds) Dutch surnames tend to be very simple and direct.
Gelens is an option- not too short, not too long. Or if you're more attached to the sound than the letter, maybe Jansen, which is quite similar. (Or Janssen, Janzen, Janssens...there are a lot of variations, I'm guessing it's a quite common name.)
I always use something vastly different, because I'm afraid if I use something that sounds too similar, I'll get confused. So I'm probably not much help here.
The internet suggests that "green" in Dutch is "groen" (noun) or "groene" (adjective)? I have no idea if it's also a last name in Dutch the way it is in English, though.
From the Internet -- There's Jogah, or dwarfs; they're Iroquois nature spirits. Jengu are a sort of Cameroonian (actually, I think it's ethnic, rather than the whole country, but don't quote me there) water spirit, but there's an existing belief system around them, so perhaps not the best for a name. A Jumbee/Jumbie is an evil spirit. And there are Grigori, one of several alternate names for angels.
Be careful about using a last name with the same letter as the first; if they're roughly the same length, it might come out sing-song. Better to go to three or four syllables if both start with a 'D', IMO. Even a D that's not supposed to make a sound gets pronounced the first time you see a word.
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I love playing with names. You seem to be leaning towards using your first name and a surname that starts with G or leans towards a gee/jee sound. What I would suggest is that you pick out a Dutch surname that starts with G- that would link the name to your real identity and heritage, without being directly identifiable or making you feel like a poseur. Dutch surnames seem to be fairly simple, so you shouldn't run into a spelling/pronunciation problem that will turn off readers, and unlike French (which has definite erotica connotations in a lot of American minds) Dutch surnames tend to be very simple and direct.
Gelens is an option- not too short, not too long. Or if you're more attached to the sound than the letter, maybe Jansen, which is quite similar. (Or Janssen, Janzen, Janssens...there are a lot of variations, I'm guessing it's a quite common name.)
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Wonder what "fairy" is in Dutch...;o)
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*G*
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Donna Freeeeeeek.
Good. Be better off with Omo.
;o)
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The internet suggests that "green" in Dutch is "groen" (noun) or "groene" (adjective)? I have no idea if it's also a last name in Dutch the way it is in English, though.
From the Internet -- There's Jogah, or dwarfs; they're Iroquois nature spirits. Jengu are a sort of Cameroonian (actually, I think it's ethnic, rather than the whole country, but don't quote me there) water spirit, but there's an existing belief system around them, so perhaps not the best for a name. A Jumbee/Jumbie is an evil spirit. And there are Grigori, one of several alternate names for angels.
Be careful about using a last name with the same letter as the first; if they're roughly the same length, it might come out sing-song. Better to go to three or four syllables if both start with a 'D', IMO. Even a D that's not supposed to make a sound gets pronounced the first time you see a word.
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Donna Fae
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