Introducing our new interview series: we’ll be sharing talks we’ve had with localized foreigners, outsiders on the inside, hybrid characters of all kinds. Suggest a person for us to interview (or someone you want to grill)!

Today we’re chatting with James Chartrand, head of the web design and copywriting outfit Men With Pens. He’s a successful online entrepreneur from Québec, Canada — and he’s a woman.

In breaking the news last year James credited her professional gender shift three years ago to vastly improved freelance opportunities in the virtual marketplace.

e+H: James, when and why did you think donning a male-sounding pseudonym for your online ventures might give you better results?

Early on, I had wanted to expand from solo freelancing into a team agency that could handle volume. I wanted anonymity for the hiring, and I wanted to be treated as a client, not as a writer peer hiring others – I chose a male name for the experience.

The level of respect I received was astounding. I adopted the male name in my own quotes and proposals to clients. Suddenly people listened to ideas, when previously they discredited them. My quotes were rarely haggled over and accepted at face value. In fact, I raised my rates substantially.

It seemed like a total business win – so I just kept up with it!

e+H: How easy/difficult was it to play this role? What considerations did you count as pros, as cons?

I have no personal attachments to my work or business, and so could separate the two without difficulty. I work in an online-only environment, so I didn’t have to meet anyone face to face or take calls, which added an extra level of easy.

The pros? More money, more respect, more credibility and being taken seriously.

The cons came later on as I grew in popularity and fame. I couldn’t attend events or seminars as James and had to turn down a few opportunities that would have increased my success. When pushed for calls, I had to refuse – or go ahead with them, and risk that the person on the other end of the line might react badly. They never did, though, and always laughed.

e+H: What changes did you notice in how you viewed yourself?

I am myself, regardless of what label I use, so my personality and identity never changed. I behaved the same, I used the same language, I made the same moves and I pursued the same opportunities as I would have had I used my own name.

People seem to believe I adopted a new persona – I just adopted a new name, that’s all.

Gender bending at hybrid/MONSTER: Mr. Zuzu by S.Koehler

e+H: Did being James spill over into your actual world life?

I’d say it was more the inverse – being myself spilled over into “the world of James”. Several people commented on how well I listened, how easy I was to talk to, how in touch with my feelings I seemed to be – all traits that are commonly associated with women. A few asked whether I was gay, which always made me laugh.

e+H: What male-only culture were you exposed to as James?

This is a really good question, and the first time I’ve been asked this – well done.  ”Male-only” is extremely limited and very niche – it would mean I would have had to be invited to an “all boys” club, and I wasn’t.

Male dominated, though, is another story. I can say that the writing and freelancing industry is largely male dominated, with most big-name copywriters being men. Most A-list bloggers are male as well, as Technorati has reported for several years.

So I did find myself at a business level where there weren’t many women, yes. Managing it was simple – I have a good head for business, I knew what I wanted and I pursued the opportunities and chances that came along.

e+H: Did being James require you to act or think in any way differently?

I had to be careful about the pronouns I used…and what I shared of my private life or admitted in public. I’d tweet something that seemed perfectly fine to me (for example, that I knew how to knit!), and I’d get an email from a close friend who would say, “Your slip is showing…”

But again, each time, this only went to prove how much gender bias people have – many men know how to knit, for example, and do so very well. Why should they hide a particular talent from people in shame of being seen as “girlie”?

James Chartrand

e+H: What parallels can you draw in the rest of your life?

John Smith is treated much differently than Indigo Rodriguez. A French nurse is treated differently than an English one. A gay man (or woman) is treated differently than a straight one. We’re even treated differently because of the clothes we wear, what our faces look like or which music we like to listen to.

Many like to deny it and say it doesn’t exist, but when you accept the possibility is there and start to watch for it, you’ll quickly realize that we all judge books by their covers, and that it’s hard to overcome that. My most open-minded of friends realized that they too have biases and assumptions – and some of them frankly irrational.

e+H: James, thanks for sharing your story with expat+HAREM.  Now a question for our readers — do you judge people based on their name?