Can I use only one of my two last names for publishing? I have 2 last names due to my hispanic background. Soon, I will have to think about my very first publication (field: Medicine/Psychology). Could I use only the first last name for my publishing or will I get into legal trouble with that?
My goal is to avoid hassles after marriage, since we are planning to fuse our last names. So, assumed that my maiden name is A. Smith Miller, after marriage I'd be called A. Smith-Johnson, and my publishing name would be A. Smith.
Is that possible, or is it mandatory to use the entire last name for publishing?
You can use any name you like for publishing - even a pseudonym. You are wise to consider the future so that publishing will always be under the same name, simplifying searches and keeping the maintenance of your reputation simple.
In some ways, keeping a birth name as your official &quot;professional name&quot; is the simplest for most people.
And people who are active in more than one field, might want to use different names in those fields, just as novelists often do.