The choice of her pseudonym was imposed by the editor of her only two first novels, Calmann-Lévy. It was inspired by the name of her maternal ancestors (Daniel O’Connell), and by the maiden name of her mother (Marie Henriette Lesueur). She acknowledged that the choice had been made in haste and she did not love it. She would have preferred a shorter name, like the one of Loti, she admired. However, it did not change (or so imperceptibly), and she was saying in 1912:
Today I add a hyphen, to discourage people from calling me “Mrs. Lesueur”, which is ugly and inaccurate. Because I am Mrs Lapauze, and in literature Daniel-Lesueur, but never Mme Lesueur…
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