I wasn't born with this surname, no. My then-partner and I changed our surnames by deeds poll. We'd always wanted to share a family name, but didn't feel that marriage was for us, and we wanted something quirky and unique and "ours". We'd talked about it for years, until one day I suggested the possibility of a single-character surname (knowing that this would reduce the options to just 26 and thus potentially expediate the decision-making process). My blog post announcing the change.

Since then, I've run a website, freedeedpoll.org.uk, which aims to help people (in the UK) to change their name by deed poll without expense nor a solicitor: you just fill in a form, print a PDF, sign it, and you're done.

My name's caused me a couple of problems over the last six years or so that I've had it (for example, I always get stopped by Immigration Control when I travel, because they don't believe my passport is real - I try to explain every time that if I were going to make a fake passport, I'd pick a more-believable name!), but it's not been too troublesome except with Facebook. Sometimes I'm in computer databases as QQ or Qu or QQQ or Q', in order to get around short-sighted character limitations, but that's not a big problem either. My ex- and I split up, but I keep the name (mostly because it feels like it's "mine") and she's kept it too (mostly because she's too lazy to change it, I believe). But as far as I know, we're the only two people legally-known as "Q" in the world.