William Sears is composed of at least 3 distinct authors (edit assignments). LibraryThing has only recently introduced this feature. In the near future distinct authors will have their own pages.
According to the Library of Congress authority file on 4 March 2009: 1) Sears, William 2) Sears, William, M.D. 3) Sears, William B., AKA William Sears (Bahá'í) on Wikipedia.
A: Because LibraryThing draws from so many different libraries, it can't enforce a single name for a given author. "Also known as"
lets LibraryThing users combine author's names easily,
so collections match up and everything runs smoothly.
Q: Can I combine with an author not suggested above?
Q: I know an author is separate, but some well-meaning but deplorably uninformed person keeps combining them! Can I take a name off the combination list?
Look up! Everything in the "Combine with..." section now has a link to "never combine." Use this feature wisely. "Marc Twain" may be idiotic, but misspelling should still be combined. "Mark Twain" and "Edward Gibbon" should not.
Q: What authors have already been slated to "never combine" with this author?
1