I will absolutely keep my last name. I kept it during my brief first marriage, and I will keep it should I ever get married again.
I've spent 33 years as Amy XXXX and just because I meet someone, fall in love and want to get married, that does not mean that I am suddenly a different person.
I love my last name and have NEVER met anyone whose name I like better, so can't imagine that 1. I will meet that person 2. He will be an avaialble, attractive, intelligent male 3. We will marry.
Part of the tradition of the woman taking her husband's last name, as I understand it, is in olden times it signified the transfer of her as property from the father to the husband. I am nobody's property and will keep my last name.
Lastly, I am a writer and known under MY name. I will keep my last name.
As for children, I have no problem with them having my husband's last name. But I do think that I would make their middle name my last name. Not a hypenated name, just for example, Sarah Brown Gorman.
I did once date someone that liked my name so much he said if we got married he'd become Mark XXXX. I'd have NO problem with that.
And I have a friend who was so adamant in her refusal to change her name that she and her husband hyphenated their names together.
I just can't get with the whole change name thing at all. Its fine for a lot of women, just not me. I am Amy XXXX and will be until I die.