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Showing posts from 2010

Austen Authors Invitation

Writers of Jane Austen fiction cordially invite you to the Launch of ‘Austen Authors’ and to share in our passion for her world ... because there’s never enough Jane Austen. We look forward to the pleasure of your company on Monday, September 6, 2010, and daily thereafter.

Migrating to new blog

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Hello everyone. I haven't been updating for several reasons. One of the main reasons is that I've been inundated with spam messages that keep coming in, which has been extremely frustrating. Thank goodness I set up the blog to intercept the comments! The good news is that I've now joined a new blog especially set up for Jane Austen sequel enthusiasts, which includes many of your favourite Austenesque Authors (at least, it includes quite a few of mine). This means I'm going to be migrating over to the new blog, though I'll keep this blog here for the time being. We'll be coming live on September 6th, so make sure to drop in on that day to see what's in store for you! I'm sure you'll find everything your Austenesque heart could wish for.

Jane Austen inspired Anthology to be published by Random House

I am very pleased to announce that I will be participating in an anthology of short stories inspired by Jane Austen to be published in 2011 by Random House. Of course, I won't the only one. I'm listing the participants below. If you enjoy Austen parliterature, I'm sure you'll recognize quite a few names here. Pamela Aidan (Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman Trilogy) Elizabeth Aston (Mr. Darcy’s Daughters, & Writing Jane Austen) Stephanie Barron (A Jane Austen Mystery Series, & The White Garden) Carrie Bebris (Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mysteries Series) Diana Birchall (Mrs. Darcy’s Dilemma, & Mrs. Elton in America) Frank Delaney (Shannon, Tipperary, & Venetia Kelly’s Traveling Show) Monica Fairview (The Darcy Cousins, & The Other Mr. Darcy) Karen Joy Fowler (Jane Austen Book Club, & Wits End) Amanda Grange (Mr. Darcy, Vampyre, & Mr. Darcy’s Diary) Syrie James (The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen, & The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte) Di

Thoughts on Bright Star: Between romantic poetry and Jane Austen

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Laurel Anne's post on Jane Austen's Regency World Magazine reminded me that Bright Star had been sitting on top of my tv for some time, and that it was time to watch it. Bright Star is the story of the doomed poet John Keats' (Ben Whishaw) relationship with his next door neighbor Frances/Fanny Brawne (Abby Cornish). Having seen Jane Campion's The Piano some years since, I knew this was not going to be steamy fast-moving romance. The music of the opening credits sets the tone of the film, and that never wavers: quiet, dignified, beautiful and poignet. For those of us used to watching Jane Austen adaptations, the film is a feast for the eyes -- particularly at the beginning when Fanny channels all her creative instincts into creating one lavish costume after the other. The outdoor shots are heavenly (literally, if we are following Keats' poetry) particularly the spring shots. They are especially delightful when we see things through Keats' eye: whether it&#

The Other Mr Darcy now available on Kindle, and Volcanic Ash

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Just discovered that The Other Mr Darcy is back on  Kindle again. I know some of you were asking about that. The Darcy Cousins, by the way, is already on Kindle. The big story in the UK now is the Volcanic Ash that is descending upon us. It's certainly ironic that this happened just after my last post! I promise you I can't predict volcanic eruptions, though I did once have an incident in which I "predicted" an earthquake. I was living in Corvallis, Oregon, at the time. I was supposed to meet a friend of mine for our regular brisk walk, but when she called me to agree on the time, I told her I wasn't up to it. "I don't know what it is," I said. "I feel kind of shakey, as if the ground is unsteady under my feet. I don't feel good at all." My friend laughed. "That's the worst excuse to get out of exercise I've heard yet!" I protested that it was true, but I couldn't quite explain it. That night when I was

Snowy Peaks and Volcanic Eruptions: The Year Without Summer

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I heartily beg your forgiveness for this lamentable lapse in blogging. I would like to remind you that though I am not blogging here, I am blogging elsewhere, so you can still enjoy my insightful and witty remarks ;-) if you follow my blog tour (dates and locations on the right). Meanwhile, I'd like to share some photos from a trip I made to Switzerland (you may remember that I have a 100 year old grandmother that lives there) since I can't resist it. Nothing to do with Austen, though there is a strong Regency connection, since Byron and the Shelleys spend the summer of 1816 in Switzerland. Unfortunately, it was a very unpleasant summer because it was the notorious "year without summer". A cold spell hit the northern atmosphere after Mount Tambora erupted in 1815, sending debris into the atmosphere resulting in weather chaos. Crops failed, leading to food shortages, famine, and riots. The flooding and the cold led to the spread of disease as well. It was in Switze

The Year of the Hat 1814

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One could call 1814 the Year of the Hat. The fashionable young lady of the time was quite spoilt for choices, some of them quite extreme. There was always the turban, which was still in, though in lighter materials. But if you really wanted to be all the rage, then you had to be aware of two things. The first is that height was important – some of the hats could easily compete with a man’s top hat for height. The second was that elaborate trimmings were essential. If you were able to combine flowers with lace with different coloured silk, then you could count yourself successful.  (Image from Clarmont College Collection) Which leaves young ladies such as Georgiana Darcy with a difficult choice. Should she be fashionable, or should she not? Her cousin Clarissa advocates that she needs to take more risks with her outfits, and convinces her to buy a rather conspicuous hat. But is it the right choice? The following excerpt from The Darcy Cousins illustrates the difficulty of making such

12 Days to Launch: Darcy Cousins in the US

I can't believe there are only twelve days left for The Darcy Cousins to come out. And of course it's always thrilling to start reading the reviews and see all the different perspectives people bring to your writing. I've already had two reviews that I enjoyed very much -- Laurel Ann's over in Austenprose , and Jean Wan's on All About Romance .   Meanwhile, I've been having a great time reading Jane Austen's  Sanditon  with the group read, and following the guest posts on Austenprose. I've certainly learned a lot about the fashionable resorts of the time, what ladies wear to promenade, and Jane Austen's attitude towards the world of taking the waters. I particularly enjoyed learning that Colin Firth's modesty in Pride and Prejudice's wet shirt scene was actually historically inaccurate, since males at the time generally bathed nude in lakes and rivers. Well, the filmakers missed their chance...

Swan Protest

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My attention was captured today by the picture on the left, especially because I loved the caption The Guardian attached to it: ‘This brave creature made a one-swan sitdown protest in the middle of Kew bridge, south-west London, causing traffic chaos for over an hour before it remembered that is was mute and therefore incapable of communicating its demands or having them met. Whereupon it flew gracefully away. And the Daily Mail Scoffs: As excuses go, it sounds unlikely - 'Sorry I'm late, I got held up by a swan'. The picture resonated with me in several ways. The first was that it reminded me the flock of geese that impeded Caroline Bingley on her way to Pemberley in The Other Mr Darcy . She certainly had the excuse: ‘Sorry I’m late, I got held up by a flock of geese’. It also resonated with my new novel, The Darcy Cousins , in which swans are featured as a centerpiece -- so to speak. Both editions of my novels have swans on the cover, a reference to a boating trip

The Darcy Cousins: Official Launch Day Today!

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Today's the day! The official launch day of the UK hardcover edition of The Darcy Cousins! Between you and me, The Darcy Cousins feels rather special to me because I had a good time writing it. The Other Mr Darcy was a book that required toil and a lot of energy. Getting into Miss Bingley's mind wasn't easy, and it was also a challenge to show Robert Darcy entirely from her viewpoint. I was determined throughout not to show things from the hero's perspective, because that's what Jane Austen did with Mr Darcy, apart from the famous letter, of course. Don't get me wrong. It wasn't an uphill struggle by any stretch of the imagination, but it required sustained effort. By the time I got to write The Darcy Cousins , I began to work out how Jane Austen really did that. Her sly style is very deceptive. She doesn't show his point of view, but because of the omniscient narrator there's a great deal that gets slipped in so that we don't miss his poi

An Improper Suitor: New Paperback Large Print Edition

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My Regency novel, An Improper Suitor , has now come out in a paperback Large Print edition by Camden Press/Chivers. This is very reasonably priced and is available in the UK from BBC audiobooks . The original release is still available from The Book Depository with free international shipping.

Jane Austen and Sir Walter Scott: pioneers of the novel

I have a new blog up on my group blog, Historical Romance UK , in which I talk about how novels were perceived during the time of Jane Austen. So if you'd like to head over there and tell me what you think, I'd love it. See you there!

The Other Mr Darcy named Buried Treasure 2009 on All About Romance

Senior Reviewer Rike Horstmann at All About Romance selected The Other Mr. Darcy as her Buried Treasure pick for 2009! I'm really thrilled to see my name up there on the list. It really is an honor, since this means it's one of only 16 books from smaller publishers or new authors that has been highlighted as deserving special attention. Hurray!

The Other Mr Darcy now available on Kindle

Unfortunately, The Other Mr Darcy has been temporarily removed from Kindle. I'm not sure about the reason, but I believe it is being sorted out. I hope to be able to announce that it is back up again soon. Many apologies for the inconvenience! Previous text: Just wanted to let those of you who are in possession of this marvelous space-saver that The Other Mr Darcy is available internationally on Kindle. This means that those of you who own Kindle can now download it wherever your are, so I no longer need to talk about US editions and UK editions, which is far more democratic, in my mind. Click here to see more about the Kindle edition of The Other Mr Darcy . Of course, Kindle isn't exactly a freebee...  

Proofs and Covers for The Darcy Cousins

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Today I received the proofs for The Darcy Cousins, my second book in the Darcy Cousins series, and I'm thrilled, as it means it will soon be time for the novel to be released in the USA. The date is set for April 1st, which isn't an April's fool trick (I hope). Here's the Sourcebooks cover: Quite a change from The Other Mr Darcy , isn't it? I love the young lady in the foreground. She has very expressive eyes. Many people are under the mistaken impression that writers decide what they want on their book covers. The truth of the matter is that many writers have little control over what goes on the cover of their books. At Sourcebooks, however, I was lucky enough to have had some imput, which is why we now have a young lady on the front. The original cover was like this: I must say, this cover is quite lovely. It captures the playfulness of the novel really well. I especially like the colors. But the costumes weren't right. Since it would have been