• A Fond Farewell and Giveaway Results

    As the Always Austen blog draws to a close, I find myself reflecting on the many years spent typing away in the company of Darcy, Elizabeth, and an endless parade of tea cups. Writing Jane Austen fan fiction has taught me a few things—some practical, some philosophical, and some just plain ridiculous. Here’s a small…

A Fond Farewell and Giveaway Results

As the Always Austen blog draws to a close, I find myself reflecting on the many years spent typing away in the company of Darcy, Elizabeth, and an endless parade of tea cups. Writing Jane Austen fan fiction has taught me a few things—some practical, some philosophical, and some just plain ridiculous. Here’s a small…

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Interview with Colonel Fitzwilliam

I have a special guest today, an all-around favourite with so many of us. He’s dashing and charismatic, and everyone loves a man in uniform. Please welcome Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam, here to talk about his recent adventures as recounted in the novel A Soldier’s Tale. Col F: Thank you, Riana. It’s a pleasure to be…

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A Valedictory Bow

As with all things, ends are inevitable. This will be my last post for Always Austen as the blog site winds down. Hard to believe this will be my forty-second post here at Always Austen! However, posts and all that mean little without the presence of a woman, an author, and, I dare say, a…

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Jane Austen Inspires not only Appreciation but Creation

I recently posted a Middlemarch by George Eliot fan fiction on the free site Archive of Our Own (AO3). I was shocked to find myself making relationship tags. I was further blown away to find out that there are only 12 Middlemarch fan fictions on AO3 total. Checking other authors, even the famous Jane Eyre…

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Compelled Unions: Arranged and Underage Marriage in the Regency Era

When people picture Regency England, they often imagine elegant ballrooms and whispered declarations of love. But for many young women, marriage was not a matter of choice at all. Arranged matches, family duty, and questions of property meant that girls—sometimes shockingly young—could be pressed into marriages they did not want. Legal Framework Under Lord Hardwicke’s…

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Anatomy of a Book Cover Part I

When I first started writing, my former publisher encouraged me to work on a series. So, I started writing what would become The Darcy and Elizabeth Series that consisted of the following: The Women of Longbourn Attending a Ball Darcy and Bingley Darcy Chooses Part 1 Darcy Chooses Part 2 Elizabeth’s Choice The first three…

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An Affectionate Farewell

After a little more than two years, this will be my last post for “Always Austen.” The blog is coming to an end. For two years I’ve learned and enjoyed so much content from blog owner Regina Jeffers and the rest of the authors who participate. There’s a mind-blowing collection of experience, scholarship, and gifted…

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Down Another Rabbit Hole

Hi there. Well, this is my last post here on Always Austen. Thanks for reading my goofy and off the wall posts. I know I am not everyone’s cup of tea. I have been doing some research again tonight, which means its rabbit hole time. If you have ever done research, you will understand what…

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Literary academics cannot escape discussing the modern novel without presenting Jane Austen credit for the art form.

She is an established literary figure in English literature. Austen’s skillful use of mixing together the narrator’s telling the story with a character’s thoughts and emotions and dialogue was just catching on in the late 1700s and early 1800s, but it is a mainstay in modern fiction. She created literary realism.

People speak of the greatness of Shakespeare, but falter when asked to read or explain his works. Not so, with Jane Austen. Because her works have been so easily consumed for more than 200 years, some forget how groundbreaking the six novels of the daughter of a simple rector in rural Hampshire, England, can be. We on this blog have not forgotten.