Category: Jane Austen
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Song of Pemberley
In 2021 I started a novel called ‘Song of Pemberley’ but never finished it. Between selling my house in Texas, packing up everything and moving to Illinois, a number of things fell to the wayside until lately. Now, I’m working on playing catchup, and you know how much fun that is. However, since I am…
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Ghostwriting and Other Gory Tales
Ghostwriting, and other gory tales ‘Though I prefer first-rate fiction, for the last few years my reading seems to have been concentrated on letters and journals and biographies. It doesn’t bother me to read while I am writing… I mean, I don’t suddenly find another writer’s style seeping out of my pen. Though once, during…
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What Did Jane Austen Look Like?
What did Jane Austen look like? No one really knows. Which is to say: We know fairly precisely her size and shape, but only a little of what her face looks like. A forensic analysis done by clothing expert Hilary Davidson in 2015 details Austen’s figure. Davidson has since written books on Austen and Regency…
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Elizabeth’s Favorite Day
This month, I wrote a song for Elizabeth, sung to the tune of “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music. Enjoy!
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Blackbirds in Austen’s World
The war widow: sentimental depiction of a grieving woman whose husband has gone to fight in the South African War. Photograph of The Boer War, a painting by John Byam Shaw. &&&& These reflections upon military widowhood in Austen’s time found root in the first and seventh volumes of the Bennet Wardrobe Series, where Lydia…
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Emma Woodhouse is a Lovable Heroine (to me, at least)
Emma Woodhouse in various adaptations of the novel Emma is unlikable for a couple reasons, mostly her treatment of Miss Bates, but also because unlike the other heroines, her life seems charming at first glance. She is wealthy, she had a devoted parent in Mr. Woodhouse and a loving mother-figure in Mrs. Weston. She has…
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The Wit of Jane Austen Revisited
Letters to Cassandra This was a post that I wrote four years ago. But I just had to go back to it. It’s my laugh for the day. Jane Austen had a biting wit that I just love, and her letters to her sister usually had at least two or more samples of it. Enjoy!…
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An Interrupted Proposal Cover Reveal
Wow! It has been a long time coming, and you have been soooo patient! First, I am really excited to get this book out in print. There have been a few challenges as my life erupted in the past couple months, which has caused some delays, but we are finally coming down to the wire!…
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Another Stroll Through Bath’s Pleasure Gardens
In the middle of the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth, many places in England—and especially Bath—have been awash in celebrations. I was unable to attend, but the busyness of the town, as related by residents and tourists, caused me to revisit and re-enjoy my own travels there a few years back.…
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Excerpt from “Reputation, An Easy Thing to Lose”
Please enjoy this excerpt from my first novel, Reputation An Easy Thing to Lose.