In writing my Darcy Saga, and specifically my soon-to-be released Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future, bedroom wear has frequently contributed to the plot. Go figure! Long ago I researched, and am content with my conclusions and how I’ve chosen to describe the pretty underthings and nightgowns worn by...
Blogging this month will be inspired by a fact of some sort that I uncovered while writing Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future. Today, from a chapter where poor Mr. Darcy attempts to shop for Elizabeth. Lost amongst the vastness of Harding and Howell, he is assisted by three...
My upcoming novel, Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future, is the second volume of the “prequel duo” to my Darcy Saga sequel series to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Since the duo novels, including volume one Darcy and Elizabeth: A Season of Courtship, are set entirely during the betrothal...
July 4, 1776 was the historic day when the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence. Every year, Americans rejoice and celebrate Independence Day with great fanfare. Amidst colorful parades, flag hoisting ceremonies, and barbecue parties, Americans remember the suffering their forefathers endured to win them precious freedom. “Since the signing...
This is the week when I will finish Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future. YES! As I prepare this blog, late on Sunday evening, I am perfecting the final chapters in order to have it in the hands of my amazing editor Gretchen Stelter by Monday, July 10 at...
Getting back to writing my novel also meant getting back into research. Both I love, so it has been a win, win! Today in the “What is that thing?” category, a new discovery for me was the device seen to the right. First introduced in the late 1600s and popularized...
As promised, I am posting small excerpts from Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future every morning over on my Facebook Page. Starting this past Sunday, June 25, and on through until the novel is released sometime in late July or early August, every day at 7am EST a...
It has been over three years now, since March of 2014 to be precise, when I published Darcy and Elizabeth: A Season of Courtship, my “prequel to the sequel” novel. That novel, the last published in my name, is the first volume of a two-part “Prequel Duo.” Why the long...
As everyone surely knows, the summer months are the “blockbuster” season when it comes to cinema. Historically, most of the big popcorn movies are released in May, June, and July. This year is no exception. What is unique, versus recent years, are the number of remakes/sequels/revamps/etc. on the list. So...
Three years ago I moved to Kentucky from California, and naturally there were many reasons why we chose this area. A big one was the JASNA Region in Louisville, albeit more for me than my husband! Located about forty miles from where we live, it is an easy, beautiful countryside...
In visual art, the term Chinoiserie is from “chinois”, the French word for Chinese. The artistic style was a fanciful European interpretation of art and designs seen in countries all over East Asia, including China, Korea and Japan. The beginnings arose in the 13th century when trade routes opened between Europe and...
Sea bathing has not always been a desirable activity, especially in the colder climes such as England. The wide open waters were frightening and strange debris washing onto the beaches raised alarm. Merely walking upon the sand was, in certain places and periods of time, considered a risky undertaking. By...
“Ten thousand a year and he owns half of Derbyshire!” So said Charlotte Lucas to Elizabeth Bennet in the 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice. To be fair, this statement is not in the original novel by Jane Austen, nor do the descriptions of Pemberley give any details of the...
Titles of nobility are one of those areas Americans have particular trouble wrapping our minds around. It doesn’t help that the rules and application of British titles are extremely complex, and have changed in multiple ways over the centuries. In some respects, reading the various titles or hearing them uttered in a movie is akin to...
If you have read my first novel, Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy, then you know that a duel with swords takes place toward the end. Naturally, in order to present a realistic duel, or simply have a duel at all, I needed to research the hows and whys as pertinent during the Regency...
