Celebrate Darcy & Elizabeth: Hope of the Future by Sharon Lathan

CELEBRATE! CELEBRATE!
DANCE TO THE DARCY JOY MUSIC!

I know I am not the only one who never thought this novel would be finished. Late better than never, DARCY & ELIZABETH: HOPE OF THE FUTURE is now available everywhere! Time to toss the confetti, pop the champagne, and blow the horns! I intend to celebrate all week, and maybe longer, and hope everyone will drop by to join me in the fun.

DISCUSSION! Q&A! EXCERPTS! GAMES! GIVEAWAY!

Before we launch into the entertainment, the first order of business is to share the easy purchasing links for my newest novel. At this moment, the only bookselling marketplace not yet available is the print paperback version on Barnes & Noble. Wide distribution takes several days, so it should be there very soon. But, it does not matter too much because the paperback can be bought on Amazon or directly from Createspace.

Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet
will soon be joined in Holy Matrimony!

The initial month of their Season of Courtship has passed. Together, the lovers strengthened their bond through honest communication, as they dealt with adversity, jealousy, and distrust. Ever growing in mutual love and understanding, a dramatic confrontation broke through the final barriers.

Now their Hope of the Future
“happily ever after” is assured!

As long as Lady Catherine can be stopped in her scheme to interfere, that is. Or, will Mrs. Bennet’s bad advice ruin future marital felicity?
Might increasing liberation lead to overwhelming passions that cannot be controlled, with catastrophe a result?

Continue the journey begun in
Darcy and Elizabeth: A Season of Courtship.
Delight in their flourishing romance, ride along on their escapades in London, and be a witness at the wedding of the century.

The miraculous design of how Two Shall Become One begins before the sacred vows.

One cannot have a new release celebration without offering a giveaway. The entry form is on the sidebar widget, with several options to increase point chances to win. The more done – comments, shares, tweets, review – the odds of winning increase!

Prizes are, of course, copies of my sweet new novel! Five (5) copies are up for grabs, ebook or print as each winner chooses. Deadline for entries is midnight this coming Saturday, August 19.

Winners will be selected on Sunday and contacted via email, with the announcement here on the blog as well. Good luck!

For me, the publication of this novel is an accomplishment in a host of ways. For one, finishing the second part of the Darcy Saga Prequel Duo completes the whole series. I say “complete” not meaning I no longer plan to continue the Darcy Saga. Quite the opposite, in fact! Finishing the Prequel Duo has wildly inspired me to carry on past where I ended in The Trouble With Mr. Darcy in large part because of the feelings of completion.

Honestly, I never anticipated experiencing such a sense of fulfillment in writing of the engagement months. For many years I saw no reason to cover these two months. My initial desire, as sparked way back in 2006, was to recount my vision of a happily ever after marriage for Darcy and Elizabeth. In fact, the very first “short story” I wrote was set on the wedding night and it is now the first chapter of Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One. From there, I sequentially moved forward for several years into the lives of the Darcys, their families, and assorted friends. Along the way and within the pages of the five Darcy Saga Sequel novels, I wrote “flashback” scenes from the betrothal period. Three of these so-called flashbacks were longer, but most were brief mentions only.

Delving deeper and extensively into the betrothal period events was never my focus, however. Gradually, and for reasons I cannot name, I discovered those sketchily touched upon months contained gaps begging for greater elaboration. Now, with the finalization of Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future, I truly can say that any gaps have been covered. Thus, the Darcy Saga is a complete sequel series!

So here we are! Together with my faithful readers, I embark on a super exciting week to celebrate my newest novel, the conclusion of the Prequel Duo (FINALLY!), and the “completion” of the Saga. Today, let’s begin with a discussion and Q&A. I want to hear from you! Ask me a question about anything. If you have already read it, share your thoughts! Be kind and warn if giving any spoilers, please.

To begin, I am going to chat briefly about the three previously written scenes I needed to include in this novel. First, let me clarify that to ignore any of these scenes simply because they are found in other novels of the Darcy Saga would have been ridiculous. They are each too essential to the plot and too momentous, for one thing, and as such could not be brushed aside. Instead, I had to find a way to make them fresh while also maintaining the integrity of the conversations, events, etc. I hope I succeeded without readers feeling cheated by what are, in many respects, repeats. Perhaps the following information will ease the mind of anyone concerned about this.

MEETING THE MATLOCKS – Chapter 10 in Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy. As Lizzy and Darcy plan for their first Christmas at Pemberley, Lizzy remembers the trip she and Jane took to London to shop for their trousseau. In the first 1680 words of this 3600-word count chapter, I wrote of their shopping, Lizzy’s tour of Darcy House, and the letter Lady Catherine sent to Darcy upon learning of his engagement (these events were expanded upon in Darcy & Elizabeth: A Season of Courtship). The remainder of the chapter hinted at Lady Catherine’s spreading of rumors to force Darcy to break his engagement and then centered upon dinner with the Matlock family. In Hope of the Future, these latter two major happenings were split between a 2500-word prologue and a 9400-word chapter titled “Aristocratic Reception.”

My first approach was to alter the point-of-view from Lizzy’s perspective (as it was in the recollection) to Darcy’s viewpoint. We learn how he heard of Lady Catherine’s meddling, how he deals with Lord Matlock’s concerns, and his thoughts as Lizzy dazzles his family. The previously written conversations are woven into longer conversations. All in all, the dinner itself and the London sojourn are greatly elaborated, both in this one chapter and in the first half of the novel.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MR. DARCY – Chapter 7 in Loving Mr. Darcy. Although the celebration of Mr. Darcy’s 29th birthday ended up in my second novel, it was actually the fourth or fifth “short story” I wrote. Logically it felt right to include it as a betrothal period event to recollect on the eve of Lizzy’s birthday. The first 2000 words related how Lizzy learned of Mr. Darcy’s birthday, a scene in the Longbourn parlor that I enhanced in A Season of Courtship. The birthday party itself, at 2400 words, provided room for major elaboration! I can honestly assure that the resulting chapter of 8700 words – “Festive Commemoration” – includes loads of additional material!

I will be talking about some of this in a post later in the week. Among the additional information: what the couples did on the previously vaguely-mentioned pre-party carriage ride, and the party games played, food eaten, and gifts given in greater detail.

AN INTIMATE CONVERSATION – Chapter 2 in Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy. In this 6800-word count chapter, Lizzy experiences nightmares as a result of her mother’s marriage “advice” and false assumptions about Mr. Darcy. These fears culminate in an intense, deeply private and revealing conversation with her betrothed. The revelations within this chapter were critically important to the plotline and characters as I wanted them to be. Meaning, I wrote this original chapter carefully, and with serious introspection and consideration. Therefore, when it came time to revisit the scene, I felt no need to change anything. In fact, it was imperative I did not alter the words themselves beyond a few sentences here and there (it was fun to toss in a reference to Dr. George Darcy, for instance). Thus, I will warn that the conversation itself is almost word-for-word.

Where I could safely write new material for Hope of the Future was in elaborating upon Lizzy’s side of the story. This includes detailed descriptions of her nightmares and the cause of them (Thank you, Mrs. Bennet, in part). This chapter – “Dramatic Interruption” – is over 7000 words. Then, switching to Darcy’s point-of-view in a 9200-word chapter titled “Significant Introspection”, the intimate conversation is recounted, but with loads of additional pre and post conversation information, including Darcy’s delay on the road from London to Hertfordshire by a violent storm.

Now the floor is opened up to all of you! Time to begin the chat . . . .

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