Tales of Jane Austen Love
We all know how my feet were placed upon the path of Jane Austen fandom. Or if you do not yet know, you can read all the intricate details on the various pages of my website. My personal opinion is that is does not matter how or when one came to discover the world of Austen. Whether it was forced reading of Pride and Prejudice in some English lit class way back in high school, or the recent discovery of Lost in Austen, the point is that you entered a world of beautiful literature, romance, and history (among so much more).
Perhaps you take your Austen very seriously; are one of the purists or Janeites, to use a common term. Maybe you aren’t all that severe; you are content to watch the various adaptations because you just love a good period drama or happy romance or light-hearted comedy. Again, just my opinion, but I do not think it matters because even a slice of Austen is better than none!
So since you know my story, I want to hear yours. Share with me how you discovered Austen and what her stories mean to you. Don’t be shy! A signed book is at stake!!
My tale began in my senoir year of high school too but it is obviously a long time ago compared to Kayla’s LOL.
I too found the text very difficult to absorb and tried many times to understand what on earth everything meant, not being a great reader I put aside too. I found out that ABC was airing a miniseries about the novel so I decided to watch it (thinking perhaps I could avoid reading hehehe) This was in 1980!
The series ran for an hour each week, after the very first one I was riveted to the story and could not wait until the next episode. Needless to say I found the reading much easier knowing the meaning and I devoured the book immediately.
I fell in love with P&P that year and have loved it ever since! I left school and worked for a bit before marrying quite young and having my gorgeous kids right away too. Loe and behold one day I came across the video copy of the 1980 version in a book store and I bought it immediately and watched it a squillion times. I then devoured all of JA’s books and bought all the videos for each story. I was in heaven loved it all. I was absolutely beside myself with joy when the 1995 version was broadcast! I taped it and watched that one a squillion times too!!! My gorgeous children were old enough to quote lines from the series because I played it so often! I loved CF for ten long years, thinking he was the perfect Darcy.
The internet was something I caught onto much later in the piece so when I heard a rumour about the 2005 version I was on the net taking in everything there was to know about it. I loved Matthew and Keira i n this version too. The rain scene on the first proposal was so sizzling, I watched it over and over before the movies was even released. I ended up seeing the movie eight times in the cinema!
I adore all JA adaptations and have copies of every single adpatation you can think of even the 1940 one. And I await the release of many more in the future with excitment!
I always wished for a sequel befitting the love I had for my all time Fav literary couple Lizzy and Darcy. I wanted them to be passionate and loving and devote their lives to each other and quite simply be happy ever after. I searched for a while but a nasty sequel with unhappy storyline really scarred me and I avoided any other sequels for fear they would be the same. I even tried to write something myself and didn’t get far at all. So I thank you Sharon for providing me and all of us with the perfect sequel, all so beautifully told. I now love your Darcy most of all, more than any other.
Love ya
TSBO devotee
Vee
I discovered Austen by posts on author’s blogs. I have never read the books.
Hi Sharon!
I never read any of Jane Austen’s books. I stumbled upon the 2005 movie version on a cable TV channel when it was almost over. I checked to see when it was on again so I could see the entire movie. I fell in love with P&P and Mr. Darcy [aka-MM]. (sigh) I cannot tell you how many times I have watched the movie, via DVD, since. I watched the Colin Firth movie version also but prefer the MM & KK version. I have since purchased all JA’s books and seen all the movies on Masterpiece Theatre. So far I have only read P&P and Persuasion but I will get all of them read.
I decided to peruse the internet to see what else I could find on P&P. I literally stumbled upon your website and checked it out. I have been hooked ever since. I never read any fan fiction until I started reading your TSBO. I purchased all three of your books and have read them numerous times. The only other fan fiction book I read was "Darcy’s Passions" which was suggested to me by Amazon.com. I enjoyed your books so much that I have no intention or reading any other JA fan fiction books.
I am so enthralled with your ‘happy ever after’ stories and I don’t want anything to taint that feeling. I will just continue reading yours and then look forward to reading Book 4 whenever that comes out. Then I plan to read your Georgiana book when you have finished that. I just love the way you see their lives turning out.
All your new posts are mind boggling!!! I don’t know how you have time to do them all. I do enjoy reading them though.
Thank you so much, Sharon, for your marvelous stories.
May God Bless you always.
Esther
Aah! Thank you Kayla! Your whole story is wonderful, even if it hadn’t ended with your kind words to me. I really do appreciate that part and am so happy that you discovered my Saga and it was what you were looking for.
Come on ladies! I know there are more of you with tales of how Jane Austen has touched your life, even if it has nothing to do with my continuation. Speak up and share!!
The first time I discovered Jane Austen, I was in my senior year of high school. We were studying English Lit. and P&P was the assigned reading. I really shouldn’t say discovered, because my first attempt at reading P&P was a disaster. I don’t think I made it through two chapters before I put he book down and decided I would probably never like the story.
It wasn’t until a year later, when the 2005 movie came out, that I truely discovered the world of Jane Austen. I remember thinking, "I was supposed to read that. I think I’ll watch the movie just to see what it’s about." (Not to mention the trailer with MM dancing and giving that mysterious, handsome, rugged look of his was enough to entice me. LOL) So, I started watching it and was hooked after only the first ten minutes. I couldn’t believe it! How could I have been so blind as not to love this story! I didn’t really give it a try. Silly me lol. I felt like Lizzy when she automatically assumes the worst about Darcy. That tends to be a recurring theme in my life. I start out hating something and then one day I love it more than anything. I think I watched the movie three times that night, including watching it with subtitles, and of course all the special features. That was all it took for me, I was hooked on everything Regency and I have been a huge fan ever since.
A couple years ago, I was looking for a JAFF continuation of the story. I found several that were coninuations of the novel, but none that picked up where the 2005 movie left off. I cannot express the depths of my delight when I discovered The Darcy Saga. It was exactly what I had been looking for! I was already hooked on just the novel excerpts that were posted long before the self-published novel ever came out. I have been a loyal fan ever since. I have never read another JAFF version and don’t plan to, because I don’t think they could hold up the high expectations I have come to expect from the Saga. (But that’s just my opinion.) I could not be more happy with this story, if I had written it myself! Major kudos to Sharon!
Sorry it’s so long, but I’ve wanted to share that story for a couple years now.
Keep up the awesome work!