Jane Austen Regency Week, part 1

Susan Mason-Milks, Maria Grace and Abigail Reynolds with the town crier

Susan Mason-Milks, Maria Grace and Abigail Reynolds with the town crier

Though Jane Austen Regency Week 2015 has drawn to a close, and we have all returned to our respective corners of the globe, we couldn’t wait to share it all with you! With so many wonderful events a single post can’t do it justice, so continue watching for a series on this event.

The festival was held in Alton, Hampshire, the place where Jane Austen spent a great deal of her life and did much of her writing. The town and the people we met there were just lovely and I can easily see how it would be a place that would inspire and nurture such talent as Jane Austen’s. The festival kicked off with Regency Day in town and a street fair.

Cassandra Grafton setting up the booth

Cassandra Grafton setting up the booth

We had a table near the center of the fair where seven of the Jane Austen Variations authors gathered. I’m pretty sure this was, to date, the largest gathering of our authors yet. There is something pretty special about seeing friends you only rarely see in person and in meeting for the first time internet friends who you have never actually met. That was one of high points of the trip for me. 

Abigail Reynolds and Leslie Diamond

Abigail Reynolds and Leslie Diamond

Jane Odiwe and Susan Mason Milks putting together bags of bookmarks and post cards

Jane Odiwe and Susan Mason Milks putting together bags of bookmarks and post cards

Maria Grace and Abigail Reynolds

Maria Grace and Abigail Reynolds

Maria Grace, Abigail Reynolds, Monica Fairview, Leslie Diamond, Cassandra Grafton and Susan Mason-Milks

Maria Grace, Abigail Reynolds, Monica Fairview, Leslie Diamond, Cassandra Grafton and Susan Mason-Milks

 

We had the best location for our book stall, the corner where all the demonstrations and performances were held! Local dancers, including the cutest little girls dancing around the Maypole, a fencing school, and the Dandy Chargers velocipede group delighted us all with their displays.

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The Darcy Brother authors: Maria Grace, Susan Mason-Milks, Monica Fairview, Abigail Reynolds and Cassandra Grafton

The Darcy Brother authors: Maria Grace, Susan Mason-Milks, Monica Fairview, Abigail Reynolds and Cassandra Grafton

One of the most exciting moments was getting all five authors of the Darcy Brothers together for a group photo. It was the first time all of us had physically been together! Hard to imagine that we actually wrote and published a book together and never physically sat in the same room together before it was done!

The street fair was only the beginning. Later in the week we enjoyed a ball, a guided walk around Chawton, evensong at St. Lawrence church, a talk by Abigail Reynolds on Mr. Darcy, a private tour of the attics at Jane Austen’s house, and, the highlight, presenting a check of the proceeds of The Scenes Jane Austen Never Wrote, to the Jane Austen House Museum. We’ll be back to tell you more about all of them soon!

21 comments

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    • Deborah on July 1, 2015 at 5:04 am
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    Thank you for sharing. I find it amazing that you ladies wrote a book together, that flowed so smoothly, and some of you ladies hadn’t even met before. (I hope you do another reader’s choice again soon. It was so much fun.) I enjoy seeing the pictures with the narration. It sounds like you had so much fun. I am looking forward to seeing and reading more about Regency Week.

    1. Thanks, Deborah. It was really a special time.

  1. It was an amazing time! It was great finally meeting everyone, putting a voice and mannerisms to everyone’s pictures, and finally learning how to pronounce Jane’s last name correctly! I can’t wait to do it again!

    1. Me too, Leslie!

  2. Great post, Grace! Really nice summary of the day and lovely pictures. I really enjoyed seeing again old friends and making new ones amongst the authors (especially those on The Darcy Brothers’ team) and meeting lots of other people enjoying the day.

    1. It was wonderful getting to see you. You are just as sweet in person as you are on-line!

    • Kathy L Berlin on July 1, 2015 at 8:46 am
    • Reply

    I have truly enjoyed all of the posts and photos about this JA event. I will never make it to England but I have lived there for a bit vicariously through all of you. Thank you.

    1. So glad you could joins us vicarious! Thanks, Kathy!

    • JerryT on July 1, 2015 at 9:15 am
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    Maria

    News such as yours is most appreciated!

    Jerry

    1. Thank you.

    • Carole in Canada on July 1, 2015 at 9:52 am
    • Reply

    Wonderful to see all of you together and at such a fun event! Looking forward to reading more and seeing more of all of you. Your generosity in giving proceeds to the Jane Austen House is great. Thank you!

    1. Thanks, Carole. It was pretty special to get to present the check to the museum.

  3. Amazing!! How wonderful it is to see so many of the Austen Variations authors gathered in one spot–and such a spot as this!! 🙂

    I remember the shock and awe of finally seeing online friends in real life for the first time when our group of 15 homeschooling moms who had been posting together on forums for over two years finally met up in Ohio, and I was dragging along a nursing toddler! It was a wonderful and magical weekend of adjusting my ear to unexpected Southern and New England accents (as we Californians don’t have an accent, LOL!) and seeing real-life smiles and hearing real-life laughter rather than avatars and emoticons.

    I can’t wait to hear more of your lovely time together! And what lovely Regency gowns and bonnets!! 🙂

    Warmly,
    Susanne 🙂

    1. Online friendships are pretty special, aren’t they? Ang getting to see those friends face to face is priceless. Thanks, Susanne!

    • Carol hoyt on July 1, 2015 at 7:47 pm
    • Reply

    Thanks for sharing ! Love the pics ! It’s nice to put faces to names.

    1. Everyone always laughs at me for all the pictures I take–over 1200 on this trip. But then, when it’s all over, no one complains abut having them. LOL! Thanks, Carol!

  4. Thanks for summing it up so well! It really was a wonderful experience.

    1. Very special indeed!

    • Anji on July 4, 2015 at 5:20 pm
    • Reply

    I’m another one who had to experience Regency Week purely from a vicarious point of view. I’ve really enjoyed seeing all of the photos everyone’s posted on Facebook. Thanks so much for letting us take part in this way.

    I have a cunning plan, as Baldwin from Blackadder would say, to enable me to get there next year to meet everyone who can make it.

    • Sheila L. M. on July 8, 2015 at 10:59 pm
    • Reply

    Seeing this on two sites/blogs – again – so nice to see the photos. Of special interest is to see favorite authors enjoying themselves.

    • TLeighF on July 13, 2015 at 10:44 pm
    • Reply

    Such fun for you all to be together!

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