September in Bath – According to Jane, an Anniversary Celebration

It’s been seven years — to the day! — since According to Jane was published. It came out on ebook on September 21, 2009 one week in advance of its paperback release from Kensington Books, and I remember those days very well… I couldn’t have been more delighted, overwhelmed, scared, and enthused all at once. 😀

At the time, I’d just learned that there was a whole universe of JAFF out on the Internet. I’d attended the JASNA accordingtojane[1]AGMs in both Milwaukee (2005) and Chicago (2008), but the online communities were brand new to me. I’d written this novel, submitted it to agents and publishers, even won RWA’s Golden Heart Award (“Best Mainstream Novel with Strong Romantic Elements” 2007) for the story before I had any idea what a rich tapestry of Austen-inspired fiction existed in the virtual world. I’m still a little amazed by the millions of Jane fans all around the web and the way her supporters have bonded together to share their love of her writing.

Since we’re celebrating Bath during September, I’ve got a scene from According to Jane that takes place in that city. My heroine, Ellie Barnett, travels to England for a much-needed summer getaway and, with her, goes the spirit of Jane Austen, attempting to give her advice on life and love. Not that Ellie always listens! Hope you’ll enjoy this little snippet from my debut novel!

***

We celebrated my thirty-third birthday in the city of Bath, complete with high tea at the renowned Pump Room.

Rather indulgent of me having a feast like this at a table for one, wouldn’t you say? I said silently to Jane, taking in the full view of the open dining area from our little corner.  Curious tourists strolled along the edges of the room and peered through the windows at the legendary bathing area below.

Jane made a noise in my head that sounded suspiciously like a snort then muttered something unintelligible.

What was that? I asked her.  I raised my teacup in the air to toast myself and reached for a delicate chocolate petit four filled with custard.  The jars of strawberry jam and clotted cream called to me from across the tiny table, and I was tempted to rush through my first treat so as to sample another.

I despise Bath, Jane said, louder this time.  It is a noisy, dismal place where purported gentlemen and ladies visit for the exercise of gossiping and gazing at strangers.  My opinion of it has not improved with the centuries.

I pointed to the pyramid of sweets in front of me.  But just look at these delicious—

Ellie, she said with a sigh.  Do you recall the emotions you experienced during your school dances?  You described them as times when gentlemen and ladies stared at each other yet did not speak.  And the feast items on the table did not appeal to you either.  Do you remember why?

Yeah.  They were usually dried-out, awful things we ate so we had something to do with our hands.

Perhaps the desserts in my time had more flavor, she said, but our intention in consuming them was for much the same reason as yours.  We relied on something else to divert our attention from the matter at hand.

The “matter” being husband or wife shopping?

Indeed, she said.

Okay.  So you’re saying spending time in Bath left a bad taste in your mouth.  I laughed at my own joke and nibbled on another teacake.

Jane ignored my attempts at lightening up the conversation.  When we were living here for five years and, later, in Southampton for three, I wished only to be someplace settled.  Someplace that was home.  It was dreadful being on display every day and forever in transit.  A short seaside holiday was a welcome change, yes.  But eight years of displacement and rooming with relatives was not.  I wish to depart this room and this city, Ellie.  I will leave you to enjoy your desserts in the peace of your own company and shall rejoin you at a later time.

Jane? I asked, but I received no answer.  She’d left.  Hidden herself in the dark unconscious of my mind, just beyond my grasp.

Pump-Room-PastriesI popped a final pastry into my mouth and sipped on the last of my tea, mindful of my solitary state.  I knew I had distant relations living in the area.  Maybe I should’ve done some serious genealogy work before I came…or maybe it was better I hadn’t.

Let’s face it, people never knew what weird stuff they might uncover about their families when they began to dig.  Truth was, I probably didn’t want to know.  But this left me, of course, with the downside of my reticence: There was no one I could really talk to here.

It was easy not to feel the sting of loneliness when Jane’s acerbic and witty observations kept me company.  In her absence, awareness of the reality flooded my mind unfiltered, and I became haunted by a homesickness I tried unsuccessfully to ignore.  I, too, wanted to be back home.  To be settled again in the place I belonged.

My flight back to Chicago departed in three days and, whether or not I’d gained greater maturity as a result of this six-week sojourn, the time had come for me to go back.

***

The photo above is my own personal picture from a trip my husband, my son, and I took to Bath back in 2012. We were celebrating our 19th wedding anniversary on that day with tea and treats at the Pump Room, just before I went to the Jane Austen Centre to sign copies of According to Jane. Unlike my novel’s heroine, I was anything but lonely or homesick that day — I had my loved ones by my side — and that afternoon remains a treasured memory!

What is one of your favorite family or travel memories? A moment that never fails to make you smile when you recollect it? xox

16 comments

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    • Lynn char on September 21, 2016 at 9:27 am
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    How have I not read this book? I’ll be on my way to pick it up soon! One of my favorite travel memories occurred in 1987. Our group of friends decided to do something decadent so we rented a sailboat (and crew) and spent a week sailing around Tortola in the British virgin islands. We even had a chef trained in France! Sunsets over the water every evening, our favorite libations available whenever we choose and our favorite people surrounding us….ah the memories. Thanks for taking me back Marilyn

    1. Ohhh, Lynn, wow!! What a fun adventure that must have been! It’s been a long time (over 20 years) since I was in the Caribbean, and I never had the pleasure of visiting the British Virgin Islands…your comment has me daydreaming!! And thank you for wanting to read According to Jane! I hope you’ll enjoy it. 🙂 🙂

    • Stephanie L on September 21, 2016 at 12:52 pm
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    I bought this book as one of the first groups on my brand new Nook in 2011 or 2012. I’ve been a fan ever since! I think we all would like a little bit of Jane and her wit in our heads now and then.

    My family is somewhat fractured and the stories and the travels are as well, but I have many travel memories with friends that always bring grins and great memories. We traveled to waaayyyy upstate Minnesota with my in-laws a few summers ago and spent two weeks at a lake cabin and would spend afternoons going around in a pontoon boat just looking at the eagles’s nests. So peaceful, so beautiful, always makes me smile and go back!

    1. Stephanie, it makes me smile (like this –> 😀 ) and wish I could hug you from here for reading According to Jane back then and becoming a fan! Thank you so much… xoxo And thanks for sharing your happy memories of upstate Minnesota and that gorgeous lake! What a wonderful holiday!!

    • Chanpreet on September 21, 2016 at 2:43 pm
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    I fell in love with According to Jane shortly before or after it’s release. I spotted an except somewhere and that was all it took. I can recall laughing, crying, and even feeling my heart twist in my chest with anguish as Ellie told of her adventures and heartbreaks. I am so glad I discovered the book when I did.

    One of my favorite travel stories involves my family travelling across Western Canada in a station wagon for three months back in the 90s. First we missed our flight so that makes it memorable. Then I think there were 12 of in that wagon. We Southerners had never seen snow covered mountains. So naturally all but 3 of 300 some photographs taken from the back of the station wagon were of snow covered mountains, many of them the same mountain but from different viewpoints (coming and going). My mother was not happy when she developed the reels. But she put the camera in the hands of a 9, 8, and 6 year old so I still think she got the better end of the bargain.

    1. Chanpreet, first and foremost, thank you. It means so much to me that you loved According to Jane and that Ellie’s tale resonated with you when you read it. XOX
      And WOW!! A three-month driving trip across Western Canada! That’s a long time to be on the road anywhere — with or without snow-covered mountains! No wonder it was such a memorable trip 🙂 . What an incredible experience to get to share with your family… I’ll bet you still talk about it!!

    • Kristine Shore on September 21, 2016 at 6:22 pm
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    I have never really had a bad vacation so really the most memorable things are the bad and unforeseen. The worst being my daughter being taken ill at The Louvre and riding in an ambulance to the hospital in the middle of Paris. We speak VERY little French, so communication with the staff was interesting. She ended up being dehydrated, but we missed the Louvre for the most part and got one of the more intersting souvenirs of the trip, a bill from the hospital, which was one of the cheaper things we paid for in France.

    1. Kristine – thank goodness your daughter was okay!! I’m so glad it was a relatively minor problem, and what a relief that the hospital bill wasn’t too pricey… ♥♥ Hopefully you’ll all get to see the Louvre again sometime soon! xo

  1. Congratulations, Marilyn, on your ninth anniversary of being published!! I love your books because you bring such *real* (as opposed to “ideal”) characters to life, with their little foibles and failings, and it’s refreshing to read about such characters as they find love and happiness.

    Thank you so much for writing for us, and I’m definitely looking forward to all that you will be writing (and I’ll be reading) in the future!

    Warmly,
    Susanne 🙂

    1. Susanne, you couldn’t have given me a kinder compliment — thank you so very much! ♥ There are many things I admire about Austen’s writing, but what struck me most when I first read her work was the realness of her characters. How human and relatable they were. It was that quality that inspired me to write & what I’d always hoped I could share with readers… I’m so honored that my characters feel that way to you. You just made my week! 🙂

    • Sheila Majczan on September 22, 2016 at 5:50 pm
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    Marilyn, I have read 11 of your books so I still have some to go. I have two on my kindle unread at this time. But this novel was a 5 star read for me. I have had a few lovely vacations but I think the one we took in 2004 about 6 months after our 35th anniversary to GB has to be near the top for enjoyment. I love history and read a lot of novels situated in GB, so visiting palaces, the Tower of London, Museums and even the Jane Austen Centre in Bath had meaning and merit for me. My husband had given me the choice of Hawaii or GB so you see where my values lie.

    1. Sheila,
      I’m so *honored* that you’ve read 11 of my books and still look forward to more! *HUGS* & a big thank you!! ♡♡ And thanks as well for your lovely comments about According to Jane. I’m delighted you enjoyed that story so much! By the way, visiting England was my top travel site too 😉 . My husband-to-be (24 years ago) knew how much I wanted to go to London, so he made it special and proposed on London Bridge… So to me, your anniversary celebration trip sounds like the best imaginable!! xox

    • BeckyC on September 23, 2016 at 9:58 am
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    I read this one some time ago. I think it might be time for a revisit!

    1. Awww, thanks so much, Becky!!
      I hope you’ll enjoy the journey back with Ellie, Sam, and Jane 😉 . xo

    • Deborah on September 25, 2016 at 11:42 am
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    I have not yet read this book, but the excerpt has whetted my appetite. It is on my very long TBR. As for a travel memory, there are so many. Everyone involves family. I think the best one was the trip to Germany when I was 13. I made friends with 2 girls when visiting my grandma. I later found out one was the daughter of my mother’s closest friend. About 10 years later I found out the second one was a distant relation. Not even my mother knew that. On that trip I met many family members I had never before met. Unlike Ellie, I did not want to go home. I was away for 10 weeks.

    1. Deborah,
      I really hope you’ll like According to Jane whenever you have a chance to read it 😉 . And what a fabulous trip your Germany adventure must have been!! How wonderful to connect with family and friends like that…especially in a country that’s so lovely!

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