Jane in January: Interview with a Janeite—Special Guest Laurie Drinon McClain

  Happy January, Janeites! We had the opportunity to sit down with Laurie Drinon McClain for a little heart to heart about inspirations, Jane Austen, and new beginnings. Her special host this month is Jack Caldwell, and I hope you will be as touched by their chat as I was.   Hello, Laurie! Please tell …

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Jane in January: Inspiration, pt 1

Inspiration is a peculiar thing. Personally I find it flighty, fleeting, hard to catch, and harder to predict. It would be lovely to say I do this or go here or listen to that for inspiration. That would make my life so much easier. But, alas, my muse who takes the avatar of a humming …

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Jane in January: The Birth of a Story

This month for Jane in January, we are discussing the various inspirations that have caused us to pick up our pens and keyboards to honor The Lady. I wish I could tell you that I had traveled to Venice like Diana (doesn’t that look incredible?), or had been steeped from my infancy in Jane Austen …

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Jane in January – Reflections and Inspirations

One activity for our Jane in January month on Austen Variations, will be to reflect upon what inspires us in our writing.  “Nothing so easy, if we have but the inclination,” as Lizzy told Miss Bingley.  For it’s easy to see that it is Jane Austen herself who principally inspires us. She does this in …

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Jane in January Happy New Year

Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe another year has come and gone, and yet – here we are at 2019. Is anyone else as astonished as I am that it has been 19 years since we entered this century? We are ringing in the New Year with our annual Jane in January 2019! This …

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The Cajun Cheesehead Strikes Again!

The Cajun Cheesehead Critic loves 1980’s Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Here’s why. By Jack Caldwell   Greetings, everyone. Jack Caldwell here. I’m just gonna lay it on the line: 1980’s “Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice” is the best adaptation of Pride and Prejudice ever filmed to date. Period. Oh, wait? You want proof? I …

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Advent Calendar – Day 21 – 1812: The Darcys’ First Christmas and the Grinch

Thanks for stopping by to read my second post in the Advent Calendar. If you missed the first, you can find it here. I thought it would be nice if my two posts were about ‘before and after’: Mr Darcy’s Christmastide in the years before and after his marriage. My take on his 1811 Advent …

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Advent Calendar – Day 20 – The Darcys and Lord Byron in Venice, Part 7

The two signore di notte were busily occupied placing shackles on Wickham’s ankles and wrists. He did not struggle, but arrogantly remonstrated with them. “Surely you see this is unnecessary. Take your hands off me, you need not bind me like some common thief, I am a gentleman…Darcy, you will not permit this treatment, surely?” …

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Advent Calendar – Day 19 – 1811: Mr Darcy’s Advent Season

Good morning! Hope you’re having a wonderful Advent Season so far. I thought this might be a good time to think of Mr Darcy (isn’t it always? 😉 ) and imagine how he might have fared in the run-up to Christmas, once he had left temptation behind and had been oh-so-successful in persuading both his …

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Advent Calendar Day 18: Yankee Swap Part Two

Welcome back 🙂 The first part of this story is here! …………………………………………………….. Darcy slid into the car after Elizabeth and the driver, the soul of discretion, said nothing, proceeding as if nothing had happened. The silence was awkward between them for a few minutes until she said, “So Bingley didn’t tell me anything about our …

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