Friday 14 October 2011

GUESTPOST & GIVEAWAY- LAUREL ANN NATTRESS AND JANE AUSTEN MADE ME DO IT: After two hundred years in print, why does Jane Austen appeal to book clubs?

Today I'm incredibly happy and proud to host "Lady Austenprose", friendly and generous Laurel Ann Nattress, on her blog tour for the launch of " Jane Austen Made Me Do It". This collection of Austen- inspired short stories promises to be as exciting as a firework show! Reading the Austen authors who contributed their stories one at a time is pure delight, can you imagine them all together in one book?
Pamela Aidan • Elizabeth Aston • Stephanie Barron • Carrie Bebris • Jo Beverley • Diana Birchall • Monica Fairview • Amanda Grange • Syrie James • Diane Meier and Frank Delaney • Janet Mullany • Jane Odiwe • Alexandra Potter • Beth Pattillo • Myretta Robens • Laurie Viera Rigler • Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway • Maya Slater • Margaret C. Sullivan • Adriana Trigiani • Lauren Willig • and Brenna Aubrey, the winner of a story contest hosted by the Republic of Pemberley website.


Here's to you the lovely piece Laurel Anne Nattress wrote for My Jane Austen Book Club. Read it carefully, then take your chance to win her book. Giveaway details at the bottom of the post. Good luck!

Many thanks Maria for hosting me at your lovely My Jane Austen Book Club blog during my Grand Tour of the blogosphere in celebration of the release of my new Austen-inspired anthology, Jane Austen Made Me Do It.

Book clubs are incredibly popular today and I am so happy to hear of Jane Austen novels being selected, read and discussed at your Jane Austen Book Club. In fact, the notion of people getting together for tea, scones and Jane Austen sounds like a wonderful way to spend an afternoon with friends. Probably the most famous Jane Austen book club is the group of six individuals in Karen Joy Fowler’s bestselling novel of the same name, The Jane Austen Book Club. We were fortunate that it was made into a movie in 2007. I loved how they read one of the books every two months and how the plot of the novel parallels one of the characters own life.

I think that Jane Austen’s novels appeal to book clubs because they have plots that are character driven. Her dialogue fuels the narrative, and not external events, which make the stories very personal. It is one of her enduring contributions to literature. We have been reading and discussion her works for two hundred years now. Every time I re-read one her novels I see something new, and reading along in a book group gives you an even wider perspective.

I am happy to say that many of the twenty-two short stories in my new anthology, Jane Austen Made Me Do It, are character driven too. Inspired by Jane Austen, her novels, and her life, the stories range from Austen as a character such as “Jane Austen’s Nightmare,” by Syrie James and “Jane Austen’s Cat,” by Diana Birchall, to stories about her characters like “Waiting: A story inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion,” by Jane Odiwe and “Nothing Less Than Fairy-land,” by Monica Fairview, to stories inspired by Jane Austen’s actual life events such as “Love and Best Wishes, Aunt Jane,” by Adriana Trigiani and “Jane and the Gentleman Rouge,” by Stephanie Barron. As you can see, there is something for everyone in this anthology.

Knowing how much readers love to learn about and discuss Austen, her novels, and the Regency era in which they were published, we thought a Reader’s Guide to the stories in Jane Austen Made Me Do It would be very helpful and enjoyable for book clubs. The twenty-nine intriguing questions listed in the back of the book make you think about each of the stories and help get the conversation rolling. I hope you and your Jane Austen Book Club will give them a try.

Thank you again Maria, for letting me share my thoughts on why book clubs enjoy reading my favorite author,and a few insights into the stories in my new Austen-inspired anthology, Jane Austen Made Me Do It, that released was this week by Ballantine Books. It was a delight to work with all of the authors and edit the book. I hope Janeites, fiction, mystery and paranormal readers enjoy it as much as I did helping create it.

Cheers, Laurel Ann

Editor bio:

A life-long acolyte of Jane Austen, Laurel Ann Nattress is the author/editor of Austenprose.com a blog devoted to the oeuvre of her favorite author and the many books and movies that she has inspired. She is a life member of the Jane Austen Society of North America, a regular contributor to the PBS blog Remotely Connected and the Jane Austen Centre online magazine. An expatriate of southern California, Laurel Ann lives in a country cottage near Snohomish, Washington. Visit Laurel Ann at her blogs Austenprose.com and JaneAustenMadeMeDoIt.com, on Twitter as @Austenprose, and on Facebook as Laurel Ann Nattress.

Ballantine Books • ISBN: 978-0345524966

Giveaway of Jane Austen Made Me Do It

Enter a chance to win one copy of Jane Austen Made Me Do It by leaving a comment by 21st   October, stating what intrigues you about reading an Austen-inspired short story anthology. Please add  your e-mail address, if you want to be entered in the giveaway contest.  Winner to be drawn at random and announced on October 22nd . Shipment Internationally. Good luck to all! 


28 comments:

Unknown said...

What intrigues me most is reading some authors that I have not read before and reading some of my favorite authors maybe offering up something a little different from their usual. But all of them writing about Jane Austen.
Thanks for the giveaway opportunity.

A Scattering said...

I'm intrigued at the prospect of comparing the authors' various styles and how they each bring our "Jane" friends to life.

I'm a new visitor to your lovely blog!

Maria Grazia said...

Please @Sophia Rose and @A Scattering, could you add an e-mail address where I can contact you in case one of you is the lucky winner?
Thank you so much for taking part!

anme said...

A JA inspired anthology intriques me because I know I will find at least one new author that I will enjoy reading more of, especially their JA related books.

melorabrock {at} gmail {dot} com

Unknown said...

I like that I get to read authors I have yet to read and experience their writing without committing to a full novel. It's like going to a buffet! :)
jakki36 at yahoo dot com
Thanks for the giveaway!

BeckyC said...

I love the idea of the sample plate. I get to enjoy some authors I know and find others worth investigating.

Thanks for the giveaway.
cherringtonmb(at)sbcglobal(dot)net

Nicole said...

I think the best part about reading a novel of Jane Austen short stories is the fact we get little glimpses into different stories. While I might not read a whole novel based on Persuasion, it's nice to read a short story about it.

Literary Chanteuse said...

I love to see the relationships between people because it is shorter they seem to develop a lot quicker and get to the heart of the matter. Thank you for the giveaway!

Margaret
singitm@hotmail.com

Debra Brown said...

There's a book I'd love to win! Please put me in the hat.

Debra Brown said...

Ahem. kescah at gmail dot com

Joanna said...

Hey there. I had an immediate desire for this book and so am grateful for this giveaway. :) I prefer short stories in an anthology as opposed to a whole novel. Each story is self-contained and yet when seen with others, is based on a specific theme. Austen-inspired short stories just make it worth all the more. Different perspectives and what-ifs are portrayed, my absolute favourite!
My email address is

Joanna said...

Here is my email address again. It didn't appear on my previous comment post. siokhian at gmail dot com

cyn209 said...

what intrigues me about Austen-inspired short story anthology is not only the stories about the main Austen characters, but especially those about the minor Austen characters, especially Georgiana Darcy & those silly Bennet younger sisters!!!!

i would love to be entered in this giveaway!! thank you!!!!

cyn209(AT)juno(DOT)com

Phoebe's Sisters said...

I would love to have the chance to read this anthology! The titles and themes that you've named sound absolutely fascinating and I can't wait to know what all these stories are about.

faridamestek@yahoo.com

Lúthien84 said...

What intrigues me about an anthology of Austen-inspired short stories is the chance to read about the different styles of the contributing authors which focuses on various characters and themes.

Thanks for making this giveaway international.

evangelineace2020(at)yahoo(dot)com

Marybeth said...

This sounds like such a great collection of stories. I'm curious about all of the Persuasion-inspired stories. maihle at gmail dot com

Unknown said...

Sorry for forgetting to post email contact.

sundee94@comcast.net

Thanks for reminding me.

Linda said...

I have tended to be a bit hesitant about reading Jane Austen spin-offs. I figure some short stories would be an ideal introduction to this new sub-genre. Thanks for the giveaway.

Ironstrangeprompts said...

To be honest I wish to be entered because my sister loves Jane Austen and I think she would like this book.

derangedpegasus@gmail.com

Gwendolyn B. said...

There are some wonderful authors represented in this anthology. I really like reading short stories and of course I love Austen. When you put all three components together, I know I'm going to love this book! I'm looking forward to the gentility of this escape! Thank you so much for the chance to win a copy.

geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com

Rachel said...

I confess I love reading everything about Jane, everything related to Jane, everything that mentions Jane, maybe because here we don't have all the sort of variety you have in USA and Europe. I like to read all books I could and to see all films I could too because I love to compare and discuss about beloved Jane.I have only to thank a lot for all these marvelous chances! Lots of kisses, Rachel
rachelwishmade@gmail.com

Jo's Daughter said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Alyssa Goodnight said...

I think what intrigues me about a Jane Austen short story is all the possibilities once the story is over. We just get a little taste and then are able to imagine the rest of the storyline for ourselves. These extra storylines are why Austen retellings and spin-offs appeal to me so much.

alyssa@alyssagoodnight.com
Thank you! Congrats, Laurel Ann!

Anonymous said...

I love Her first 2 books!! I am so excited about this one too!!

Anonymous said...

Oops Angel55368@aol.com ^^^

Carmen said...

I'm intrigued by the stories about Jane Austen's characters and the stories inspired by her actual life events.
I'm so curious!
Thanks for the giveaway!

8zeronove4@excite.it

Anonymous said...

Reading so much about this anthology has made me very curious! I have read only one short austenesque story till now and to be able to have more at hand together in one book, written by different authors (many new to me) seems a wonderful idea...
Monica
moon.card(at)yahoo(dot)com

Anonymous said...

I have not read Jane Austen, and this will push me to read it, and then this book
robinlscott4 at hotmail dot com