Can Jane and I Help?

Posted on April 10, 2020 by Shannon Winslow

20200409_101848-1Yesterday was such a beautiful Spring day in the Pacific Northwest. The sky was blue, the birds were singing, the thermometer topped 70 degrees for the first time in a long while, and my magnolia tree burst into glorious bloom. At my house in the country, surrounded by all that “rightness,” it was hard to believe anything could be very wrong in the world. Yet I knew that when I turned on the TV, there would be a new, shockingly high COVID-19 death count. There would be more heart-wrenching stories of loved ones lost, incredible hardships, and financial devastation.

What a strange and unexpected turn our world has taken! Just a few months ago, we couldn’t have imagined that most of us would now be indefinitely confined to our homes, with schools and businesses closed, waiting out a pandemic that’s like nothing any of us has ever seen before.

20200407_120415-1I’m trying to do what little I can. I’m obeying the ‘stay at home’ order to avoid adding to the problem. I’ve sewn and donated a few dozen masks and given some money. But I wish I could to do more to help. Unfortunately, I don’t have the training to save lives on the front lines. I’m not a scientist researching a cure. I’m not even a grocery worker or someone else providing an essential service.  I’m a writer.

Yes, readers do often say how much simple enjoyment books can give. And that’s important. I even received a touching note from a woman who told me how having the positive distraction of one of my novels helped her get through a really dark time in her life. That warmed my heart tremendously!

A novel is still just a novel, though. In these troubled times, what do I have to offer that’s more substantial?

Like many other authors, I’ve decided to offer one of my books at rock-bottom prices. Not one of my novels this time, but something that I hope will give more help and comfort than a mere “good read.” Whether you’re a person of faith or not, I hope you will be blessed by the encouraging messages in Prayer & Praise: a Jane Austen Devotional.

Prayer and Praise_KindleDuring the current crisis, I’m pleased to be basically giving it away to anybody who wants it – as close to free as I can make it, that is. For a limited time, it is available at Amazon for $.99 on Kindle and $5.99 in paperback – at cost. Or it’s free with your Kindle Unlimited subscription.

The 50 uplifting messages it contains are inspired by the prayers that Jane Austen wrote, and they use familiar situations and characters  from her novels as illustrations.

We marvel at Jane Austen’s insights into people and relationships, as seen in her novels. Similarly, we can take courage from her faith as revealed through her prayers and the way she faced the trials of life.

In one prayer, she prays, May the sick and afflicted, be now & ever [in] thy care… – an especially timely sentiment for today. Here’s the first part of the devotional segment from Prayer & Praise that line inspired:

When in Persuasion Louisa Musgrove fell and hit her head at the shore in Lyme, she was not the only one to suffer. She may have been the one sick in body, but all her friends and family were instantly afflicted as well. Mary became hysterical; Henrietta fainted from the shock; Captain Wentworth despaired and agonized; and Charles sobbed, crying out, “What, in heaven’s name, is to be done next?” Anne, who felt the horror of the moment just as much, suffered the added pressure of having everybody turn to her for direction.

Today, if this kind of accident occurred, things would go quite differently. Six to twelve people would instantly whip out their cell phones to call 911, and soon the victim would be whisked off to the nearest hospital for the most advanced medical care available. But that’s not always enough. Even today, so many afflictions of body, mind, and spirit remain completely beyond human know-how to mend. So, in our helplessness and desperation, we still cry out to God. We beg for his intervention. We pray for him to guide human efforts toward healing and add to them his miraculous power so that our loved one may be restored.

This is as it should be. God invites us to bring all our needs and heartaches to him in prayer. Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you (Psalms 55:22).

We are now more aware than usual that many circumstances are out of our control and beyond human ability to remedy. Even if you aren’t personally sick or have lost a loved one or a business, we are all ‘afflicted’ in some way by this viral outbreak.

He Has RisenToday is Good Friday, the day Christians commemorated Jesus Christ’s suffering and death on the cross. Despite the horror of the event, it’s appropriate to call it ‘Good Friday’ because of the good Jesus achieved through it – his willing sacrifice out of love making our salvation possible. He did for us what we had no power to do for ourselves.

The darkness of that Friday long ago didn’t last forever, though; it turned to rejoicing with Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday.

God willing, we will have brighter days ahead. Whatever your situation, I hope you will take a few minutes each day (using Prayer & Praise or some other means) to reflect on God’s love for you and the hope of the resurrection ours in Jesus Christ. Cast your cares on the Lord, and he will sustain you through this and every other crisis.

[Read more about Prayer & Praise and a full sample segment here.]

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Who Knew Henry Tilney Was Such a Passionate Guy?

Posted on March 15, 2020 by Shannon Winslow

pen and inkI especially enjoy writing the many letters included in my novels, trying to make each one a little work of art, as Jane Austen did.  (More on that topic here.) Who can forget Darcy’s 8-pager to Elizabeth after his failed proposal or Cpt. Wentworth’s iconic letter to Anne?

…You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it eight years and a half ago. Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you. Unjust I may have been; weak and resentful I have been, but never inconstant… (Persuasion, chapter 23)

See the source imageThen yesterday, as I was forging ahead with the rewrites for my current work in progress (a fun and somewhat campy Northanger Abbey sequel entitled Murder at Northanger Abbey), I came across a letter I composed for the book months ago. Seeing it again, I thought, “Hmm. That’s not bad!” At least I know I would have been pretty excited to receive one like it from my sweetheart. So I thought you might enjoy reading it, too, as a sneak peek for the upcoming novel.

Set up:  Henry Tilney wrote this letter to Catherine during the time they were separated and waiting for the general’s permission to marry. Since the action in Murder at Northanger Abbey takes place months after their eventual wedding, the letter is included in this novel as a flashback of sorts, and the narrative that introduces it is referring to that earlier time period:

The lovers thus had parted with a strong understanding between themselves but nearly despairing of the necessary change in the general’s position ever taking place. Henry had returned to Woodston to hope and to pray and to pursue improvements to his domestic situation for Catherine’s sake. Catherine remained at Fullerton to pine and to cry and to watch for the letter from Henry she felt their unofficial engagement would justify.

In the mode of the true romantic heroine, Catherine had secretly intercepted her lover’s initial correspondence, thereafter always keeping it concealed on her person and close to her heart, and faithfully reading the missive through several times a day, despite the tears of exquisite torture it invariably drew from her already red-rimmed eyes.

Fortunately, however, having committed the entire contents to memory, she soon had no need of worrying the paper parcel any further, for indeed it was at the point of falling to bits where the pages had been folded and unfolded an hundred times or more. She could instead call every touching passage to mind at will anytime she chose during those difficult months of waiting. Even now, she could still remember…

Catherine allowed her mind’s eye to travel across those long-cherished pages again, silently reciting the words once more but hearing them in Henry’s voice.

My Dearest Catherine,

May I presume to call you mine, though I cannot yet fully possess you? I dare to hope that I may, for when I look into my mind, into my heart, and into my imagination, I find you already resident there, a warm and vital part of me. In these three seats of my affection, there is no one but you, Catherine. In truth, there never was and never will be another. You have captured me altogether, and I ache with longing until our union can at last be made complete.

Do I shock you, my darling, by the force of my affection, with the strength of these sentiments? Indeed, I shock myself. You have been used to hearing only lightness and teasing from me, only joviality and laughter. That is always my preferred way. But I find that I am, after all, capable of much more serious reflections when hard pressed, as I now am by this separation. I find it is difficult to speak lightly when my heart is heavy.

And yet I do not despair at our situation. Although there currently seems no reasonable basis for hope of an early solution, I remain ever hopeful. I refuse to be reasonable if being reasonable means I must consign myself to a world where the contrariness of one stubborn gentleman should overrule all that is good, right, and fitting. If my father will be obstinate in his position, I will hold even more tenaciously to mine. I can even be patient if necessary, because I am convinced that, with right on our side, we will prevail in the end, you and I. I also believe that the reward – the deep satisfaction we may expect to find in our marriage – will be well worth waiting for. But I dare not say more on that subject here.

So I entreat you to join me in this belief, my dearest, fairest Catherine. Do let me hear from you soon to confirm your love and faithfulness, as I do now confirm mine for you. Tell me you will wait as long as it may take for our happiness to be fulfilled.

I remain ever yours, body and soul,

Henry

Catherine was glad for the relative darkness of the carriage, for she felt her cheeks grow hot at the review of these passionate sentiments… and especially with the thought of how their implied promise had been more than amply fulfilled since their marriage.

See the source image

Hope you enjoyed this little taste of what’s coming this summer in Murder at Northanger Abbey! (See Work in Progress page for more info and links to two more excerpts)

What do you think? Would you be pleased receiving such a letter? Did you picture Henry Tilney as a passionate guy, a joking goofball, or can he be both?

UPDATE:  Murder at Northanger Abbey is NOW AVAILABLE in paperback, Kindle, audio, and Nook!

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Becoming a Fan of Becoming Jane

Posted on February 15, 2020 by Shannon Winslow

Becoming Jane 2I love movies and I love Jane Austen, so what could be better than a movie about Jane Austen?

I’ve been building my private library for years – movies to my taste, distinctly separate from my husband’s much larger collection of action/sci-fi films. In mine, adaptations of Jane Austen’s books feature prominently. I now own three versions of Pride and Prejudice (with an extra copy of P&P’95 as a loaner), two versions of Sense and Sensibility, three Emmas, one Northanger Abbey, and one Persuasion. (I have yet to find a production of Mansfield Park that I like.) Then there are the odd, related films, but I had nothing about Jane Austen herself until Becoming Jane arrived on the scene.

I went to see the movie at a theater when it came out in 2007. How could I not? I was too impatient to wait until the video was released. I had to find out for myself whether or not it was worthy to assume a connection to our dear Jane. From the trailer and blurb, I was suspicious:

It’s the untold romance that inspired the novels of one of the world’s most celebrated authors. When the dashing Tom Lefroy, a reckless and penniless lawyer-to-be, enters Jane’s life, he offends the emerging writer’s sense and sensibility.  Soon the clashing egos set off sparks that ignite a passionate romance and fuel Jane’s dream of doing the unthinkable – marrying for love.

I considered myself pretty well informed about Jane Austen by then, and so I was prepared to be offended by any inaccuracies in the film. I was prepared to be indignant if the producers had played fast and loose with the facts… which they had. Two of the major players (Lady Gresham and Mr. Wisley) never existed. And although it’s true that Jane met and had a brief but flagrant flirtation with Tom Lefroy, there’s no evidence to show that their romance went anywhere near as far as it does in the film.

But instead of being offended as I watched it, I remember being sucked into the romance.

It’s a very well-made film. The cinematography is beautiful, the dialogue witty, the musical score brilliant, and the cast top-drawer. No, Anne Hathaway’s accent isn’t perfect, but that’s a fairly minor flaw. Otherwise her performance is believable and engaging. James McAvoy, who, at the time, I’d never seen before, was excellent as the male lead. And you should expect nothing less from proven talents like Julie Walters, James Cromwell, and Maggie Smith.

So, what of the story itself? I think the reason it works, even for somewhat of a Jane Austen purist like me, is that, although not factually accurate, it respects the lady and her legacy. It gets the spirit right if not the details, showing Jane as an intelligent, witty young woman, full of potential, facing a world where social constraints severely limit her possibilities. It depicts the challenges she no doubt faced, the difficult odds against her marrying for love and at the same time being allowed to fulfill her writing aspirations. If Tom Lefroy truly was Jane’s one true love, things might have played out very similarly in reality.

Perhaps most importantly, Becoming Jane feels like a story JA might have written herself (except for the less-than-perfectly-happy ending, that is). It also seeks to explain what so many have wondered: how with supposedly little personal experience Austen could have written so expertly about romance, how Jane the inexperienced girl became Jane the accomplished author.

There are plenty of authentic touches incorporated to satisfy JA insiders: an excerpt about Tom from her letter to Cassandra, lines from her books cleverly worked in to the script, music based on tunes found in her personal music book. For example, a snippet of this Lady Catherine speech:

“Miss Bennet, there seemed to be a prettyish kind of a little wilderness on one side of your lawn. I should be glad to take a turn in it, if you will favour me with your company.”   (Pride and Prejudice, chapter 56)

I didn’t mind that what the movie depicted was largely fiction, not fact. After all, fiction is my stock and trade. My strongest criticism, is that it was not clearly labeled as such, leaving the otherwise uninformed to assume what they saw is what really happened with Jane Austen. But in the end, I enjoyed the movie too much to quibble, and I soon added Becoming Jane to my personal collection.

It’s hard to believe well over a decade has passed since I first saw that film, and it would be difficult to estimate how many times I’ve watched it since then – at least 20, I’m sure.

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000037_00034]As most of you know, I have my own theory as to the source of Jane Austen’s knowledge of romance. Although in The Persuasion of Miss Jane Austen Tom Lefroy is no more than a youthful infatuation, I have to admit that writing the banter between him and Jane was a delight – perhaps somewhat inspired by how their relationship was depicted in this film.

Although I don’t remember thinking about it at the time, maybe discovering I could enjoy Becoming Jane – a less-than-strictly-factual story about Jane Austen – gave me tacit permission to imagine and write one of my own!

So, what did you think of Becoming Jane? Are you a fan? Why or why not? And if you say you prefer my version of events in TPoMJA, I won’t argue with you. So do I, but nobody has made a movie of it for me to watch… not yet anyway.

Interested in MORE MOVIE REVIEWS? Visit my Movie Reviews page for a complete list with links!

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Taking Pleasure in a Good Novel

Posted on January 13, 2020 by Shannon Winslow

Happy New YearLet me start by wishing you all a wonderful 2020! Since all the hubbub of the holidays has at last died down, I’ve found time to get a little writing done again. I’m 200 pages into my Northanger Abbey sequel – Murder at Northanger Abbey (see Work-in-Progress page) – and I’m closing in on the final climactic series of scenes. (Believe it or not, I was until recently wavering on who done it, but I finally figured out the mystery. Haha!)

When I’m writing a Jane Austen piece, which I pretty much always am, I like to keep my head in the game by repeatedly rereading the related book (or listening to the audio version) – in this case, Northanger Abbey. That’s how I came across this quote again:

“The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel must be intolerably stupid. I have read Mrs. Radcliffe’s works, and most of them with great pleasure. The Mysteries of Udolpho, when I had once begun it, I could not lay down again. I remember finishing it in two days, my hair standing on end the whole time.” (Henry Tilney, Northanger Abbey, chapter 14)

See the source imageIs what Jane Austen says about the novel, here and in chapter 5 (the greatest powers of the mind displayed, thorough knowledge of human nature, lively effusions of wit, best-chosen language) her way of tooting her own horn? Sure, but it’s probably her honest opinion as well. She and her family were enthusiastic novel readers, and, according to one of her preserved letters, “not ashamed of being so.”

The idea of being ashamed to admit reading novels sounds absurd, doesn’t it? In Austen’s day, however, when that literary form was in it’s infancy, the novel did not yet enjoy wide social acceptance. Plays and poetry were still considered more the thing. Shakespeare, probably the most revered English author of all time, never wrote a novel, after all.

See the source imageSeveral years ago, because of the above reference in Northanger Abbey, I became curious about The Mysteries of Udolpho. Yes, it’s a real book, one Jane Austen read. Much to my surprise, I discovered it was available through my local public library. It took me at least a couple of weeks (not two days like Henry Tilney) to get through it, and I didn’t feel my hair standing on end even once, which was a disappointment. Tame by today’s standards and painfully long-winded. Wordy.

Isn’t it somehow ironic to accuse a book of having too many words? Yet it’s a common criticism of “the classics.” Even in Jane Austen, who was not as given to exhaustive descriptions as most, you find enormously long paragraphs and speeches instead of the soundbite conversations we’re used to now.

That older style isn’t inferior; it was appropriate for the time. When books were one of the few sources of entertainment, I imagine readers wanted their treasured novels to last as long as possible. And precise, detailed descriptions were important for people who weren’t able to easily visualize other times, places, and social strata by simply turning on a television. Add the fact that writers (Dickens, for instance, with his serialized works) were sometimes paid by the word, and the phenomenon is explained.

See the source imageNowadays, we have a lot to choose from, dozens of different mediums competing for our entertainment time and dollar. But I hope the novel never goes out of style (and not just because I write them). I’m sure Jane Austen would agree with me. In fact, I think I can hear her now, giving us a piece of her mind.

“Turn off your digital devices and pick up something that has stood the test of time: a good, honest book. Come on, people! Don’t be intolerably stupid. Read a novel!”

Of course, we can and do read novels ON our digital devices. But now and then at least, it’s nice to feel the reassuring weight of a real book in your hand, to experience the satisfaction of turning actual pages one by one, and to mark your progress by watching your physical bookmark marching steadily towards the finish at the back. Don’t you agree?

Happy reading!

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Superhero in Disguise

Posted on December 7, 2019 by Shannon Winslow

superheroWho is that behind that mild mannered dental hygienist exterior? Could it be a superhero? 

About five years ago, I did an interview with author Maria Grace for her “Writing Superheroes” series on her excellent blog Random Bits of Fascination. When I recently came across it again, it made me laugh, and I thought you might enjoy it too. So with Maria Grace’s generous permission, I’ve dredged it up from the 2014 archives to reblog here today! (For the original publications and tons of other interesting posts, please visit Random Bits of Fascination for yourself!)

If you were to write the ‘origin’s episode’ of your writing what would be the most important scenes?

Winslow: Oh, for that we must go way back. The seeds were sown long ago. Opening scene: We see a girl of 9 or 10 being tucked into bed for the night. Mother turns out the lights and exits, closing the door behind her. All is quiet in the dark room while we hear Mother’s receding footsteps in the hall. Then, there is a rustling as the girl fishes beneath the bed for something. Presently, we see it is a flashlight, which she switches on. The girl then takes a book (probably “Black Beauty”) off the nightstand and excitedly ducks under the covers with it. Fast forward to the next morning: the girl is asleep, the book is splayed open on the bed, and the flashlight batteries are dead, dead, dead. Take away point: An early love of reading fiction set the stage. Discovering Jane Austen decades later finally started me writing it.

What did your early efforts look like? Are they still around to be used as bribes and blackmail material?

darcys-of-pemberley_kindleWinslow: Yes, they’re still around but, sorry, not much blackmail potential left. The first novel I wrote (The Darcys of Pemberley) was published in 2011. So it’s already out there for the whole world to see.

All super heroes have their mild-mannered secret identity, what is yours? I promise we won’t tell.

Winslow: I’ve employed a variety of secret identities over the years to disguise my super-hero-ness. “Domestic goddess”, of course. Then there’s “Floss Lady” (the unassuming local dental hygienist), which gave me the added advantage of being able to hide behind a mask part of the time. “Mom” was a bit riskier, since (as anyone who’s tried it knows) the multi-tasking required to pull off this role implies that there surely must be super powers lurking just below the surface.

Who are your partners in crime? What are their superpowers?

Winslow: My fellow writers, and – dare I say it? – the voices in my head. Other writers, such as yourself, seem to have (and stand ready to generously share) impressive superpowers which I do not possess, chiefly advanced technical know-how. As for the voices in my head, they generally know where the story is going before I do. They are maddeningly stingy with this information, however, dispensing it on a need-to-know basis. That means I get only a bit at a time. They keep me guessing. They keep me inspired. They keep me writing so that I can find out WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!

Where do you get your superpowers from?

Winslow: No clue. It’s a beautiful, cosmic mystery.

Where is your secret lair, and what does it look like?

JanuaryWinslow: When I find myself in between missions, I like to hole up at a deluxe log cabin deep in the country where I have a special room I euphemistically call “my studio” (translation: my eldest son’s bedroom, which I appropriated for my own use the day he left for college). There, surrounded by books and art supplies of every description, stacked an average of 18” high, I am literally immersed in creative clutter. I hide from the world (or at least from housework), I recharge my batteries, and I plot my next move.

What kind of training do you do to keep your superpowers in world-saving form?

Winslow: I find regular power walks, frequent flights of fancy, and gourmet chocolate in moderation very helpful. Okay, so the chocolate doesn’t really even have to be all that “gourmet” and “moderation” is a completely relative term.

How do you insure that your superpowers are used only for good?

Winslow: Following Jane Austen’s example, I always insist on a happy ending to my novels. As she said in Mansfield Park, “Let other pens dwell on guilt and misery. I quit such odious subjects as soon as I can, impatient to restore everybody not greatly in fault themselves to tolerable comfort, and to have done with all the rest.” No matter how much trouble comes their way, the good guys always win in the end.

Granted, you probably don’t get to wear your superhero costume a lot, but if you did, what would it look like?

Winslow: It’s a shape-shifter sort of ensemble that allows me to blend seamlessly into any situation in which I find myself. Wearing it, I can mingle equally well among peasants or royalty, listening in on their conversations and collecting information for my next book. BTW, the suit comes with one other useful feature. I ordered the 20/20 option – guaranteed to remove 20 pounds and 20 years from the slightly-past-her-prime wearer. It cost a little extra, but well worth it.

What is your kryptonite? What are the biggest challenges you are faced with in your writing?

Winslow: The insidious nature of various important but ancillary tasks (bookkeeping, social networking, research, promotion) that sometimes get in the way of doing the actual writing. Hmm. Maybe I should inquire about adding a time-expanding or self-cloning feature to my superhero suit. That should do the trick.

What was the supervillian that threatened to stop your latest project and how did you vanquish it?

Winslow: My current novel (The Persuasion of Miss Jane Austen, set to debut this summer) features Jane Austen herself as the heroine, drawing a parallel between events in her novel Persuasion and a previously unknown romance in her own life. What threatened to derail me were certain facts about her life – ones I wanted to find out but couldn’t, and also ones (such as her early death) which didn’t match up with the story I wanted to create for her. Then it dawned on me! It’s a novel! By definition, that’s fiction. Ergo, inconvenient facts may be willfully disregarded as necessary! Problem solved.

What important lessons have you learned along the way?

Winslow: Lesson 1: You don’t have to worry about following trends or pleasing all the people all the time. You just need to reach out to the group of readers (and they are out there)who do connect with your stories and writing style. Lesson 2: If you’re passionate about what you’re writing, that will come through to your readers. If you’re not, they’ll know that too. So write what you love. Lesson 3: Writing fiction is the perfect cover for a person who has only a tenuous grip on reality and who likes to listen to the voices in her head.

What have been the best/most memorable experiences along the way?

AGM lineupWinslow:  Holding the first physical copy of my first published novel is pretty close to the top of my list. I also love doing book club appearances, and I had a great time at the JASNA AGM last fall. But I think the best moments have come via hearing directly from readers who have taken the time to let me know how much they liked one of my books. That never gets old. It’s always amazing to learn that something I’ve created has given hours of enjoyment to a total stranger. And now that person isn’t at total stranger anymore, but someone connected to me by a shared experience.

If you did this again what would you do differently and what would you not change

Winslow:  The only major change I would make would be to start writing sooner! Actually, I don’t regret my years spent doing dental hygiene. It was a great career for while I was raising my family. Now, it’s a wonderful gift to have been given something new and interesting to do at this stage of my life, something that has finally tapped into all my stores of creative energy. Writing is hard work but it’s very rewarding. I’m having a blast!

What is the best (writing or otherwise) advice you have ever gotten and why.

Winslow:  If writing (or you name it) is your passion, you should set aside time to do it, whether it pays off financially or not. But unless/until it does pay off financially, “Don’t quit your day job!” Creative work of any kind is a labor of love, but most people don’t make a living at it. I’ve been pretty lucky, though. When I started writing, I really didn’t expect it to go anywhere. I did it mostly for my own amusement. I told my husband it was my new hobby, and, when he caught me “wasting time” at it again, that he should be glad it was at least a lot cheaper than my previous hobby (reminding him of an embarrassing but mercifully brief period of insanity distinguished by bouts of compulsive shopping on e-bay). The fact that writing has turned into a legitimate second career for me is just a fabulous bonus. BTW, my husband has stopped asking me when I’m going to find a “real job.” Now that the royalty checks are arriving on a regular basis, he asks instead when I’m going to finish another book. Yay!

Well, there you have it: my first and only interview as a superhero. (Strangely enough, nobody else, before or since, has ever suspected me of possessing super powers!) Did you learn anything surprising about me? A few things have changed since this was written, of course, a few more books under my belt. But I’m still having fun and still have more stories to tell!

20141222_082650I also want to take this chance to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and blessings on you and your family, however you celebrate the holiday season! Since this wasn’t a particularly Christmassy themed post, I want to invite you to visit a few previous posts that are:

2018 A Christmas Ramble

2014 Christmas Decorations and Waxing Philosophical

2012 The “W” in Christmas

2011 Christmas Cards

2010 The Stories of Christmas

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Book Launch and Giveaway!

Posted on November 3, 2019 by Shannon Winslow

prayer-and-praise_kindle-e1571355269549.jpgWoohoo! It’s book launch day for Prayer and Praise: A Jane Austen Devotional!

It’s been well over a year since I had a new release, not because I haven’t been writing, but because, for a change, I’ve been working on more than one project at once – a short story, a play, and another novel alongside this devotional, which is inspired by Jane Austen’s prayers.

Did you know that Austen wrote prayers as well as stories? She did! And three have survived for us to read. Here’s an excerpt from one of them:

May we now, and on each return of night, consider how the past day has been spent by us, what have been our prevailing Thoughts, Words, and Actions during it, and how far we can acquit ourselves of Evil. Have we thought irreverently of Thee, have we disobeyed thy Commandments, have we neglected any known Duty, or willingly given pain to any human Being? Incline us to ask our Hearts these questions, Oh! God, and save us from deceiving ourselves by Pride or Vanity.

Seeing the words “pride” and “vanity” together, does your mind, like mine, go straight to a certain contentious conversation between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy?

As I read through Jane Austen’s prayers, ideas like this kept popping into my head – associations to her stories and characters. That’s how this devotional developed. I ended up breaking down Austen’s prayers into fifty individual petitions, allowing each one to form the basis for a separate message using characters and situations from her novels as illustrations. So Emma teaches us about repentance, Fanny Price about gratitude, Elinor about forgiveness, and so forth.

Writing this devotional was an entirely new challenge for me – one that I thoroughly enjoyed. I’m so pleased with the result and can’t wait to share it with you!  (If you’ve missed the lead-up posts, you may want to read Jane Austen’s Devotion and a sample segment here .)

Prayer and Praise is available in Kindle and paperback. Both have the “Look Inside” feature activated, where you can read another sample.

PS – I deliberately used a little larger font than usual for the paperback of this book, so that it will be easier for older eyes, like mine, to read!

Below are the official book blurb followed by the blog tour stops I have planned, some of which will be featuring book giveaways (check back for updated live links). But let’s start that ball rolling right now! I will be drawing 2 winners from this post. Just leave a comment by November 8th. I’d love to know what you think of the concept for this devotional or if you have any questions!

Did you know that Jane Austen wrote prayers in addition to her six classic novels? She was not only a woman of celebrated humor, intellect, and insight; she was a woman of faith.

Prayer & Praise is a treasure trove of thought-provoking messages inspired by the lines of Austen’s three preserved prayers. Atop a solid foundation of scripture, these 50 devotional segments (each finishing with prayer and praise) enlist familiar characters and situations from Austen novels to illustrate spiritual principles – in creative, often surprising, ways!

Which one of Austen’s characters developed a god complex? Who was really pulling Henry Crawford’s strings? Where do we see examples of true repentance, a redeemer at work, light overcoming darkness? With a Biblical perspective, Austen’s beloved stories reveal new lessons about life, truth, hope, and faith.

Blog Tour for Prayer and Praise: A Jane Austen Devotional

(November 4 – simultaneous launch here and at Austen Variations)

November 7 – So Little Time interviews Shannon Winslow

November 11 – Meditative Meanderings – writing this devotional

November 14 – Faith, Science, Joy, and Jane Austen – free sample segment

November 18 – Austenesque Reviews – Lady Catherine takes me to task!

November 21 – The Calico Critic – spotlights sample segment

December 3 – Darcyholic Deversions – Mr. Collins interviews Shannon Winslow

TBA – More Agreeably Engaged

 

 

I will update this tour schedule with live links as they become available. I hope you will follow along! Also, be sure to check back here after the 8th to see if you’ve won your very own copy of Prayer & Praise: a Jane Austen Devotional!

UPDATE: The winners are Suzanne and Agnes. Congratulations! To claim your prize, please contact me by FB message or email: shannon(at)shannonwinslow(dot)com.

 

Posted in Austen Variations, book launch, Jane Austen, Jane Austen Quotes, my books, Shannon Winslow's writing, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Ta-Da! Cover Reveal… at last!

Posted on October 19, 2019 by Shannon Winslow

Did you think this day would ever come? With all the unexpected challenges and my major case of paralyzing indecision (see the 3 previous posts for the full saga), I was beginning to wonder myself! But the fog finally cleared and here it is: the finished cover design and book blurb for Prayer & Praise: a Jane Austen Devotional. (Learn more about it here and here)

Prayer and Praise_Kindle

 

Did you know that Jane Austen wrote prayers in addition to her six classic novels? She was not only a woman of celebrated humor, intellect, and insight; she was a woman of faith.

Prayer & Praise is a treasure trove of thought-provoking messages inspired by the lines of Austen’s three preserved prayers. Atop a solid foundation of scripture, these 50 devotional segments (each finishing with prayer and praise) enlist familiar characters and situations from Austen novels to illustrate spiritual principles – in creative, often surprising, ways!

Which one of Austen’s characters developed a god complex? Who was really pulling Henry Crawford’s strings? Where do we see examples of true repentance, a redeemer at work, light overcoming darkness? With a Biblical perspective, Austen’s beloved stories reveal new lessons about life, truth, hope, and faith.

I’m so pleased with how it turned out – the cover, yes, but the whole book really – and I hope you will enjoy it too. The official publication date is November 4th, just in time for your Christmas shopping convenience. Did I mention that it would make a lovely gift? – for that special someone or maybe for yourself. After all, you’re someone special too, right?

“I am the happiest creature in the world. Perhaps other people have said so before, but not one with such justice. I am happier even than Jane; she only smiles, I laugh. Mr. Darcy sends you all the love in the world that he can spare from me You are all to come to Pemberley at Christmas…” (Pride and Prejudice, chapter 60)

Update: Prayer and Praise is now available for pre-order in Kindle and KU  here.

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And the Winner Is… (Cover Image Decision)

Posted on September 21, 2019 by Shannon Winslow

Yay!Progress! My Cover Image Quandry – parts one and two – is finally resolved!

Usually I like to hold back the cover design of a new book until the day of the official cover reveal. But since you all have been so involved this time around, so instrumental in helping me choose the image to use for the cover, I thought you deserved the chance to follow the creative process, with all its twists and turns (and there have been many this time!), through the next steps as well – sort of an inside view of what goes on behind the scenes to bring a project like this to fruition.

So if you want to be completely surprised with the cover for my upcoming Jane Austen Devotional, proceed no farther today! Otherwise, explore on!

Elizabeth longed to explore its windings; but when they had crossed the bridge, and perceived their distance from the house, Mrs. Gardiner, who was not a great walker, could go no farther, and thought only of returning to the carriage as quickly as possible. Her niece was therefore, obliged to submit… (Pride and Prejudice, chapter 43)

I carefully tallied your votes on my previous post. And although it was far from unanimous, a strong favorite emerged to decide the matter at last. Flowers and sunsets were out, and the Chawton views were in. The picture of the Chawton Garden Gate came in a respectable third place. The Window View beat it out for second. But the clear winner was (drumroll, please) the photo of Chawton Church! Yay!

I liked them all, and so in some ways I didn’t care which one won. I was just happy to finally have a decision made!

church modified 2Next step: I sent the winning image, along with a general idea of what I envisioned for it, to the graphic artist who creates my covers, so that he could get right to work on it. Phew! That part’s done at last! Now I could just sit back and wait to see what gorgeous design he came up with… or so I thought.

A new problem arose immediately. Turns out the photo’s quality wasn’t good enough to use.

No! Not after you all had chosen it and I finally had a decision I could get excited about! I had committed to this image and I didn’t want to give it up. So I tried, without any luck, to find another photo I liked as well – something very similar. It looked like I was going back to the drawing board once again. *sigh*

But wait a minute. ‘Back to the drawing board.’ Yes, that was it! Instead of throwing out your favorite image completely, I decided to try salvaging the idea by doing a pastel painting from it for the cover image. Here is the result!

pastel of Chawton Church

So this is what my graphic designer is working with now. I hope you approve.

As you may remember, I had wanted to use a photograph for this cover, partly so that it would stand out as something very different than my others (since this is a very different kind of book). But I’ve come full circle, back to an ‘artist’s interpretation’ after all. At least it allowed me to add a couple more sheep!

Coming next will be the finished cover reveal with an eye to a proposed publication date of November 1st. Stay tuned!

Posted in art, Jane Austen, Jane Austen Quotes, my books, Shannon Winslow, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Cover Image Quandary – Part 2

Posted on August 26, 2019 by Shannon Winslow

NO, I STILL HAVEN’T DECIDED!!!

I know, I know. It’s been a whole month since my previous post about choosing the cover image for my upcoming Jane Austen devotional (read more about the book here and here). And I’ve even had benefit of all your advice. So what’s my problem? Too many good options and a case of analysis paralysis. I am getting closer to a decision, but I’m still not quite ready to make the final choice.

I really appreciated all the feedback you gave me on my last post (here and in your comments on Facebook). No really strong consensus developed, however. Turns out, you like mountains and sunsets and lakes and flowers and gardens too! Then, to further complicate my decision, the excellent idea of using an image of a church was suggested by more than one person.

But I did come away with a couple of useful thoughts.

First, there should be a Jane Austen connection evident on the cover. And while this could be achieved with her name and perhaps her silhouette, it would probably be even better if the subject matter of the image itself conveyed at least a subtle connection to her, since it is a Jane Austen devotional. If it’s a picture of a garden, it should be an English garden. If it’s a lake or a mountain or a woodland scene, it should look like a place we can imagine she might have visited, not one an ocean and a continent away, with the wrong kind of terrain and trees.

Secondly, it became clear that the photos needed to be cropped and color adjusted (many appeared quite dark) in order to be judged fairly.

So that’s what I’ve done. I’ve taken three of the previous batch and added a few new ones that meet my updated search criteria. Then I framed them to look more like book covers. You’ll still have to use your imagination, though, since inserting text boxes and beautiful lettering is beyond my capabilities. But I know that the graphic designer who creates my covers can make any one of these work.

Let’s say that last month’s slate of hopefuls were semi-finalists, or those running in the primary election. Now that the field has been narrowed slightly and you’re being given a clearer picture of how each of the candidates would look in the office, which one of the finalist do you think fills the role best?

Without further fanfare, here they are, our seven finalists!

1) the Sunset, back by popular demand. Could be anywhere. No doubt Jane Austen saw and enjoyed many like it.

Devotional lake 4 modified half

2) the Hydrangea. Also very popular last time. Now zoomed in on and cropped to fill the whole cover. Something like it could have grown in Jane Austen’s garden, right?

hydrangea cropped mod 2 half

3) the Roses. Different kind of flower, but similar treatment.

Roses cropped mod 2 half

Now, for the new entries:

4) Chawton Garden Gate (photo courtesy of Joana Starnes). Jane Austen undoubtedly walked here many times when visiting her brother Edward at the Great House, next door to the cottage where she spent the last several years of her life.

gate modified.jpg

5) Chawton Church: St. Nicholas (photo courtesy of Joana Starnes). Although the building looked different in Jane Austen’s day (burned and rebuilt since), this is where Austen would have attended church during her years at nearby Chawton cottage. It’s also where her mother and sister are buried. (PS – Early returns are telling me that the colors on this one need to be lightened/brightened, and I agree. Dreamy is fine, but we don’t want it to feel gloomy.)

church modified 2.jpg

6) Woodland Bluebells (photo courtesy of Joana Starnes) – near Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. Did Jane Austen know similarly scenic woodlands where she could walk and enjoy the bluebells in the spring?

Spring Bluebells - Joana Starnes modified half 2

7) a View from her Window. Those of you who have visited Chawton cottage will have seen the view from the drawing room window, overlooking the garden. The photo I have seen shows a chaise longue in front of the window, which seems like just the spot to spend a quiet hour with a good book. (photo not displayed due to copyright concerns)

Well, that’s it! What do you think? Which of these options particularly inspire you? Which one would draw you in best, making you want to pick up the book and discover what’s inside?

I promise, this is the last time I’ll ask. I will put an end to my self-torture and make a decision soon. So the next time we discuss this subject, it will be for the official cover reveal!!!

What totally different feelings did Emma take back into the house from what she had brought out! – she had then been only daring to hope for a little respite of suffering; – she was now in an exquisite flutter of happiness, and such happiness moreover as she believed must still be greater when the flutter should have passed away. (Emma, chapter 50)

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Cover Image Quandary

Posted on July 24, 2019 by Shannon Winslow

As I told you in my previous post, I have now finished writing my Jane Austen Devotional. (Learn more about it here and here) Yay! So while it goes through editing, it’s time to start thinking about the cover design.

I love this part of the process. It’s where my interest in art intersects with my love of books. I feel lucky that I get to have so much input into the design. I work directly with a talented graphic artist, suggesting the concept I have in mind and sometimes even contributing my own artwork. Then it’s back-and-forth until we get it just right.

Since this book will be something completely different from any of my others, it opens the possibility of a very different style of cover as well. I can picture the font and the how the words should be positioned. And I’ve decided I want to use a photograph for the background image this time. But what sort of photograph?

20190404_114714

option number one

I want something beautiful and serene.

20190511_141710-2

number two

And it can’t be so dynamic that it completely overwhelms the title.

20190522_134748

number three

I can imagine that a floral image could work nicely…

Devotional hygrangia

number four

or a sunset…

Devotional lake 4

number five

or a water scene…

Devotional lake 1

number six

or maybe a sunset water scene…

Devotional lake 2

number seven

or a glorious mountain picture…

Devotional Rainier 4

number eight

or even a snow scene…

Devotional snow

number nine

or… or… or…

Uh-oh. I’m in trouble. After considering literally hundreds of possibilities, a clear winner still hasn’t risen head and shoulders above the rest. These are the current leading contenders. (In most cases, only a portion of the picture would be used.) I can imagine each of them gracing the devotional’s cover. But of course, I can choose only ONE.

So which one would YOU choose? Give your imagination free rein. Which picture sets the right tone for a devotional? Which would catch your eye and get you to pick up the book? Is there a winner in this batch, or should I go back to the drawing board? Help me out and tell what you think. If I go with your pick, you can brag to everybody how we both have excellent taste!  (Please comment below)

But now suppose as much as you choose; give a loose rein to your fancy, indulge your imagination in every possible flight which the subject will afford, and… you cannot greatly err.  (Pride and Prejudice, chapter 60)

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