Darcy and Elizabeth: In A Future World Far Away

My guest is Aussie author, Enid Wilson. 

Enid writes Austen fanfiction but with a sci-fi bent. I’m rather impressed the premise and I have to say I love the plucky Jane in the tale. Darcy, as with the original Pride and Prejudice, thinks for himself. He’s a bit more forthcoming on his opinions and his actions in this futuristic tale.

Enid creates a complete and fun futuristic world, with plenty of romance and hot sex, interplanetary war, and space travel. 

Enid Wilson wrote this story in a somewhat unorthodox method with direct feedback from readers. But I’ll let her tell you all about that. J  

Thank you, Sia for hosting me today.

I’m a tea drinker so I’ve brought along my own Fair Trade tea from Oxfam. I hope the mixed aroma of coffee and tea will keep everyone inspired. Talking about inspiration, it’s my pleasure to introduce you to my latest novel, Every Savage Can Reproduce, a Pride and Prejudice-inspired science fiction.

I started off writing P&P fan fiction in 2007, just as a way to amuse myself in my spare time. I posted the stories in several free online forums and was amazed that many readers loved my crazy stories. A year later, my sister suffered a sudden illness and made me rethink about my life.  Life is too short to waste away (my sister has fully recovered now). So I followed the footsteps of other fellow fan fiction writers and was happy to have several of my stories published.

Every Savage Can Reproduce was written in 2007 as a choose-your-own adventure. It took me four years to complete it.  After each chapter was posted online, I put out a poll for readers to vote and then wrote the next chapter based on the option with most votes. In the published novel which has been revised substantially, I wanted to retain the original ‘interactive’ style and therefore the voting options were also featured.

Here is an adapted excerpt, of Prince Wickham’s televised address to Planet Earth, showing one of the polls at the end of a chapter:

“Our country men and women,I am sorry to bring grievous news to you.

We have received the alarming news that Mr. Darcy has returned to Earth, under mind control by the people of Hartfield, per the instruction of the rebellious Gentry.

He was seen with a vicious clone of Sir Lewis de Bourgh, Queen Immortal Catherine de Bourgh’s dead husband, and with his cousin, the fugitive ex-General Richard Fitzwilliam, his sister, Georgiana Darcy, and his whore, Elizabeth Bennet. Darcy’s friend Charles Bingley and Elizabeth’s eldest sister, Jane Bennet, are both still on the run, but have not been seen with them.

They are a dangerous group of people, and Sir Lewis’s clone has been seen to perform harmful mind control against our soldiers.

In order to protect the good citizens on Earth, the government is willing to grant them leniency if they surrender themselves.

We will give them 10 days, until the 26th of November, to give themselves up. If they do not, the government will have no choice but to execute the following people now in dissident camps in London for aiding and abetting the rebels. They are family members of the fugitives, including former Lord and Lady Matlock, Thomas Bennet, Fanny Bennet, Mary and Catherine Bennet.

Our dear countrymen and women, you are urged to provide information about this dangerous group of people. We will reward those who come forward with useful clues as to their whereabouts.

You are also encouraged to attend the execution, should this be required, to witness the end of an era for the bad elements on Earth.

In this difficult time of struggle, we must be strong for each other.

As you can see, our Queen is still gravely ill. We have spent tremendous manpower and resources in the battle with Hartfield. We hope you will give generous emotional and material support to the army.

After we remove this bad element, our planet will be cleansed, and life will be happy and peaceful again. May the Lord bless you all!”

Poll

1) Sir Lewis de Bourgh surrenders to the government

2) Darcy and Elizabeth’s baby creates havocs

3) Charles Bingley’s reappearance thickens the plot

Which way will you vote? Do you like the idea that you can decide how a story will pan out? I sometimes was quite frustrated with the progress of the story because I could never predict what the readers would vote for. But I think that was the fun of it as well.

I’m delighted to give out a pdf copy of Every Savage Can Reproduce and some souvenir from Down Under to a lucky reader of Sia’s blog. It’s open to worldwide readers.Just comment below and contest will end: 

• State-side,Saturday, October 1st @midnight central time.  
• For those across the pond, it will be Sunday, October 2nd @ Midnight.

Every Savage Can Reproduce Blurb

In the futuristic society on Planet Earth, Elizabeth Bennet is accused of luring Fitzwilliam Darcy to an illegal establishment, which leads to their exile deep in the centre of a rebel planet. The subsequent galactic war exposes dark secrets regarding the autocratic Queen Immortal. Will Elizabeth and Darcy discover their love for one another and find their way back to Earth?

Set in the 39th Century, this novel is a tale of Pride and Prejudice-inspired science fiction, where Jane Austen’s characters take on new lives but still face the barrier of class distinction and seek to overcome their faults, as in the original classic.

Buy: Amazon, Smashwords, Indiebound

For more information about the book, please visit www.enidwilson.com The book contains explicit adult content. It’s not for the faint-hearted Jane Austen purists.

Thank you again, Sia and happy commenting!!

Enid, it's my pleasure. I'll have the Review up this weekend on Goodreads and Amazon.

Enid Wilson is the author of Chemical Fusion, Fire and Cross, My Darcy Mutates, Really Angelic, Bargain with the Devil and In Quest of Theta Magic. She writes sexy romance in modern, historical, paranormal and science fiction genres. 

Enid's novels have received several top reviews. Bargain with the Devil has been ranked in the top 50 best-selling historical romances on Amazon USA, Really Angelic in the top 30 best-selling Regency romances on Amazon Canada and My Darcy Mutates in the top 21 romantic short stories on Amazon UK, Fire and Cross in the top 30 British detective stories.

Enid loves food, Pride and Prejudice, travel and tennis. She has a Masters degree in Arts. She works in advertising and lives in beautiful Sydney. Sounds too tame? You can read her wild stories at www.enidwilson.com

Interview with Amanda Grange, Author of Mr. Darcy Vampyre

Admittedly, while I loved many of Jane Austen’s books, I wasn’t too sure about the idea of beloved Darcy as a vampire. I was intrigued with the concept because I could see how the original story could lend itself to the notion. There is much mystery surrounding Darcy and since Pride and Prejudice is told from Elizabeth Bennett’s point of view we had little insight into his mind or his emotions. We had only his actions to judge him by so the mystery still remains. However I loved the way Amanda handled the premise and her skill as a writer apparent in her story. I also loved how she was able to make Darcy more three-dimensional and yet remain true to the original character in Pride and Prejudice. Best of all, it’s not the typical clichéd vampire story.



I had the opportunity to chat with best selling author, Amanda Grange, which was cool because I could ask some questions.

Why Darcy as a Vampire?

• I wanted to write a different kind of sequel to Pride and Prejudice, something that would test Lizzy and Darcy’s love for one another and leave the outcome in doubt, and as I was reading a lot of Regency Gothics at the time, the idea of a Gothic sequel came to me. I’d had the idea of Darcy as a vampyre at the back of my mind for some time and it all seemed to fit very well. He’s wealthy, aloof and very attractive to women. I also liked the idea of making him a vampyre because Darcy as a character refuses to die. He’s 200 years old and yet he still enthralls women!

Did you read the original Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice to keep your story in sync with original?

• Yes, I’ve read Pride and Prejudice many times, as it’s my favourite book. I’ve even written another book based on it called Mr Darcy’s Diary, which is a retelling from Darcy’s point of view! So I know the original very well and every now and again I went back to it to check a detail and make sure I was still on track.

What part of writing this book did you enjoy the most?

• That’s hard, because I enjoyed writing different parts for different reasons, but if I had to pick one part of the book I think I would pick the scenes in Venice because it’s a beautiful city and I loved sending Lizzy there. I also loved writing about Darcy’s reaction to seeing her so happy.

What was the hardest part of writing this story?

• I think it was making it all tie in with Pride and Prejudice. For example, in Pride and Prejudice we learn that Mr Darcy’s housekeeper has known him from his early childhood, so I had to think of a way to work that into my sequel and make it fit in with the alternate reality I was creating.

Are you a 'seat of your pants' writer or do you write from outline?

• A bit of both. I had a strong outline for Mr Darcy’s Diary but I filled in the details as I started to write and all sorts of extra things kept happening. They made the story a lot deeper and a lot more interesting and they kept me absorbed because I didn’t know every twist and turn before it happened.

What's a typical writing day for you like?

• I don’t really have a typical writing day. My writing ebbs and flows. Sometimes I will go straight to the computer when I get up in the morning and I will sit and write all day, at other times I won’t start writing until the evening and I will then write into the night.

Who is a source of encouragement to you?

• Other authors. I know quite a lot of them through my writers’ groups, and their creativity and hard work is always an inspiration. It motivates me and keeps me going.

What's next on the agenda for you?

• I’m working on a Darcy story for a Christmas anthology and then I’m writing a prequel to Mr Darcy, Vampyre, so I’m going to be pretty busy!

Amanda, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. I'd be very interested in seeing the prequel to Mr. Darcy, Vampyre. To be honest, I found the section where he explains how he became a vampire fascinating and wished there had been more than you showed in this book.

*~*~*~*~

Amanda Grange is the international bestselling author of Mr. Darcy’s Diary, as well as four more Diaries featuring the points of view of the heroes of Jane Austen’s literature and her own historical fiction. She specializes in creative interpretations of classic novels and historic events. Ms. Grange lives in England. Find out more about Amanda and Mr. Darcy, Vampyre on her website: www.amandagrange.com, her blog: http://mrdarcyvampyre.blogspot.com/; and follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/MrDarcyVampyre

I want to share with you Mr. Darcy, Vampyre Book Trailer! YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAGv8jnPQJ8.

Two copies of Mr. Darcy, Vampyre—US and Canada only, given to two commenters on today’s Blog. I will need a way to contact the winners, so be sure to leave a way to do that. I will contact the two winners to get your mailing address so the books can be sent to you.

Learning to Juggle—Writer's Style

Today my guest is Sharon Lathan, who has joined the ranks of fan fiction writers. Her debute novel is entitled, Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy ~ Two Shall Become One. Sharon talks a bit about a reoccuring theme that seems to resonate with all writers, balancing life and writing.


I can barely manage to toss one ball into the air and catch it without stumbling, let alone two or three. So, no, I am not talking about that kind of juggling! Rather, I am talking about writer’s juggling. This is a phenomenon that I would hear other authors talking about but until recent months I did not comprehend for myself. I suppose it has many names – a friend called it ‘deadline hell’ – and can involve different aspects of the publishing/writing/life game, but it amounts to the same thing: Finding some way to ‘do it all’ and not have your head explode! The kids may find that amusing, but you and I know who would have to clean up the mess.

I got a hint of it last year when I had to pause in writing new material to focus on the editing stages for my first book. It wasn’t too bad, though, since I was given plenty of time. In addition, the edits were relatively minor and the whole process was so new and thrilling that I delved in with gusto!

Then followed several months of nothing - the “lull” I called it. I am a novice, a publishing virgin as it were, but I had gleaned enough of the process to know that craziness was acomin’! So I took advantage of those months, immersing myself into the Darcys and writing furiously. It was fantastic. So fantastic that it was like a cold slap of water in the face to have to put that creativity aside.

2009 had loomed in my mind for ages. That was the year when my fortunes would change. *she hopes* March (and then again in September) are when my first novels would arrive. In my enthusiasm there were moments when I thought the days would never pass! Then Father Time did his thing and the calendar flipped over – it was January and barely had the first week ended before my Inbox was inundated with emails: My publicist telling me about the guest blogs, interviews, and ARCs sent out; my editor sending me the first editing notes on my second novel; other Sourcebooks staff asking me for a synopsis, photographs, and book cover ideas…….

It was a bit overwhelming but thrilling nonetheless. I was forced to buy a planner as the small pocket-type calendars that I had used for years were inadequate. Fortunately I am blessed with extreme organizational skills. Alright, OCD! Call it what it is, Sharon! I probably spent way more time than necessary writing notes and studying each website I was to guest on, but I think it paid off in the quality of the essays I wrote. I had determined to do whatever it took, to go well above the requirement, exhaust myself even. I never wanted to look back upon this time with regrets or the fear that something I did or did not do had lead to the failure of my novel.

That is where juggling became a vital skill. Discipline became extremely important. I am a highly disciplined person by nature, thank God, but in my writing I had not been forced to apply the talent. I love to write of the Darcys and I love the research, so if anything the difficulty arose in pulling myself away from the laptop to do laundry or vacuuming – blech! But now I had serious timeline and deadline issues. On the upside, I also had a ready excuse NOT to do the laundry or vacuuming! Ha! The family fell for that one and pitched in big time….shhh!

I wonder how actual jugglers feel as they train and perform. Is it a combination of exhilaration as the items whirl through the air, moving with the precision they work so diligently to attain mixed with the heart-stopping, jittery anxiety that they will mess up with bowling pins crashing onto their heads and the audience laughing in ridicule? I have no idea (remember, she can barely throw a ball), but the analogy sound apropos. And then there is the possibility that an incredible feat of aerodynamic dexterity will be accomplished only to have the crowd stare blankly, utterly unimpressed. Ouch!

Now I am on the downward slide. It is March 18 and the book has officially been out for some 3 weeks but actually for sale since late January. The guest blogs are written and have mostly all posted. The bulk of reviews have come in. Essentially the marketing machine is running on its own steam.

And I have mixed feelings about it.

One the one hand it is a tremendous relief as I was frankly exhausted and literally my health was suffering. Plus, for nearly two months now I have been unable to even consider writing new material. Now I am able to turn back to what enticed and captivated me in the first place: writing of the Darcys.

Yet, on the other hand it is like when the party ends or the visitors finally leave. Bittersweet. I already miss the heady excitement and zeal. Will it ever be this way again? I’ll let you know in September, but a tiny part of me knows that an experience the second or third time around is never quite as amazing as the first.

So I am very glad for the notes and calendar markings and blog pieces and photographs. They are a solid reminder of this incredible period of my life, no matter what happens with my book. I think the bowling pins fell on my head a time or two, but I have learned so much and would not change any of it for the world.

Thanks, Sia, for hosting me. It has been fun to talk about me for a change rather than just my saga! LOL. But, just so everyone knows: “Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy ~ Two Shall Become One” is available everywhere. Details about my debut novel and the entire series are found
on my website: http://www.darcysaga.net/




Sharon Lathan is a native Californian currently residing amid corn, cotton, and cows in the sunny San Joaquin Valley. She divides her time as homemaker nurturing a husband and two children, plus the cat, dog, and fish; while also working as a Registered Nurse in a Neonatal ICU. Somewhere in there she finds time to write!

A little bit about Sharon's journey in writing Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy ~ Two Shall Become One:

Over Thanksgiving weekend of 2005 I entered a movie theater with my best girlfriend and teenaged daughter to watch Pride & Prejudice starring Kiera Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen.

To my stunned amazement I walked out of that theater not only sporting a heart swelling with romantic sentiment and warm fuzzy feelings running amok, but I would soon embark on a pathway that would change my life.

I spent two months reading everything by or about Jane Austen (including Pride & Prejudice), and perusing the scribblings found on the plethora of Austen related websites. Always I was searching for the tale of Lizzy and Darcy’s subsequent life as I imagined it. I never found it. Finally, almost as an epiphany, but with a heavy dose of self-amusement and doubt, I deliberated writing down what I saw flashing endlessly through my brain. Thus, on a lark and with nary a shred of future consideration, "The Wedding Night" was written as a short story. The positive response was enormous, so I continued on. Before I fully understood what I was embarking on, I was wholly immersed. Like Mr. Darcy and his love for Elizabeth, I was smack in the middle of it before I recognized what I had started!

"Two Shall Become One" was born.