I’m thrilled to welcome Mary Lydon Simonsen back to Diary of an Eccentric today. Mary is one of my favorite authors of Jane Austen-inspired novels, and her latest release, A Wife for Mr. Darcy (read my review), didn’t disappoint. In A Wife for Mr. Darcy, a variation of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Darcy and Elizabeth are attracted to one another right away, but Darcy’s courtship of Sir John Montford’s daughter jeopardize their happiness. It’s a unique take on Pride and Prejudice, and a book I found difficult to put down. I’d like to thank Mary for taking time out of her busy schedule to answer my many questions about all-things-Austen.
With so many variations of Austen’s novels available today, why should readers choose yours?
Why should readers choose A Wife for Mr. Darcy? I’ll give you an analogy. It is like someone who is trying to decide what to have for lunch. Sometimes a nice salad will do, but other times, you want the whole enchilada, with rice and beans and sour cream and guacamole, a big, heavy, mother of a meal. My Pride and Prejudice re-imaginings are on the light side. I try to tell a story using a lot of humor. After reading A Wife for Mr. Darcy, I hope you will have a smile on your face. You will not be reaching for the Kleenex box.
You’ve written P&P variations set during WWI and WWII. Do you plan to take Elizabeth and Darcy elsewhere outside Regency England?
Yes. In a book I will be self-publishing in August, Darcy on the Hudson, I have Darcy, Georgiana, and Charles Bingley traveling to Tarrytown, north of New York City, where Darcy meets American, Elizabeth Bennet. Although Americans and the English have a lot in common, there are enough differences to add some spice to the stew, and America and England are about to go to war again.
P&P seems to be a reader favorite, but for those of us who enjoy all of Austen’s novels, what do you think readers can do to convince publishers to release more retellings of Austen’s other novels?
To start with, Jane Austen fans could buy my book, Anne Elliot, A New Beginning, a parody of Persuasion that you were good enough to review. I also have a short story, Elinor and Edward’s Plans for Lucy Steele, a parody of Sense and Sensibility, on Kindle and Nook. Seriously, with publishers, the numbers do the talking. Although my editor liked Anne Elliot, she told me she couldn’t sell it. However, there is hope. Because it is so easy to self-publish on Kindle and Nook, I think you will see more books inspired by novels other than P&P coming out. For instance, I will have a novella out this fall, Captain Wentworth, A Random Harvest (working title and another Persuasion re-imagining). Did I mention, I’m looking for reviewers?
Here’s a debate I continually have with myself: Captain Wentworth or Mr. Darcy? What side do you take?
I love Mr. Darcy. He’s got it all, but the thing I like most about him is that throughout the story he is evolving. I like a man capable of change. Having said that, I have to go with Frederick Wentworth. I admire the fact that he is a self-made man and that he has a job, which is important to me. Also, he loved Anne Elliot for eight years! That’s a lot to ask of any lover. Finally, his love makes Anne beautiful because she is glowing on the inside. Sigh!
Do you plan to write more outside the Austen genre?
I would love to write a mystery. I started one: a pre-World War II espionage thriller, but it was so much harder than I thought. For example, I would actually have to write an outline. But you’ll be one of the first to know if I ever complete the manuscript.
You’ve been a guest on Diary of an Eccentric a few times now. Can you tell me and my readers something unique about yourself that we haven’t read anywhere else?
I took an algebra class when I was fifty years old. I have been math phobic my whole life, and I decided to see if I could do it. I got an A in the class, but I have to tell you, by the time I finished that class, my brain hurt!
If you had just a few minutes to speak to Jane Austen in person, what would you say to her?
How did you do it? You wrote with ink and a quill pen! How did you not go crazy squeezing your corrections in—writing in the margins and between the lines? You really have to admire Jane Austen’s work ethic because the very process was so difficult, and, yet, she did it brilliantly! My hat’s off to Miss Austen and all those other quill pen wielders.
Thank you for having me. It is always a pleasure visiting with you.
Thanks, Mary! I am very, very excited about your upcoming Captain Wentworth novella. And P&P in New York? I can’t wait!
Sourcebooks is offering a copy of A Wife for Mr. Darcy to one lucky reader! To enter, please leave a comment with your e-mail address and tell me what you would say to Jane Austen if you had a chance to meet her. Because the publisher is shipping the book, this giveaway is open to readers with addresses in the U.S. and Canada, and it will end at 11:59 pm EST on Sunday, Aug. 7, 2011.
**Please note that this giveaway is now closed**
Disclosure: I am an IndieBound affiliate and an Amazon associate.
© 2011 Anna Horner of Diary of an Eccentric. All Rights Reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish content without permission.
great interview. No need to enter me in the giveaway. I really love Mary’s novels and I hope to finish Persuasion soon so I can read her re-telling of that.
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Yes, you do need to read Persuasion because it’s my favorite Austen novel. And yes, you need to read Mary’s Anne Elliot novel.
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Thanks, Anna. I always look forward to my stop at Diary of an Eccentric as I always feel welcome here.
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It’s been my pleasure, Mary!
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Great interview and like Anna I can’t wait for your Wentworth story 😀
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I really, really want to read that one!
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Thank you, Anna, Serena, and Blodeuedd. After Mr. Darcy’s Bite, I will be publishing independently, and I will need to find reviewers without the help of Sourcebooks’ publicist. Hopefully, we can do that b/c I love you guys. 🙂
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Thank you, Mary, for taking time to respond to the comments. I really appreciate it.
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Please feel free to contact me when those books come out. 🙂
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What an interesting author, taking an algebra class at fifty! My brain would hurt too.
I would ask Jane Austen if she ever thought her books would get such a large and reverential following.
laura at laurafabiani dot com
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I have to help my daughter with algebra, and we’re only at the basic level now and that makes my brain hurt, too!
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Wonderful interview — I love Simonsen’s attitude and good humor! (Plus, she appreciates Wentworth — a man who’s captured this lesbian’s heart! ;)). The Tarrytown setting of her next P&P reimagining sounds marvelous — I love the unique settings that are being offered for Austen’s characters. It’s so inventive!
I’d like to enter this giveaway, but I’m sure I’d be tongue-tied around Ms Austen. Maybe, eventually, if I gathered my wits, I’d ask her one of my usual author questions, like what surprised her in writing P&P.
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I probably wouldn’t know what to say in Miss Austen’s presence either! I’m glad you and I have bonded over our love for Wentworth. 😉
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I would like to know how JA would write a modern version of P&P. After all, social class distinctions are not so well defined, and the sexual taboos of her generation have fallen faster than leaves in October. So what would Darcy have to overcome to win the affections of Elizabeth Bennet?
Gayle
scmema at yahoo dot com
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Oh, that would be awesome to read a modern version from Jane herself!
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Hi Laura. I’m glad to find someone who can appreciate my math phobia. Hey Audra. I grew up in North Jersey, and as a lover of history, took day trips up the Hudson. Tarrytown has so many great sites nearby. Gayle, I can’t write moderns. I was always behind the curve, even as a teenager.
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I loved reading this post. Mary is quickly becoming a favorite author of mine and I adored this book! My review will post on Friday!! Don’t enter me because I have a copy which I am sure I will re-read in the future!!
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I’m glad you loved it as much as I did!
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I would tell her how much that I’ve enjoyed her books.
marlenebreakfield(at)yahoo(dot)com
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For me, saying I’ve enjoyed them would be an understatement. LOL
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Thanks for this lovely post which I found fascinating. I would ask Jane Austen what her thoughts on the resurgence of her popularity, the books, movies and the trips people take to ehr homeland.
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Just imagine how wealthy she’d be if she was still alive!
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Nice interview ladies. A Wife For Mr Darcy sounds like a great read. I love Darcy as well, but Captain Wentworth is droolworthy also.
If I could meet Jane I’d just have to tell her I love her work 🙂
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Thanks, Naida!
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Great interview. Now I know I have to read Mary’s books!
If I could ask Jane Austen a question I would ask her what changes she would make to her novels to make them more up to date with where women and relationships are today. Corny..I know!
bthgordon(at)yahoo(dot)com
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Thanks, Beth! I hope you get a chance to read one of Mary’s books soon!
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I’m glad to have found your website and reviews. What fun! If I met Jane, I would be sure to tell her that a sharp wit is one of my favorite aspects of her characters, and it keeps me returning to her stories time and again.
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Thanks, Dar! I hope you’ll come back and visit soon.
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I don’t know that I’d have particular questions for Jane Austen. I would just rather sit at her feet and worship. 😀
Seriously, the two things I most want to find out more about are how she managed to persevere under her everyday living conditions (writing in private, hiding her work whenever someone entered the room) and why she insisted on keeping her authorship anonymous. In her later years, I think she was sadly disappointed in the financial return, which might have been more had she made herself more available to an adoring public. I guess that’s a hindsight question though… and one we’ll never know the answer to.
Oh, and one other question… Was there ever a romantic interest of her own? We’ve heard rumors galore, but I’d love to hear it from her own lips. I fear, however, that that is something Jane herself would never reveal to anyone outside her very close circle.
Hope I win! Would love to read this. 🙂
tnshadylady at gmail.com
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“Sit at her feet and worship” 🙂
I think we all like to believe that Jane had her own love story, especially since she spent so much of her time creating swoonworthy heroes.
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There are so many things I’d want to say to Jane Austen if I ever met her! But mostly, I think I’d like to thank her for blazing the trail for so many talented female authors who followed in her footsteps and were inspired by her words to write.
Margay1122ATaolDOTcom
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And she definitely inspired so many!
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Thanks for the giveaway!
I’d say “Oh Jane!” and give her a hug. 🙂
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email: thecozyreader @ gmail.com 🙂
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I hope you wouldn’t get too excited and end up tackling her! 😉
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Oh algebra… oh I am terrible at numbers… Mrs Q Book Addict can attest to my nilch skills at math. Kudos to her for taking down the Math monster with an A to boot.
I would choose Mr Darcy anytime and Anna loved meeting Mary.
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Glad you enjoyed the interview!
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I would say THANK YOU for writing Pride and Prejudice! It has changed my world 🙂
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I think many of us Janeites would agree!
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thanks for the chance to read this novel…i would as jane how she selected the names for her characters 🙂
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That’s an interesting question!
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I would love to win this one. Great interview. I so agree with her thoughts on Wentworth and Darcy!
stacybooks at yahoo
I would definitely ask Austen which hero was her favorite!
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It’s so hard to choose between them, but I agree with her, too. 🙂
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My primary reading this summer has been centered on Austen adaptations! What would I say to Jane? “Brilliant! You are absolutely brilliant!”
The choice between Darcy and Wentworth is difficult, but in all honest, Darcy is the one most choose. Much as I love Wentworth, I lay all of the blame for my Darcy obsession at the feet of whoever made the decision to cast Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. If not for him, I’d probably choose Colonel Brandon over them all, to be honest!
coleyboley[at]ymail.com
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Every time I read anything about Mr. Darcy, I can’t help but picture Colin Firth. 😉 I’m re-reading Sense and Sensibility soon, so I can’t wait to revisit Colonel Brandon!
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This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to all who entered or just stopped by to read the interview. The winner will be chosen randomly, e-mailed, and announced soon.
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