I am excited to have Victoria Kincaid visit again. She is talking to us about writing what you know and I certainly believe she does a good job of that. She mentions drawing somewhat on her own experiences when writing her latest, Mr. Darcy to the Rescue. I must admit, I hope her experience with a 'bad kiss' was not as repugnant as the one she wrote for dear Lizzy. The scene was described so well that I felt nauseous myself! Poor, poor Lizzy. Just wait until you read the blurb and the excerpt. I promise you will be wanting to read more of this book!
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“Write what you know” is one of those overused adages of
writing that’s not immediately obviously
applicable in every situation. For example, what if you write Jane Austen
fan fiction? I can do research on the
Regency time period, but I don’t “know” it in the way that Austen did or in the
way that I know life in the U.S. suburbs in 2015. While there are many elements of Austen’s
novels that are universal (otherwise they wouldn’t appeal to us), there are
also many aspects that are foreign. It’s
hard to imagine an entire family’s reputation being threatened because one
sister ran off with a man. Or that it
would be scandalous for an unmarried woman to accept a letter from a single
man.
However, I do find myself digging into my own experiences
and memories when I write my Pride and
Prejudice variations—at least when it comes to writing about characters’
thoughts and feelings. I would guess
that the anxiety provoked by wondering what other people are thinking about you
hasn’t changed in 200 years. And the
excited, giddy feeling of falling in love is probably essentially the
same.
I found myself using my experiences and reactions when I
needed to describe Mr. Collins kissing Elizabeth in Mr. Darcy to the Rescue. I
had a hard time envisioning such a kiss since I find Collins so repugnant, and
I knew the kiss itself would be an unpleasant experience for Elizabeth. So, I drew on my memory of a bad kiss from
high school. The guy (my prom date) was
a nice enough guy—not anything like Mr. Collins (except also a little nerdy)—but
he had thin, wet lips and it was an unpleasant experience. I remember thinking “It’s got to be better
than this or other people wouldn’t be doing it.” Little did I know at the time
that someday a fictional Regency parson would be kissing a gentleman’s daughter
in the same way!
Fortunately bad kissing isn’t the only thing I know about,
so my novels are full of emotions drawn from my own experiences. And that is one of the brilliant things about
Austen. Yeah, I don’t have to worry
about my cousin proposing to me (ew!) to keep my family from poverty. But I have had the experience of being
embarrassed by the bad dancing of my partner (yeah, the prom date). I
haven’t met anyone who thought highly of themselves just by virtue of belonging
to the aristocracy, but I’ve met people whose pretentions were nearly as
amusing as Lady Catherine’s. Like
Austen’s writing, human foibles are not only universal, but they transcend
time.
~~~~~~~~~~
Blurb:
When the irritating Mr. Collins proposes marriage,
Elizabeth Bennet is prepared to refuse him, but then she learns that her father
is ill. If Mr. Bennet dies, Collins will inherit Longbourn and her family will
have nowhere to go. Elizabeth accepts the
proposal, telling herself she can be content as long as her family is
secure. If only she weren’t dreading the
approaching wedding day…
Ever since leaving Hertfordshire, Mr. Darcy has been
trying to forget his inconvenient attraction to Elizabeth. News of her betrothal forces him to realize
how devastating it would be to lose her. He arrives at Longbourn intending to prevent
the marriage, but discovers Elizabeth’s real
opinion about his character. Then Darcy recognizes his true dilemma…
How can he rescue her when she doesn’t want him to?
~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt:
“I had a letter from Jane Bennet yesterday.”
These words, falling from the lips of Caroline Bingley, had
the power to make Darcy’s gaze lurch in her direction. Was that her intent? The smirk forming on her lips suggested it
might be. He turned his gaze back to the
fireplace.
Darcy had invited Bingley to tea at Darcy House, and the
addition of Miss Bingley to the party had been an unwelcome surprise. When she had followed her brother into the
drawing room, Bingley had given Darcy a small, apologetic shrug. Darcy was most concerned about her effect on
Georgiana, who found Miss Bingley intimidating.
When would Bingley ever learn to gainsay his sister?
So far, however, the afternoon had proceeded smoothly. Georgiana had not uttered a word, but at
least had remained in the room. Then
Miss Bingley had proceeded to introduce this sensitive topic of conversation.
Charles Bingley was hardly less interested in his sister’s
surprise announcement than Darcy. He
shifted in his chair and set down his tea cup.
“Ja-Miss Bennet wrote to you?
W-what news is there from Meryton?”
He made no attempt to sound casual.
Enjoying the effect she had on her listeners, his sister
leaned back in her chair and drawled, “They have had a good deal of rain over
the past fortnight.”
Bingley rolled his eyes.
“Yes. And?”
“Jane’s Aunt Phillips had a cold but seems to be
improving.” Miss Bingley’s smirk only
widened.
Bingley made a frustrated noise. “Is that all?”
Darcy could sympathize.
Her triumphant tone suggested she had news of great import, but perhaps
she was simply teasing them. Darcy
settled back in his chair and took a sip of tea.
Caroline Bingley had been the only member of their party at
Netherfield who had guessed about Darcy’s attraction to Elizabeth. Three months before, he had left
Hertfordshire determined to forget everything about Elizabeth Bennet but had
found the task far more difficult than he anticipated. Elizabeth haunted his days and nights without
ceasing. During the day, his thoughts
turned to her: her musical laugh, teasing voice, light and pleasing
figure. At night, he struggled to sleep,
and when he did, he dreamed of her.
Again and again, he had examined the problem but had always
determined there was no other solution than to banish her from his
thoughts. So far, he had met with little
success, and now this reminder from Miss Bingley only threatened to further
disturb his equanimity.
Georgiana nibbled a biscuit, attempting to appear interested
in a conversation about people she had never met.
“Caroline—” Bingley’s
voice held a note of warning.
Miss Bingley sighed dramatically as if extremely put out by
her brother’s demands. “Well… There was
one item of interest. One of Jane’s
sisters is engaged to be married to that parson who is a cousin of
theirs.” Miss Bingley sneered, a
singularly unattractive expression.
“Mr. Collins,” Darcy supplied.
“Yes, that is his name.”
Darcy’s chest compressed with anxiety, making it hard to
breathe. “Which sister?”
“The second.
Elizabeth.” Miss Bingley slid him
a look that could not be interpreted as anything less than triumphant.
It was now impossible for Darcy to breathe. What had happened to the air in the room?
Elizabeth! Engaged to
that idiot? Married to that fool for the
rest of her life? Going to his bed? Bearing his children?
No! It was not
possible. Darcy needed to protest the
impossibility of this pronouncement, refute it immediately, but nothing emerged
from his mouth save a strangled gurgle.
Georgiana’s gaze shifted to him, wide-eyed with alarm.
Bingley, fortunately, had not lost his powers of
speech. “Engaged to Mr. Collins! I thought she had more sense.”
“She does,” Darcy growled.
“There must be some error.”
Miss Bingley’s laugh held no actual mirth. “Jane would hardly make such a mistake!”
“The man is a fool!” Darcy expostulated. “How could she accept him?”
Georgiana had plastered herself against the back of her
chair, her eyes never leaving his face.
His outburst was out of character, he knew, but at the moment, he could
not find the means to control himself.
“Now that I think of it,” Bingley said, “I do recall that
Collins danced two dances with her at the Netherfield Ball.”
“Yes, he danced very ill!” Darcy said.
“Perhaps he had been courting her back then,” Bingley
concluded.
Darcy closed his eyes and considered this. The idiot parson had danced with Elizabeth
and made a fool of himself. He had tried
to engage her in conversation, but Darcy had seen no signs of interest on her
part. Elizabeth had far too much
sense. She had been mortified when
Collins had presumed to converse with Darcy without an introduction. No, it was impossible. How could she have accepted his hand?
When he opened his eyes, he noticed the gaze of everyone in
the room upon him. Damnation! He too easily betrayed himself when it came
to Elizabeth Bennet!
Taking a bite of a biscuit he had no interest in, Darcy
attempted to appear more casual. “Did
Miss Bennet’s letter say when the wedding is to take place?” he asked, taking a
sip of tea and attempting to calm the trembling in his hands.
“No.” Miss Bingley’s
tone was sharp.
Good Lord! They could
already be wed! This thought constricted
his throat, and he almost choked as he swallowed his biscuit.
“Miss Bennet did tell me that Longbourn is entailed away
from the female line,” Bingley said.
“Mr. Collins will inherit it upon Mr. Bennet’s death.”
Blast! Why had he not
known that Longbourn was entailed? It
was a common enough practice. He should
have thought to inquire. “I did not
know,” Darcy murmured, now feeling faintly nauseous.
Mr. Collins must have resolved to choose a wife from among
his cousins since he was to inherit their home.
And he did not select Jane because everyone believed she would marry
Bingley….
Elizabeth would have accepted his offer for the good of her
family. He had not misjudged her powers
of discernment after all. She recognized
the man’s stupidity but sacrificed her future happiness—all her future
happiness—so her family would not have to leave their ancestral home.
For a moment Darcy feared he might be sick. She would be married forever to man she could
not love—or even respect. What a
horrible fate.
“So she accepted the proposal for the sake of her family?” Georgiana entered the conversation for the
first time. Clearly Elizabeth’s dilemma
had drawn his sister’s compassion. At
least Georgiana would never need to make such an awful choice, Darcy thought
warmly. Far better she died an old maid
than marry such a man.
Bingley nodded. “Yes,
I believe so.”
“What a sacrifice to make!” Georgiana exclaimed. “She must be an exceptional woman.”
Miss Bingley’s expression turned from triumphant to sour.
“She is indeed,” Darcy agreed while simultaneously wishing she
were more selfish and less devoted to her family.
And now she is lost to me.
Before I ever had her. My
Elizabeth is gone.
~~~~~~~~~~
Wow, what an excerpt! When I read this in the book, Chapter 2, I believe, I had to go on. I could not stop and didn't want to, either. I felt sorry for Darcy but loved his reactions too. I despised Carolyn but what else is new! Very well done, Victoria Kincaid. Thank you for sharing the excerpt and your post about writing what you know. You do the job admirably.
For you readers, Victoria is giving away one copy of her new release, Mr. Darcy to the Rescue. The giveaway is international and the lucky winner gets an eBook! Isn't that fantastic! Again, I thank you, Ms. Kincaid! Please leave a comment to be entered in the giveaway. We would love to hear your share in the conversation...maybe tell us about a bad kiss you experienced! The giveaway will end 23 August, 2015 at 11:59 PM. Please leave an email or other contact information should you be the randomly selected winner of Mr. Darcy to the Rescue! Good luck to all!