Austen Reads & Research

Researching Confessions and Rude Awakenings was one of the most enjoyable aspects of the writing process. Here is a selection of some favorite books and articles (aside from Jane Austen’s six major novels, which are must-reads). This is by no means a complete list of all the works consulted in the research of the Austen Addict novels:

Austen, Jane and Le Faye, Deirdre. “Jane Austen’s Letters.” Oxford University Press, 1997.
Bassett, Lynne Zacek. “Textiles for Regency Clothing 1800-1850.”
Bath Archaeological Trust. “Ordnance Survey Historical Map & Guide: Georgian Bath.”
Bath Preservation Trust. “Number 1 Royal Crescent, Bath illustrated guide.”
Building of Bath Museum. “The Building of Bath Museum guidebook.”
Byrde, Penelope. “Jane Austen Fashion.” Excellent Press, 1999.
Craig, Sheryl. “Would Jane have “Gone Large”? – Fast Food, Regency Style.” Regency World Magazine, Issue 34, July / August 2008.
Fullerton, Susannah. “Jane Austen and Crime.” Jones Books, April 2006.
Hardyment, Christina “Behind the Scenes: Domestic Arrangements in Historic Houses.” National Trust, 2001.
Lane, Maggie. “A Charming Place: Bath in the Life and Novels of Jane Austen.” Millstream Books, 1988.
Lane, Maggie. “Jane Austen and Food.” Hambledon Press, 1995.
Le Faye, Deirdre. “Jane Austen: The World of Her Novels.” Frances Lincoln Ltd, 2002.
Murray, Venetia. “An Elegant Madness.” Penguin Group USA, 2000.
Museum of Costume/National Trust. “The Museum of Costume/Assembly Rooms, Bath exhibition catalogue.”
Olsen, Kirstin. “All Things Austen: An Encyclopedia of Austen’s World.” Greenwood Press, January 2005.
Ross, Josephine. “Jane Austen’s Guide to Good Manners: Compliments, Charades & Horrible Blunders.” Bloomsbury USA, 2006.
Selwyn, David. “Jane Austen and Leisure.” Hambledon Press, 1999.
Snaddon, Brenda. “The Last Promenade: Sydney Gardens, Bath.” Millstream Books, 2000.
Sullivan, Margaret. “The Jane Austen Handbook: A Sensible Yet Elegant Guide to Her World.” Quirk Books, April 2007.
Turner, E.S. “What the Butler Saw: Two Hundred and Fifty Years of the Servant Problem.” Penguin Global, May 2005.
Victoria Art Gallery/The Roman Baths. “Stewing Alive: the story of bathing in Bath.”(exhibition catalogue). 2002.
Werner, Alex. “London Bodies.” introduction Professor Roy Porter. Museum of London, 1998.

And of course no one writing an Austen-inspired book should ever be without the indispensible Persuasions, the journal of the Jane Austen Society of North America, of which I am a Life Member.

Non-Austen works quoted in CONFESSIONS and RUDE AWAKENINGS:

CONFESSIONS OF A JANE AUSTEN ADDICT
William Cowper, Mutual Forbearance, Necessary to the Happiness of the Married State
William Cowper, The Progress of Error
Sir Walter Scott, The Lay of the Last Minstrel
William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing

RUDE AWAKENINGS OF A JANE AUSTEN ADDICT

William Shakespeare, The Tempest
William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night
Edmund Spenser, Faerie Queene.

Language resources:

Mollands, which has searchable e-texts of Austen’s six major novels, plus LADY SUSAN, LOVE AND FREINDSHIP, and THE WATSONS.

Oxford English Dictionary online, which provides instances of first usage.

Advanced Google Book Search, which allows one to search rare and antiquarian books for instances of particular words and usage within a range of history.

For more about the research entailed in writing the Austen Addict books, including the “history” behind Courtney’s encounter with Jane Austen in Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, read the Jane Austen Society of North America’s interview with the author.