Vanessa Riley’s Regency Reflections

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Servitude: a Poem written by a Footman
  Robert Dodsley was popularly known as the footman poet! Wikipedia explains: In 1729 Dodsley published his first work, Servitude: a Poem written by a Footman…and a collection of short poems, A Muse in Livery, or the Footman’s Miscellany, was published … Continue reading →
• Diane Rehm Interviews “Eligible” Author, Curtis Sittenfeld
  In 2011, The Austen Project approached best-selling author Curtis Sittenfeld to write a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice, which she entitled Eligible (out in bookstores now). On Thursday, April 21, 2016, Diane Rehm, one of my favorite radio hosts, interviewed Sittenfeld regarding her new novel. As the interview wore on it became obvious to […]

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Originally posted 2016-05-05 06:21:36.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• A Duchess in Her Own Right
  This is a topic that always gets people talking and scheming. HOW can we pull this off!!!?!!! Is there a way to make my heroine a duchess in her own right? The answer is yes, but you’d have to model … Continue reading →
• Research Ahead, Plus Book News
  I’ve been head down working on book three in my Sinclair Sisters series and am at the point where I think the basic plot is in place and a few interesting themes and developments have emerged. I’ve only just begun … Continue reading →

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Originally posted 2016-04-28 06:20:17.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Emma Woodhouse’s Surrey
    Inquiring readers: Here’s another delightful contribution from the ever creative Tony Grant. If you can’t get enough of his work and photographs, visit his blog, London Calling, where he shares his images from his many trips all over Great Britain. A little over 200 hundred years ago (December, 2015), Emma was first published. This […]

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Originally posted 2016-04-21 06:21:51.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Regency Woman’s Work: Painting
    When studying a woman’s role in the Regency era, one truly appreciates the great strides today’s Western women have made in making personal choices and leading interesting and independent lives. In Jane Austen’s day, women from all walks of life were constrained by their family, society’s mores, and unfair laws that prevented all but […]
• Pondering Primary Sources, and Spring Cleaning!
  How many of you researchers love primary sources? Is anyone’s hand NOT raised? One of the things I love best about researching is that moment when you stumble across some telling tiny detail that just resonates…. Diaries, letters, and other … Continue reading →

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Originally posted 2016-04-14 06:20:34.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• And the winner is …
  Kira, congratulations! You have won a free download of Ingrid Hahn’s To Win A Lady’s Heart. Thank you, everyone for visiting and participating.  
• Interesting things that probably don’t have anything to do with writing
  Here are a few discoveries from around the web today. First, two of the few remaining seventeenth century houses in London have been given Grade II listings. They’re on Denmark Street in Soho, and would first have been middle class … Continue reading →

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Originally posted 2016-04-07 06:21:30.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Debut author Ingrid Hahn visits the Riskies!
  Today I’m very excited to welcome debut author Ingrid Hahn to the Riskies with her book To Win a Lady’s Heart. Welcome, Ingrid and congratulations! England, 1811. When John Merrick, the Earl of Corbeau, is caught in a locked storeroom … Continue reading →
• Jane Austen Day 2016 in Philadelphia
  Jane Austen Day will be celebrated in Philadelphia, Saturday, April 16, 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., the Union League of Philadelphia, 140 South Broad St. Click here for more information. Theme: Join JASNA Eastern Pennsylvania Region at the exquisite Union League for a day celebrating the bicentenary of the publication of Emma in Philadelphia, the […]

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Originally posted 2016-03-31 06:20:45.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Ridicules and Riticules
  I asked in a reader group what topics people were interested in having covered on blogs these days and got a whole list of things that I’ll be tackling in the coming months, but the one that seemed the most … Continue reading →
• Jane Austen and Dialect by Tony Grant
  Inquiring readers, It’s time to lay Downton Abbey reviews aside and return to Jane Austen, since that is where my passion lies. Tony Grant, London Calling, has been a contributor to this blog for many years. He has written a piece that is quite original – how would Darcy’s first proposal to Lizzie sound if […]

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Originally posted 2016-03-24 06:20:18.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Releases and News
  Hello, Risky Readers! I am busy writing the third book in the Sinclair Series. This is Emily and Devon’s story. I’m about 30% in. It’s going about as okay as writing tends to go. I’d say this is the hard … Continue reading →
• Downton Abbey, Season 6, Christmas Special – Everything’s Neatly Tied Into a Sugar Spun Bow
  DA Season 6 has come to an end. Tonight we watched the opening sequence live for the last time. Isis’s tail, the approach to the Abbey, the tingling of the bells will soon fade into memory, unless we watch the repeats. Viewers hope that sequels are in the works. What will happen to Tom? What […]

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Originally posted 2016-03-17 06:20:24.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• Cranford & the Social Aspects of Needlework
  I thought for today’s post, I’d elaborate a little on my February post about needlework, and talk about the social aspects of needlework. As any crafter knows, there is an immense satisfaction in gifting your work to your friends and … Continue reading →
• War & Peace
  Bizarrely shown on three cable channels, A&E, Lifetime, and History, the BBC’s  adaptation of War and Peace seems to have come and gone without much notice. And it deserves a lot of attention because this is one of the most … Continue reading →

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Originally posted 2016-03-10 06:20:48.

Looks What’s Brewing in the Regency

• A cover for non-devotional activity
  I had never heard of box pews until I started writing the Lively St. Lemeston series! However, they were much more common in England during the Regency than bench-style pews. Wikipedia explains: Box pews provided privacy and allowed the family … Continue reading →
• Downton Abbey S6 E8: The Marigold Silence of DOOM
  Let’s cut to the chase, shall we, and not be blindsided by the numerous side trips in Episode 8 of Season 6. After this week, the creators of Downton Abbey will have one meager episode left to tie a multitude of plotlines into one neat strand. Will Episode 9 leave viewers satisfied? Is it possible? […]

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Originally posted 2016-03-03 06:21:30.