Darcy's Story into print

I then asked a friend to read these two chapters, to see what she thought. Stephanie suggested that I continue with more of Darcy's Story, so I did, and completed the book. But it is one thing to write a novel; quite another to get it into publication, and then to tell people about it so that some copies can be sold.

My husband was doubtful that it would be possible to find a publisher, and certainly not in a reasonable timescale to get the book into shops within 18 months. It also seemed likely that some enthusiasts for Jane Austen's works would be unhappy, or at least disappointed, that a story she had written was to be used in a different way. However, a few weeks later my husband decided that he would lend me a small amount of a legacy from a dear relative that he had recently received.

So we contacted Antony Rowe Ltd, who specialises in short runs of 500 to 2000 books. We commissioned a book cover, and some 2000 copies were printed in July 1996.