Introduce Yourself & Announce Challenge Level

[Brenda]

I embrace most JAFF but there are things I don't like changed e.g. I don't like it when Darcy & Elizabeth don't end up together!

[Sophia]

There is definitely a spectrum that ranges between the two extremes where most Austen Lovers fall. I confess that I've read a few variations that were more 'out there' than I liked, but I definitely enjoy many that a purist would loathe.

[Kirk]

Sophia wrote: "Well those weren't the camps I meant with the Colin Firth Darcys vs. the Matthew McFaydden Darcys camps, but I suppose there is that friendly little war too. ;)

No, the two camps I meant were thos..."

And the irony is that Jane Austen and her niece Anna Austen(later Lefroy!) took the 1000+ page Sir Charles Grandison by Samuel Richardson...and turned it into a 50+ page play!

[Sophia]

That's right! I just recently learned about that play from another group member.

Haha, yes...

[Talia]

Hi Everyone,

I am Talia and I will sign up for the Mr Bennet level. Looking forward to new book suggestions and more Mr Darcy. :)

[Sophia]

Glad to see you going for the gold with Mr. Bennet level, Talia. Good luck! Check out the Virtual shelves to get some good suggestions.

[Ceri]

I am hoping I'll get Mr Bennet level too Talia, but I'm not brave enough to aim for it right off! Glad you are here Kirk!

When I first read JAFF I probably was a purist about it, it seemed disrespectful to Jane not to be, so I liked the really conservative historical ones, and the modern update, where more licence can be given, but the more I've read the more I can let go and just enjoy each story for what it is. However, the historical ones that stay closest to Austen's style and characters get extra brownie points from me :)

I feel lucky in that I read Jane Austen before I saw any adaptations (read my first ones, S&S and P&P back in around 1993) so I was able to imagine the characters without having an interpretation of them already presented to me.

[Ahnya]

This is so fascinating. I had no idea there was such controversy, but I guess it makes sense. I think it is that way with almost anything you read. Working in the library I would hear, and get into many discussions about an authors work.

I am by no means a purist on just about anything. I like to think that Jane would find it flattering that someone loved her characters so much that they dreamed up other stories about them.

[Talia]

Hoping you join me!

[Talia]

I will check the shelves out. I read at least double that in the year anyway so I will try to stick to mostly Austen and variations this year. :) So much fun!

[Sophia]

Yes, one would think, but that's not how the purists see it.

I'll bet it was tough to keep quiet while working at the library, Ahnya.

[Sophia]

I'll try to work up to that level, Talia.

Double? Wow! That's impressive.

[Talia]

Sophia wrote: "I'll try to work up to that level, Talia.

Double? Wow! That's impressive."

Did I read it wrong? 50 books in a year? Right? That is less than one a week. I read about two - three books each Fri to Sat. It is the only time I have to read. Reading Tristam Shandy right mow but that doesn't fit here. :)

You can do it!

[Sophia]

No, you're right, fifty is doable. I definitely plan to read quite a few.

[Talia]

Maybe people don't read as much any more? I guess I am out of the loop. Well, I would love to have more people in Mr Bennet's library with me. :)

[Sophia]

Oh, I think you'll have plenty of company sooner or later, Talia. There are lots of big readers in this group, but I think they plan on moving up through the levels to join you. Either strategy is fine. I think its going to be a lot of fun and I look forward to seeing what everyone can do with the challenge.

[Talia]

Hooray! Even though Mr Bennet likes to be alone or only with Lizzy in his library, I am glad to hear it. :)

[J.]

I am still trying to figure out Goodreads so I'm not sure how to make a shelf, but I'm determined.

For those that I've not met yet, I am Joy Dawn King who has published one book as J. Dawn King - a Pride and Prejudice Variation. I would have loved to use my name as my author name, but someone already uses it. The Austenesque world of fanfic, blogs, FB pages, and groups really appeal to me and I love that others recommend reads to me.

Note: I am a prude!!!!! I do not read mature content. I particularly love sweet romance between Jane Austen's characters.

I am married to Captain Wentworth, although he won't let me call him that.

My reading goal for 2015? Catherine Moreland (21-50)

[Sophia]

Haha, Joy! Silly man, doesn't he know you're complimenting him? Just kidding!

And, totally okay to own that preference for the sweet stuff. Feel free to ask if something is sweet or spicy when you're looking for new stuff.

Best wishes with your Catherine Moreland goal. ;)

As to creating your shelf/shelves:
1. Go to the top of the GoodReads page and click on 'My Books'
2. Once there, go to the left column where your existing bookshelves are located and look right below where it says 'add shelf'.
3. Click on the 'add shelf' and then type in the name for your new shelf and hit save. It will now appear in that column of shelves and on your personal page.

Any time you want to add a book to that shelf you can do it a few ways: go to the books page and look to the left under the cover.
There will be a button that gives the reading status of 'want to read', 'currently reading' or 'read'.
On the right side of the button is a graphic of green books. Clicking or hovering over that spot will reveal the drop down for your shelves and you can click to add the book to your special shelf.
Another way is to add the book to your shelf when you are editing your review for the book and it gives you the option at the top of the book review window to edit your bookshelf choices for the book.
Or going to the 'My Books' tab at the top and editing the shelves for books from there.

[J.]

Thanks Sophia. I now have a shelf. Good grief! I had no clue that I had already read so many. Some on my shelf will be re-reads. If anyone sees anything on my list that is R-rated, please let me know before I purchase it. I'd rather spend the money on something chocolate.

This is wonderful that you are doing this. I've cross-referenced this to the reading challenge that Ceri posted on Facebook.

It will be interesting to see what else is published in 2015 for JAFF. My Bingley/Jane story will be out soon.

This is fun. Thanks again, Sophia.

[Sophia]

This started out as just something I was planning to do for myself since I have a ton of books that I need to read, but then I noticed that other people were making the same groaning noises about their reading piles too. So we're all in it together now and cheering each other on- so much better than working on my stack alone. ;)

Yay! Glad book two for Jane and Bingley is coming. Feel free to put it in Promotion Place when its ready.

I'll have to take a look at your shelf. I'll let you know if I spot something that gets a bit spicy though admittedly sometimes I forget details if its been a few years.

[Elaine]

Hello everyone my name is Elaine from Griffin, Ga. I have lived in Ga. since 1999. I'm an avid reader, so my challenge level will be 50+. I am retired so my occupation is reading. I read all kinds of books, but my favorites are Jane Austen inspired.

[Talia]

Hooray! Welcome to Mr Bennet's library.

[Sophia]

Howdy Elaine!

Look at you go straight for the biggest challenge! Talia was just saying that she wanted company there at Mr. Bennet level. ;)

[Abigail]

Hi, Joy, I’m glad you’ve joined! So glad there’s going to be a Jane-and-Bingley-focused adaptation; I always feel they are underrated.

I don’t know whether I am a prude, but I agree with you that I like my romance “clean”! Sex always feels like a violation of the genre to me. Leaving it out can get tricky in a modern story, but even there it can be done. Was your P&P variation a period story, or modern-day? (I’m guessing period.)

[Ceri]

Hi Joy! Nice to see you here. I took a nosey as your shelf. I am not familiar with all of them , however, I spotted one which has sex scenes, The Last Man in The World. These are after marriage, if that makes a difference and the book is wonderful, one of my very favourite Austenesque reads, but if you avoid all sex scenes then I just wanted to tell you.

Welcome, Elaine!

[Sandra]

Hi Everyone! I live in the US and have probably read 250 Austen inspired books. Thankfully you have put this group together and the challenge so I can seriously focus on reading several books I have bought that I have set aside for more Austen inspired books that come out. I feel like I may never completely task as new and existing authors are imagining and writing much quicker than the time I have allotted.

Currently, I have 12 Austen inspired books sitting next to the bed and another 30 on the carousel of my kindle. I prefer what I call"true variations" where the original story is reworked with the same characters but different scenarios. I would rather spend my time "remembering the past as it brings me pleasure" instead of reading the modern variations. A couple of authors do like a great deal and follow will both be coming out with new works in 2015. So, I better get started.

You can count me at the Mr. Bennet level, at least!

Thanks again for organizing this!

[Talia]

Sandra wrote: "Hi Everyone! I live in the US and have probably read 250 Austen inspired books. Thankfully you have put this group together and the challenge so I can seriously focus on reading several books I h..."

Welcome to the library! There is a comfy but a little bit worn chair waiting for you. :)

[Sophia]

Woot, Sandra! This is exactly my weakness too. I have books to read on the shelf and yet I still grab for the new ones too.

Best of luck as you conquer Mr. Bennet level.

[Elaine]

Talia wrote: "Hooray! Welcome to Mr Bennet's library."

Thanks Talia. So we are reading books that we have not read correct!

[Elaine]

Sophia wrote: "Howdy Elaine!

Look at you go straight for the biggest challenge! Talia was just saying that she wanted company there at Mr. Bennet level. ;)"
Hi Sophia, yes I read all day. Sometimes I read several at a time.;)

[Sandra]

Ceri wrote: "Hi Joy! Nice to see you here. I took a nosey as your shelf. I am not familiar with all of them , however, I spotted one which has sex scenes, The Last Man in The World. These are aft..."

"The Last Man In the World" by Abigail Reynolds is my favorite of all Austen variations I have read. Enjoy!

[Sandra]

Sophia wrote: "Well those weren't the camps I meant with the Colin Firth Darcys vs. the Matthew McFaydden Darcys camps, but I suppose there is that friendly little war too. ;)

No, the two camps I meant were thos..."

Yes, the camps are amusing to me. It is addressed a little in a book by a Jane inspired author, Mary Lydon Simonsen. She writes Austen inspired novels but also a Patrick Shea series. "Dying yo Write" came out last year. She had asked me to read and review it. So, you can find my remarks on both goodreads and Amazon. Great little murder mystery at a Jane Austen Conference.

I might mention I belong to the Jane Austen Society of North America. We definitely have some purists, but our wonderful fearless leader runs and owns "Jane Austen Books", a bookstore specializing in all that is Austen, pure or variation.

[Deborah]

Joy,
I see we have the same goal...Catherine Moreland Level. I am also eagerly anticipating your Jane/Bingley book.

[Nancy]

Hi, I'm Nancy. I've been a fanfic reader for ages, and a JAFF reader for... oh man, at least 10 years now? I've gone so far off the deep end with JAFF that I now write it.

I fell flat on my face with my Goodreads challenge last year (2014 was awful), so I'm really hesitant to commit to much of anything here. I guess that makes me a Caro, though I'm not sure I like that comparison. ;) But I do have a stack of Austeneque novels that I need to read, both in paperback and on my Kindle.

Hopefully having an active group of friends reading along with me will keep me on task.

[Sophia]

Oh, it is fun to read with a group of friends and it helps to get excited about a book that you see discussed and-plus!- its already on your shelf for you to snag up to read. Ten years as a fan is impressive, Nancy. I wished that I had noticed JAFF sooner.

LOL! It was cruel to make people join a Caro group, but her quote was so fun that I had to use her.

[Abigail]

Sophia writes, “It was cruel to make people join a Caro group . . .

I’ve always felt there was a core of an entertaining person in Caroline Bingley, if only she weren’t so desperate. (And why exactly is she desperate? She has financial security and loving relatives, albeit not independence.) I was quite the snob in my early twenties, but eventually got over it; maybe she could, too. Challenge to P&P Variations writers out there: tell Caroline Bingley’s story in a way that makes her appealing!

[Ceri]

I always thought that Caroline just wants to leave the whiff of trade behind her and to marry the grandson of an Earl would be a wonderful way to achieve that so she's just trying to make the best of her opportunity. It probably doesn't diminish Darcy's attractions that he's handsome and rich! We are also not told how old she is, perhaps she was worried that she'd had too many seasons in society. I can see her being too fussy in her first season and becoming more desperate as time goes on.

[Abigail]

Good points, Ceri.

[Sophia]

Hey Abigail, if you want to read some good ones with Caro as the heroine, Monica Fairview wrote The Other Mr. Darcy and Jennifer Becton told her story in Caroline Bingley. In both, they allowed the reader to get inside Caro's head, but also see her grow. Good stuff! I've also read a few others where in her minor character role, she moved on and almost became friends with Darcy and Lizzy after a while just don't ask me to recall which ones at the moment. ;)

[Abigail]

Thanks for the heads-up, Sophia! I didn’t know about those two.

[RivkaBelle]

Hi! ::waves:: My name is Rebecca, and I'm a Jane Austen Addict. No, really. But it's okay, because I am *happy* with that truth! :o)

I plan to begin at the Anne Elliot level, which works perfectly with my previous plan to read at least one JAFF book a month in 2015. I have sooooo many poor neglected JAFF books on my shelf though, that I may end up squeaking in to Catherine Morland territory. ;o)

What I plan to read ... A weird mix of everything? I've got contemporary retellings, I've got historical revisitations, I've got sequels and mashups and I don't even know what else, ha. This should be fun! I may try and write a blog post about this challenge, and take a pic (or several) of my personal arsenal of JAFF ((which doesn't count what will be coming by way of the Library, oops)).

Thanks for a fun little challenge that works beautifully with my own reading goals! :oD

[Sophia]

Ah, Jane Austen addicts are the best and always welcome here, Rebecca! Glad you could join and work on your shelf too. I'd love to visit your post if you do it so leave a link here or down in Promotion Place if you think about it.

[Brenda]

Welcome RivkaBelle - you're in good company, we're all addicts here! :)

[Sandra]

OK! I have a start to my challenge. I know I will be adding more.

[Sophia]

That's terrific, Sandra!

Go get them, tiger!

[Nancy]

Holy moly. I went through my Kindle list, and even being mildly selective no not including any non-fiction, I have 34 Austenesque novels I'd like to actually get read. Then I also have about 5 in hard copy, so I'm looking at close to 40 books I actively want to read. (I confess to being a book hoarder. If the price is write I will buy a book in my favourite genre, even if it's only mildly interesting to me. And I know I'll get to those and enjoy them too, someday!)

[Ceri]

I'm the same Nancy, if it's a good price then I buy it regardless of whether or not I think I can fit it in. I've had some books on my kindle for over a year that I am genuinely keen to read but haven't managed to get to yet.

[Paige]

Oh, yes, me as well! And really great books keep coming to my attention and I keep adding them to my wish list. There is a wonderful world of lovely books books out there!

[Pamela]

Hi all! In this challenge, as in life I'm afraid, I'm a Marianne. Most of my Austenesque reading this year will be research related, but I plan on rewarding myself after each completed goal with a new Jane inspired novel. My first will be A Father's Sins by J Dawn King. Currently, I am reading Jane Austen's England: Daily Life in the Georgian and Regency Periods. It's pretty interesting so far, though there's not much in there about Jane specifically. Happy reading everybody! I look forward to hearing your thoughts on everything you're reading.