Author Archives: lori

Our Jane Austen Pet Peeves: Austenesque Extravaganza

10 Monday Sep 2012

Posted by in Uncategorized

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Thrilled to be part of this month’s Austenesque Extravaganza, put together by bloggers Meredith Esparza and Jakki Leatherberry.  For my part in this month-long celebration of everything Austen, I got to meet Austen authors Alyssa Goodnight and Karalynne Mackrory and chat via Skype about (gasp!) Our Jane Austen Pet Peeves.  (Sacrilege!)  Hope you enjoy!

Alyssa Goodnight: I’m Alyssa Goodnight, and my Austen-inspired novels are modern-day homages that make the assumption that Jane Austen’s spirit is alive and well, offering up romantic advice from a journal.

Lori Smith: Sounds like fun!  I’ve written Austen-related non-fiction, most recently The Jane Austen Guide to Life, which takes practical lessons from both Austen’s fiction and her life stories.  If she could give us advice today, what would she tell us?  Similar to yours a bit, Alyssa.

KaraLynne Mackrory: I am KaraLynne Mackrory and I live in a fantasy world where I believe Mr. Darcy is real.  Well, real enough to invade my thoughts and make me produce giggle-fest stories of him.

Alyssa Goodnight: So…I assume  Mr. Darcy is your favorite Austen hero?

KaraLynne Mackrory: Hmm… that’s a good question. And the answer might not even be yes.  I liked him a lot – though probably because P & P is my favorite of Jane Austen’s books, but I almost liked Edmund Bertram or the charming Mr. Tilney as much.  How about you guys? Continue reading »

Event in DC this Thursday

07 Tuesday Aug 2012

Posted by in Events, The Jane Austen Guide to Life

≈ 1 Comment

I’ll be discussing the book and signing copies this Thursday at 12:30 PM at the Barnes & Noble in downtown DC, just a block from Metro Center.  Come by to listen to a reading, to chat about Jane, or pick up a signed copy for yourself or friends.  Hope you can make it!

We’ll also have copies of A Walk with Jane Austen available for purchase.

(If you already own a book that you’d like to have signed, B&N has asked me to let people know that they must show a copy of a B&N receipt.)

Fabulous freebie: “Live Like Jane Austen” poster

17 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by in Free, The Jane Austen Guide to Life

≈ 2 Comments

So excited to share this with you!  Here we have all of Jane Austen’s good-sense advice from The Jane Austen Guide to Life: Thoughtful Lessons for the Modern Woman collected in one place, in a beautiful 8.5 x 11 poster that you can print for free.

Click on the image above to download the PDF file.

Let Austen teach you how to:

  • Live your dreams
  • Become a woman of substance
  • Find a good man
  • Marry well
  • Venture solo
  • Endure the hardest things
  • Find joy and laughter
  • … and more.

Feel free to re-post or share this PDF, provided you leave the attribution at the bottom, and link back to this site where possible.  Thanks!

Handsome…

10 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by in Images, Jane Austen

≈ 1 Comment

Just posted this over at AustenQuotes, but wanted to share here, too.  For all the Matthew Macfadyen fans out there.

To be fair, this is not a saying Jane Austen came up with, but one that was in use already, and one she used jokingly in a letter to her sister about their neighbor, James Digweed.

Also, added new Pinterest buttons.  Join me over there!

Self-publishing vs. traditional publishing

05 Thursday Jul 2012

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Monday, July 9 – Capital Christian Writers – Fairfax, VA – 7-9 PM – “The Pros and Cons of Self-Publishing and Traditional Publishing”

Have you been thinking about publishing?  Wondering whether — and how — to self-publish?  What are the advantages of traditional publishing?  Come out for a presentation and discussion.  I’ll be speaking and sharing some self-publishing resources.

Blog tour: Review and giveaway at AtticGirl.com

05 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by in Giveaways, Reviews, The Jane Austen Guide to Life

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Shelly Dixon is hosting a giveaway on her blog, AtticGirl.com. Lots of great stuff there for moms!  Eight more days to enter the giveaway.

She posted a sweet review as well:

Lori has a gift with words; reading them is like sitting down and having a conversation with your best friend. (read more)

And allowed me to guest blog about Jane Austen’s Fresh Perspective:

In her writing, she loved to skewer the ridiculous, to isolate and display the character flaws of people at every level of society—the bombastic nature of Pride and Prejudice’s Lady Catherine de Bourgh, the faithless grasping of Northanger Abbey’s Isabella Thorpe, even the vanity of her dear Elizabeth Bennet.  Which is why, if she were here today, she just might rejoice at the sheer amount of absurd behavior on display. (read more)

So check out Shelly’s blog and enter to win a free book!

Auntie Lulu

04 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by in General

≈ 3 Comments

I love being an aunt.

Because I still need to rest a good bit, I’m continually making choices about how to spend my time — and many things just don’t happen.  So bike ride or walk the dog?  (The dog usually wins.)  Grocery store or work?  (Usually grocery store.)  Clean the kitchen or blog?  (Usually blog.)

Last Friday, I chose this:

 

We went to tea at the American Girl Store (so exciting!).

Saw lots of baby animals at the farm.

Wrote “stories.”  (Starting her young.)

And painted her nails with 16 different colors.

I’m so very, very thankful to have the energy to be able to do this.  Sweet fun.

The state of things

22 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ 5 Comments

I’m feeling overwhelmed today.

I dream of something like this (from Ekster Antiques):

My dining room looks like this:

I’ve been wanting to recover those chairs for, umm… 10 years.  (If you can see them beyond the mess.)

That about sums up how I’m feeling today. Anybody relate?

Pride and Prejudice for toddlers

21 Thursday Jun 2012

Posted by in Jane Austen, Other writers

≈ 5 Comments

Okay, people, it’s gone too far.

Apparently, this is a counting book.  As in, “2 rich gentlemen, 3 houses, 4 marriage proposals.”  The same company also does Jane Eyre and Romeo & Juliet for toddlers.  (How does Romeo & Juliet end?  “2 suicides”?  Ack!  Not for toddlers!)

Am I crazy?  Because the book seems to be selling well on Amazon, so apparently lots of people love the idea.

Thanks to my friend Catherine for sending me this.

World Magazine review

20 Wednesday Jun 2012

Posted by in Reviews, The Jane Austen Guide to Life

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World Magazine published a short review of The Jane Austen Guide to Life this week.  The article is subscribers-only, but I don’t think they’ll mind if I reprint the review here:

Lori Smith knows her Jane Austen. She draws from Austen’s fictional characters, as well as from personal letters and prayers, insights into the human condition and practical advice for young women today. In chapters ranging from “Finding a Good Man” to “Saving and Spending,” Smith mines Austen and finds gold. She grounds practical advice—”don’t let your vanity blind you” or “be the right woman”—in Austen’s novels, showing how characters like Elizabeth Bennet and Emma Woodhouse had to grow and change to become women of substance. Readers will enjoy this refresher course through the novels, and the counter-cultural advice this Austen-based “guide to life” offers.