A Brief Selection of References:
The London Encyclopedia,
edited by Christopher Hibbert and Ben Weinret, 1993.
ISBN: 0333576888
Harriette Wilson's Memoirs
by Lesley Blanch, 2002.
ISBN: 1842126326
Jane Austen and the Clergy
by Irene Collins, 2002.
ISBN: 1852853271
The Inebriated History of Britain
by Peter Haydon, 2005.
ISBN: 0-7509-4256-8
Beau Brummell: The Ultimate Man of Style
by Ian Kelly, 2006.
ISBN: 0743270884.
An interesting book, filled with great details such as where a gentleman went to buy snuff and which club had the best food. It left me feeling sad, though, for a man of humble origins who hob-knobbed with royalty, set the style of his time, then fled his homeland in disgrace, before suffering an agonizing death from tertiary syphilis.
The Art of Dining, A History of Cooking & Eating
by Sara Paston-Williams, 1993.
ISBN: 0 7078 0713 7.
A big, beautiful National Trust book.
The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen,
edited by Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster, 1997.
ISBN: 0-521-49867-8.
This book is an assortment of essays on a variety of topics related to Jane Austen's work.
It has an excellent chapter on money and purchasing power in Regency England.
A Dictionary of English Surnames
by R.H. Reaney and R. M. Wilson, 1995.
ISBN: 0-19-863146-4.
I spend many hours with this book and the next, in search of the perfect names for my characters--
also useful for simply procrastinating.
Place Names of England and Wales
by James Johnson, 1994.
ISBN: 1-85891-133-8.
East Anglia: Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk,
by Peter Sager, 1994.
ISBN: I-873429-53-3.
So far, I've only read the section about Norfolk. A fabulous book. Rich with details.
The English Country House
by Olive Cook, 1974.
Library of Congress: 78-63039.
Lovely illustrations and floor plans.
Just For Fun:
Don't Bet on the Prince, Contemporary Feminist Fairy Tales in North America and England,
by Jack Zipes, 1986.
ISBN: 0-416-01371-6.
The title says it all.
Love Letters, an Anthology of Passion,
by Michelle Lovric, 1994.
ISBN: I-56924-857-5
A beautiful book with quotations and facsimiles of love letters through history.
The Art of Seduction
by Robert Greene, 2001.
ISBN: 0-670-89192-4.
Haven't read it yet, but it looks like fun.
Woe Is I, the Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English,
by Patricia T. O'Conner, 1996.
ISBN: 1-57322-625-4.
Doesn't everyone read grammar books for fun?
Writing References:
Do you love books about writing? Here are a few of my favorites:
The Weekend Novelist
by Robert J. Ray, 1994.
ISBN: 0-440-50594-1.
Great discussion of turning points and framing your story.
GMC: Goal, Motivation and Conflict, the Building Blocks of Good Fiction
by Debra Dixon, 1996.
ISBN: 0-9654371-0-8.
Easy-to-read, clear and concise. Very valuable reference.
Techniques of the Selling Writer
by Dwight V. Swain, 1965.
ISBN: 0-8061-1191-7.
For basic story structure, this book (along with any book by Jack Bickham)
is a classic must-read, and frequently re-read, for me.
Scene & Structure
by Jack M. Bickham, 1993.
ISBN: 0-89879-551-6.
Fabulous book. Very informative.
Writing Romance
by Vanessa Grant, 1997.
ISBN: 1-55180-096-9.
A great discussion of territorial conflict.
Double Your Creative Power
by S.L. Stebel, 1996.
ISBN: 1-888310-20-0.
A recent find, a little gem.
The Writer's Journey, Mythic Structure for Storytellers and Screenwriters
by Christopher Vogler, 1992.
ISBN: 0-941188-13-2.
The elements outlined in The Writer's Journey are versatile tools for
plotting the external conflict of a story, as well as the internal character arc. Great!
The Key, How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth
by James N. Frey, 2000.
ISBN: 0-312-24197-6.
Similar to the above, but written with a different perspective.
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