Inspiring the Works of Valerie Jean

Jane Austen

Written by

Valerie Jean

Jane Austen’s style of writing and candid perspective paved the way for female romance authors for decades to come. The glimpse she gave readers into ordinary characters’ everyday lives and relationships was new and exciting. Raised in a large family, where education was valued, even in females, Ms. Austen was quite unique for her time. Her mother was known for her impromptu verse and stories, while her father was a scholarly reverend.  She had six brothers and one sister, Catherine, who was named after their mother. They were a tight-knit, supportive family. When her father retired, he began to move them all around which resulted in connections and experiences that helped later in Ms. Austen’s professional life. Very little is actually known about her personal life, as she never kept a journal or diary, but instead wrote letters to her sister, Catherine.

Most of Jane Austen’s six major novels focus on making a social commentary about women’s dependence on marriage to gain social status among British land-owners. This recurring theme could stem from her experience being betrothed to a young man within her social circle, then breaking that betrothal the next day. Rumor was she loved someone else, but they died in some tragic way. Although she wrote novels that portrayed the complications of love and romance, she also believed in the happily ever after. She was more practical about marriage herself, however, often writing to her sister about how financial decisions dictated her relationships.

She wrote Juvenilia, also called Volumes of the First, Volumes of the Second, and Volumes of the Third early in her writing career. A collection of poetry, short stories, and parodies on society, it wasn’t published until much later. It was within sometime after the writing of this collection, particularly Love and Freindship (sic), that Austen began to seriously consider writing as a profession. She began many works that she would take breaks from or leave unfinished. She spent the middle years of her life writing profusely, eventually publishing four major novels anonymously during her lifetime. She continued to write up until her death. Although she wrote classic love stories, sadly she never seemed to find a love of her own.

Major Works (with publication date)

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