Wednesday 29 September 2021

As a Proper Lady Would by Bronwen Chisholm - Blog Tour, Guest Post and Giveaway

Well hello everybody! I am posting again after a longer than expected summer hiatus, in which I started a new job and like everybody else in the UK tried to do some home improvements! Now the autumn is coming and the nights are drawing in it’s time to make time for some reading.

Today I’m welcoming author Bronwen Chisholm back to the blog. Bronwen has a new book coming out on 1 October. The story is a Pride & Prejudice variation called As a Proper Lady Would and it’s the first in a series. Bronwen is joining us with a guest post, and she’s kindly brought a giveaway with her! Without further ado, I will hand over to her.

* * *

Hi, Ceri! I am tickled to visit with your readers here at Babblings of a Bookworm again. The first novel in my Defying Propriety Series, As a Proper Lady Would, will be available October 1st on Kindle and in paperback. Though I did a cover reveal last week at Austen Authors, it has changed slightly. Here it is along with the blurbs for both the series and this first book. 

* * *

We are formed by experiences of our childhood. Family and friends influence our character. Decisions, wise and foolish, direct our path. Through chance encounters and early introductions, our beloved Pride and Prejudice characters come together on a slightly different path which may, to some, defy propriety.

All the books in this series are sweet, clean romances.

In this first book of the Defying Propriety Series, we watch as Elizabeth and Darcy learn what society expects of them, while attempting to achieve what they truly desire in life. The well-known characters, as well as a few new ones, grow from childhood to a marriageable age; some reveal different facets of their personalities, while others are doomed to follow the same paths.

* * * 

 Ceri asked me to talk about how I got the idea for this series and what inspired it. At first, I thought I had already covered this at my monthly blog on AustenAuthors.net, but then I realized I only covered the initial idea. So, quick summary: I wrote a scene that I never intended to complete, which I posted on Austen Authors where the readers’ comments inspired me to write the first scene in this book, and then I couldn’t stop.

So, let’s back that up a bit. I have a tendency to get scene ideas lying in bed either before I fall asleep or just after waking up. If it’s the “before sleep”, I usually forget the really good stuff by the time I wake up (yes, I should jot it down, but they usually come the very moment my eyes are drifting shut, and I just can’t force myself to wake up to do it). If they are in the morning, my mind runs with it until I am able to get it on paper. Luckily, in this instance, it was a morning idea.

The idea was a scene with nine year old Fitzwilliam Darcy and his ten year old cousin, Phillip Fitzwilliam (the colonel in this series is named Phillip, click here for that explanation), playing war while their uncle, Lt. Anthony Fitzwilliam, watches them. The comments got me thinking about what Darcy, Elizabeth, and the other characters would be like as children. The opening scene came to me, and then I just couldn’t stop.

As the series blurb says, so much of who we are comes from our childhood experiences and the people in our lives. It was a blast thinking about what made Wickham such a rake, why Lizzy and Jane were more ladylike than Lydia and Kitty, and how Caroline became such a social climber. And the best part, I got to add new characters here and there.

That leads us to the series. Up until now, I have written stand alone stories (Mistress Mary and the General is technically a spin off of Behind the Mask, but it can be read alone). When I got to what should have been the end of this story, there were just too many lose threads. The only couple who had married was Darcy and Elizabeth. Yes, Jane appeared to be engaged, but there were at least two other couples making eyes at each other, and then there was Darcy’s eldest cousin, the viscount. I quickly realized I could not say it all in one book. So that is how the book and the series began.

 

Now, a GIVEAWAY! Just make a comment on this blog and Ceri will pick 1 lucky winner to receive an ebook copy of As a Proper Lady Would. Good luck! I can’t wait to read your comments.

 

Author Bronwen Chisholm
Bronwen Chisholm has released seven Pride and Prejudice variations since 2014. She takes great pleasure in searching for potential “plot twists” and finding the way back to a happy ending.

Her love of writing has led her to several writing groups, and she is currently serving as the vice president of the Riverside Writers and organizes the Riverside Young Writers.

For more information, visit her at www.bronwenchisholm.com.

 

Book cover: As a Proper Lady Would by Bronwen Chisholm
Buy Links 

Usually I’d add a buy link but I couldn’t find one! I’ll link instead to Bronwen’s works on various Amazon sites. Remember, As a Proper Lady Would will be released on Friday 1 October in paperback and kindle.

Amazon USAmazon UKAmazon CA • Add to Goodreads shelf


Giveaway Time!

 As Bronwen said, she is offering a giveaway for one of you. To enter, please leave a comment on this blog post by the end of the day worldwide on Tuesday 5 October. If you have any problems adding your comment please contact me and I will add your comment for you :)

Blog Tour Schedule

Please check out the other stops on the blog tour. Details are below:

As a Proper Lady Would Blog Tour Schedule


45 comments:

  1. This is an exciting concept--watching our favorite character as they grow up and the influences that shape their personalities. Looking forward to reading the first in the series. Congrats on publishing a new work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! It was fun to write and I hope you enjoy it.

      Delete
    2. Hope you enjoy it when you read it :)

      Delete
  2. Wondering if each book is a stand alone. I hate cliff hangers, especially when the next book is not published yet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Each book will center around a different couple, so in that they can stand alone. I agree with the cliffhangers and waiting for publishing. By the end of each book, that couple will be well on their way to an HEA. The second book will be ready to release in time for Christmas, but there may be a longer break for the third as the colonel is giving more problems than his brother.

      Delete
    2. That's a good question, thanks for asking it, Sheila!

      Delete
  3. What a wonderful idea for a series! I do enjoy when secondary characters are developed further along with our beloved Elizabeth and Darcy. Congratulations and thank you for a chance at the giveaway!

    Ceri, Congratulations on your new job!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I do too. I love Darcy and Elizabeth, but so much has already been done with them. The side characters have a lot of potential. Good luck!

      Delete
    2. Glad you like the idea :)

      Thank you for the congratulations, too! I am working in the same place but a different type of role. It's good for me to do something different.

      Delete
  4. I am looking forward to the insights of how our favorite characters grew into the people we know and love. Thanks you for including secondary characters as well. Best of luck with the release!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Neat how it starts when they are young and branches into those other couples later on.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. Each book, so far, has had some type of "flashback". Since Proper Lady focuses on Darcy and Elizabeth, we don't get to see scenes that had more effect on others.

      Delete
    2. It's a different approach to most variations isn't it, will be interesting to see what happens in the flashbacks and how it's affected the characters later.

      Delete
  6. Great premise. Congrats on the release!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Congratulations on this book's release and the series. I look forward to reading more.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Congratulations on the release. I don't think I've read many stories that develop Caroline Bingley's childhood.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. I don't think there are many. Though you see how she interacts with the Bennet sisters in this one, you will probably learn more when she gets her own book.

      Delete
    2. That's very true, there are relatively few books that focus on Caroline Bingley.

      Delete
  9. Congratulations on your new book! It is an interesting premise and I look forward to reading this one.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I have a comment to add for Betty Madden:

    I expect this is a book I will want to read. I appreciate variations that utilize more that the half-dozen or so frequent plots.
    Thank you for sharing your creativity and, I assume, careful research of the topic.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. I hope you enjoy it. I cannot promise to have gotten everything perfect, but I did my best to be as accurate as possible.

      Delete
    2. It's nice when the approach is a fresh one, isn't it, as there are some ideas which I feel I have had my fill of!

      Delete
  11. I have a comment to to add from Glynis:

    No blog comment as usual but I can see that meeting first as children would probably affect later meetings, I’m hoping that means no insult at the Meryton Assembly? At least this first book ends with Darcy and Elizabeth married so it’s definitely a winner with me! 🥰🥰🥰

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am glad you approve. In truth, the meeting was brief, but they did leave an impression on one another. I can't promise about the insult.

      Delete
    2. Same here, Glynis, I demand an Elizabeth and Darcy happy ever after.

      Delete
  12. I'm very excited to have a new book of yours to read! I look forward to it.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Welcome back, Ceri. Hope you enjoy your new job. Congratulations, Bronwen, on the new release. Hey, that's tomorrow. It sounds so interesting. I look forward to reading it. Good luck to all in the drawing. Blessings, everyone.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much Jeanne.

      The new job is good so far, although it's odd starting remotely! I have the same employer but a different job and a different team, some of whom I have never met in person and am not likely to for some time.

      Delete
  14. Thanks for sharing about the book. Eager to read your story how these characters came to be wne they got older. Thank you for this giveaway

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks everybody for stopping by and commenting, and to Bronwen for kindly providing a giveaway.

    I chose a winner using a random number generator and that person is.... Darcybennett. I will be in touch!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Congrastulations Darcybennet

    ReplyDelete

If you're not logged in to Google please leave your name in your comment or it will post as anonymous. Thanks! - Ceri