Welcome Debra Marvin presenting her new release! #giveaway

A Dark Time in Austin History

Thanks so much for inviting me to Cowboy Kisses!

I met Ginger a long time ago when we were both part of an online critique group for writers of historical fiction. I’ve been writing historical romantic suspense—mainly British or early American, so I never thought I’d find myself on her blog with a cowboy hero of my own! 

About 4-5 years ago, my blog-mates at Inkwell Inspirations decided to jump into the novella anthology wave with hopes it would take some of us from pre- to published. Group emails narrowed things down to Regency or Westerns and we ended up with Austen in Austin. (We were all published by the time it …finally…came out!)

Austen in Austin is a collection of eight (Four in each book. Vol 2 comes out in the fall) Jane Austen inspired novellas set in Austin Texas. That’s where the fun began!  We each chose an Austen novel and brainstormed the setting and our characters. This took some organization. We created a spreadsheet with all our characters so we knew what each character was like and what they were doing in any given year during the span of our eight stories. For instance, if someone had a cat wander into their story, the rest of us needed to know its name!

Digging up Austin history was so enjoyable. I found a great site that shows a huge collection of Austin post cards. What a treasure. One of them became, with the site’s permission, part of the background of our cover. Austin in the 1880s! http://www.austinpostcard.com/

As an historical writer, I have to admit I enjoy the research a little too much. Next to actually visiting a museum, my favorite find is a street map or drawing of what the setting looked like. We were able to find some wonderful old maps of Austin as well.

When I read a story, I never quite know if a named place is real or made-up unless I’m very familiar with the real-life setting. Few of us recall Austin 1887 (ahem) but I believe it’s important to be as accurate as possible. Of course, there’s always a need to tweak history or location.  In the case of my story, I moved an entire cemetery (the Texas State Cemetery) across town and closer to the fictional location of the Austen Academy for Young Ladies finishing school. My co-authors and I know right were where the lovely building sits, so our characters would be consistent in their travels.

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Because my story is based on Austen’s Northanger Abbey, I considered using the insane asylum as fodder for my story, but I settled on a cemetery instead! Jane Austen wrote Northanger Abbey as a parody of the popular gothic novels of the time. I followed suit. What I found was worse. Austin had a serial killer not long after Jack the Ripper disappeared from London. 

Through 1884-1885, this mystery killer was called both ‘The Servant Girl Annihilator’ and ‘The Austin Axe Murderer”. Seven women and one man died, and others survived these attacks once thought to be Jack the Ripper himself. While I referenced this in my story set two years later, I made sure to address the issue with respect even though my story is light-hearted…with a naïve, but big-hearted heroine.

Thankfully, the rest of our stories found some cheerier history unique to Austin. What we really love about our stories is that they are all connected by setting and characters. Our heroes and heroines show up in other stories and we’ve found that readers really enjoy catching those cameo appearances! I learned a lot about Austin’s history and fell in love with the city. I hope readers read the Austen in Austin anthology or my novella Alarmingly Charming and see why. As for cowboy kisses…my research failed me but just as I’ve never been to Austin, I think my heroine found her moxie just in time!

I’m giving away a copy (print or ebook) of Austen in Austin. I’d like to ask you all if you’ve ever traveled to a place simply because you became enamored with it through fiction? And, authors…what was the best ‘research trip’ you took and why? If you’d like an easy visit to the setting of my story Alarmingly Charming, here’s the link to my pinterest page: https://www.pinterest.com/debraemarvin/alarmingly-charming/

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B018QCI2AS

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/Debra-E-Marvin-433266640199533

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DebraEMarvin

Website: http://debraemarvin.com/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/debraemarvin/

Group Blog- Inkwell Inspirations: http://www.inkwellinspirations.com/

Debra E. Marvin tries not to run too far from real life but the imagination born out of being an only child has a powerful draw. Besides, the voices in her head tend to agree with all the sensible things she says. She’d like to live just a wee bit closer to her grandchildren, but is thankful that God is in control, that He chooses to bless us despite ourselves and that He has a sense of humor.

Other than writing light-hearted romances and gritty gothics, she has pretty normal obsessions: fabric, peanut butter, vacations, British dramas and whatever mystery series she’s currently reading. Visit her at debraemarvin.com, the Inkwell Inspirations Blog, @debraemarvin on twitter and Debra E Marvin on Facebook and Pinterest, but not her house because she usually has dirty dishes.

MORE ABOUT AUSTEN IN AUSTIN: Vol 1 Paperback and ebook, or single novella ebooks available at Amazon.

Discover four heroines in historical Austin, TX, as they find love--Jane Austen style. Volume 1 includes:

If I Loved You Less by Gina Welborn, based on Emma
A prideful matchmaker examines her own heart when her protégé falls for the wrong suitor.

Romantic Refinements by Anita Mae Draper, based on Sense and Sensibility
A misguided academy graduate spends the summer falling in love . . . twice.

One Word from You by Susanne Dietze, based on Pride and Prejudice
A down-on-her-luck journalist finds the story of her dreams, but her prejudice may cost her true love . . . and her career.

Alarmingly Charming by Debra E. Marvin, based on Northanger Abbey
A timid gothic dime-novel enthusiast tries to solve the mystery of a haunted cemetery and, even more shocking, why two equally charming suitors compete for her attentions.

Note from Ginger:  Debra has notified me she is happy to provide a copy (your choice of ebook or print) to a lucky person drawn from those who leave comments.