It's time to play a game! I saw this list in a JAFF group on Facebook and knew I just had to do it, because it looks like it will be a lot of fun. I'm also going to be challenging myself to not only play the game, but do it here on the blog and actually make a post every day for 31 days. Wish me luck!
Now, let me tell you a little -- or a lot! -- #AbouttheAuthor. Or at least chronicle my JAFF journey so far.
I had read a few JAFF over the years -- namely The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet by Colleen McCullogh and Mr. Darcy, Vampyr by Amanda grange (they are the earliest ones to come to mind; I should totally review them here). I used to wonder how the authors could rewrite Jane Austen's stories without getting sued for copyright violations, and then one day in 2017 (took me long enough, I know), I finally looked it up. I learned a fair bit about copyright law, the public domain ... and JAFF.
When I read multiple sources (including a few of Austen's contemporaries) claiming that Jane had "got her own story wrong" in Sense and Sensibility when she paired Colonel Brandon with Marianne Dashwood instead of her elder, more sensible sister Elinor -- you know, the one who actually liked him, talked to him, and enjoyed his company -- I remember thinking, "I could write that book." So I did, and in July of 2018, I published my first JAFF novel, The Correction of Folly. The first book in a series and primarily a rewrite of S&S from the point of the Dashwood girls' arrival in London, in this version Colonel Brandon decides to re-evaluate the two sisters' potential to be his wife, and eventually comes to the realization that his feelings for Marianne were based on nostalgia and memories and not true emotion. When his thoughts turn to her sister, he is awakened to how very compatible they truly are, and with Elinor he falls truly in love.
I had high hopes for the book, and it did okay, but not great. I was disappointed, I'll admit, that it did not do better. This disappointment, coupled with my ongoing struggle with depression, led to it taking nearly three years to finish my second book, Choice and Consequence. This novel was primarily a Pride and Prejudice rewrite, based off of a sub-plot introduced in book 1. See, my goal with the series, which I called What Might Have Been, was to interconnect the six full novels Austen wrote. Characters from one book would know and even be related to characters from other books, and in other cases they would meet for the first time and fall in love. Some couples would even be mixed up (but not Darcy and Elizabeth!).
My second novel was far more successful than my first, and it prompted me to ask a fellow JAFF author if I should write the next book in the series or try a standalone P&P variation. She did not hesitate to tell me to "Write the standalone." It was also about this time that I was becoming more and more immersed in the JAFF community -- meeting other authors and interacting with readers -- and I came to the realization that, although readers say they'd love stories about secondary characters and variations of Austen's other novels, P&P variations are where the money's at. That's the blunt, honest truth.
I had made some really decent money with C&C, and it helped me pay off some long overdue bills. When my next book, The Reintroduction of Fitzwilliam Darcy was published in August of 2021 did a little better than C&C, that's when it really hit home how true it was that if I wanted to be successful as a JAFF author, I'd have to stick with P&P variations. At least for a while. When I understood how much I could earn with a well-written P&P story, I began to make plans, and to dream dreams.
My first goal was to get out of debt -- and stay out. So credit cards were paid off. My car loan was paid off early and a few months later I was able to trade it in for a brand new car! I made sure to pay off my credit card bills in full each month. This, naturally, impacted my credit score in a very positive way, and it was then I knew that I had finally learned the trick to what folks today call "adulting." My moderate successes also rekindled my dream of buying a house, and though I have not achieved it yet, all the work I have been doing the last few years has gotten me so much closer than I would be now if not for the incredibly awesome readers in the JAFF community who have embraced me and my work.
Not only have I been able to achieve some goals and work towards fulfilling dreams, but I have also been so incredibly fortunate as to be able to dedicate myself to writing full time! Do I make Nora Roberts-level megabucks? No. And that's okay, because I make enough to pay my bills, feed myself and my furkids, and I have begun saving towards making that home ownership dream come true. In 2024, it's going to happen! Since 2018, I have written a total of 8 novels, with two more currently in progress. I have lists of future story ideas on my computer which will keep me busy for the next 20 years, at least. Another dream is to one day have enough money put by that I can take a break from writing P&P variations and not only get back to writing my series, but also throw in a novel based on a book other than P&P -- I have plenty of ideas for those too!
And you know what? I believe I can do it. It's all thanks to God, encouragement from my mama, and the incredible readers out there who not only love Jane Austen's work but want to revisit her characters again and again through the eyes of other storytellers. THANK YOU.
So, you've learned about my JAFF journey. But what about me? My name is Christina. My pen name, Christine Combe, is a play on my real name, and part of the name of an estate in Sense and Sensibility (mentioned, but never seen). I chose an estate from that book because my first JAFF novel was based on it. I live in Ohio and dream of visiting the estates where Austen adaptations have been filmed as well as Jane Austen's home. I want to create costumes for my future trip as well so that I go full Regency! I write full time, as mentioned above, and almost never use an alarm clock anymore because two of my furkids get me up regularly at around 8:30 every morning! I have a black cat named Losira (6), a Chihuahua mix named Pippin (1), and a miniature Dachshund named Oakley (6 mo.).
If you have any questions, feel free to ask!
#JAFFinOctober #AbouttheAuthor #myJAFFjourney
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