Alice McVeigh - Jane Austin's Emma With a Surprisingly Believable Twist

McVeigh has been published by Orion/Hachette in contemporary fiction, by UK's Unbound in speculative fiction, and by Warleigh Hall Press in historical fiction. She has been a BookLife quarterfinalist, winner of the Global and Pencraft Book Awards, runner-up in the International Press Awards, and awarded an IndieBRAG medallion. She is currently a finalist in the Wishing Shelf Awards in adult fiction and adult audiobook, and a semi-finalist in the Cygnus Award. PW's BookLife: "McVeigh is on point with both the writing style, language, and consistency, making this a treat for anyone who loves the original stories. This reimagining of Jane Austen’s Emma from new perspectives offers a fresh, engaging take on the world of Highbury." As our Author of the Day, she tells us all about her book, Harriet.

Please give us a short introduction to what Harriet is about.

Harriet is an unusual and original "take" on Jane Austen's Emma, taking as its premise the idea that Harriet - rather than being the original "dumb blonde" - was only pretending to be dim.

What inspired you to write about someone who is mentored by Emma?

I suspect that quite a few young ladies in the Regency period wanted to be mentored by women of influence in society. Emma's self-regard would have been pretty easy to flatter!

Where does your fascination with Emma from Jane Austen come from?

Emma is a mystery novel. Because the reader is not admitted into the secret of the clandestine engagement between Jane Fairfax and Frank Churchill, they have to fit the clues together as much as Emma herself fails to. It's brilliantly conceived, and wonderfully put-together!...

In my own case, however, I chose to be up-front with the reader. There is a mystery - but it's not that Jane and Frank are secretly engaged. In fact, the courtship at Weymouth - the missing scenes of Emma - attracted me as much as anything. I longed to write them!

Of course, others have written them also - even in the 1800s! But nobody but me has ever imagined a secretly brilliant Harriet!

How hard was it to keep your writing style and language consistent with the time period and Austen's work?

For me, easy. I know all of her works by heart. My problem is that Regency rhythm invades my emails etc. I get teased by friends and family when scribbling Austenesque novels.

Please give us three interesting facts about yourself.

There's a lot of music in this book. Jane Fairfax, the second narrator, is a wonderful musician, and I'm a professional (orchestral) cello player. So, music matters - far more than in Austen's Emma.

This is your second book in the series. Can it be read as a standalone? How does it tie in with the first one?

Frank Churchill is in both, but they are both standalones. And one doesn't have to have read Emma, either. I have the IndieReader's review to vouch for that!

But I love it when readers write on Goodreads, "After reading this, I'm going to read Emma again!" That always gives me a thrill.

Which character in this story was the most challenging to create and why?

I think Emma. I purposely concentrate on Harriet and Jane Fairfax - so Emma suffers. Such a vital character, too! - but three heroines is simply one too many!

What did you have the most fun with when writing this?

Harriet's thoughts when appearing clueless!!! For sure!!!

You also told part of the story from the viewpoint of Jane Fairfax. Why did you take this approach?

I couldn't resist. (See "music" comment above).

Do you ever suffer from writer's block? If you do, how do you combat it?

I suffer from lack-of-time block. That's my bugbear!!

What are you working on right now?

I am re-issuing my first two novels, originally bought by Hachette, on my website later this year. They're both contemporary novels, marketed as "the secret life of an orchestra". (I used to play in lots of London orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic.) And I'm working on a third Austenesque novel, which should be published late in the year.

Where can our readers discover more of your work or interact with you?

I'm on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. I try with Twitter, Tik Tok and Pinterest.