With Jane Austen’s 250th anniversary this year, it’s no surprise that bestselling author Natalie Jenner celebrates it as well, publishing Austen at Sea, a welcomed new historical novel. Natalie joins the year-long party which includes festivals; a myriad of new books; over the top costume balls; and exhibits with Jane Austen’s House hosting many events in England.
There is even a Netflix adaptation of Pride and Prejudice which begins filming later this year. How has this literary figure maintained such an immense popularity over the years?
I attribute her timelessness to her focus on human nature, which never changes. Individuals may change, as Elizabeth Bennet says in Pride and Prejudice: “People themselves alter so much, that there is something new to be observed in them forever.”
Natalie Jenner
Her newest novel explores the adventure of two sisters and two brothers in 1865 sailing to England to meet Jane Austen’s last surviving brother for different reasons. Freedom, love, literacy and, of course, a big secret, all inspired by Jane Austen, play out in the heart of Natalie’s novel.
As TWE readers know, we have followed Natalie’s writing career for many years now with several posts, a podcast and great enthusiasm. How exciting to catch up with this Jane Austen devotee during this special anniversary year!
EYE: As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birthday, to what do you attribute her amazing timelessness?
NATALIE: I attribute it to her focus on human nature, which never changes. Individuals may change, as Elizabeth Bennet says in Pride and Prejudice: “People themselves alter so much, that there is something new to be observed in them forever.” But the essence of what makes us human–what drives, inspires, nourishes and frightens us–is universal.
In fact, you won’t find many descriptions of room interiors, hair or eye color, landscape or even weather in Austen. As a result, the reader can easily identify themselves in her characters in a way that is engaging, educative, comforting and cathartic.
EYE: How are you going to celebrate this special occasion, her actual birthdate being December 16, 1775?
NATALIE: I have started already! I am spending much of my reading time enjoying the many different celebratory books coming out in Austen’s honour this year. I particularly loved the fascinating Wild for Austen by Professor Devoney Looser which releases this fall, and a very fun graphic biography, The Novel Life of Jane Austen, by Janine Barchas and Isabel Greenberg which is out soon.
I am also an ambassador for the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation, a not-for-profit founded by Austen’s fifth great-niece. There will be many celebratory events through that organization that I hope to join in support of such an important cause.
EYE: What Jane Austen themes strike a chord with you that you have based your wonderful, successful books around her?
NATALIE: As I grow older, I take increasing inspiration from these words in Sense and Sensibility: “Know your own happiness. You want nothing but patience–or give it a more fascinating name, call it hope.”
I think our greatest challenge as human beings in balancing our needs and desires with that of others.
Austen heralds the importance of authenticity through her female protagonists. It is no coincidence that in her stories, those characters who stay true to themselves, despite fear or temptation, achieve the happiest of endings. At the same time, Austen stresses the importance of community.
EYE: Can readers usually take something away from Austen’s writing?
NATALIE: When Mr. Knightley in Emma berates the title heroine for publicly insulting an impoverished elderly member of their small village of Highbury, he demonstrates for me the larger lesson in Austen’s books: that in showing compassion to those less fortunate than ourselves, rather than judgement, we recognize and respect the role of luck in our lives.
I doubt any writer ever understood that role better than Austen. In the other direction lies superiority and snobbery, qualities which were particularly anathema to her as a person and an author.
EYE: What new discoveries did you uncover for Austen at Sea?
NATALIE: Oh, so many–and what fun that was! I didn’t know that Louisa May Alcott sailed as an invalid’s companion the summer after the end of the Civil War. Another discovery was that the spinster daughter of Austen’s brother, Admiral Sir Francis Austen, burned nearly all his famous sister’s correspondence without permission upon his death–or that Charles Dickens destroyed all of his.
I loved learning about the unbreakable Bramah lock which was finally cracked by a Bostonian locksmith at the first World Fair in London in 1852. There was also the rampant pirating by foreign publishers of books from overseas. I loved learning about Austen’s sailor brothers and their admirable efforts at stopping the slave trade at sea.
I would go on and on, and–as always–the greatest challenge when writing historical fiction is including only that which is essential to and improves upon one’s characters, themes, atmosphere and plot!
EYE: If you could ask Jane Austen a question, what would it be?
NATALIE: Did you originally have a different ending in mind for Mansfield Park?
EYE: Why is this an important question for you?
NATALIE: Every time I read Mansfield Park, part of me can’t help wondering if Austen intended Henry Crawford for Fanny and his sister Mary for Fanny’s cousin Edmund, all along–such is the sudden jarring of the fast and furious plot resolution.
Austen’s genius for setup is most on display here with these pairings, and, dare I say, somewhat lacking with Fanny and Edmund. Similarly, Mary Crawford as a character displays much of the charm and charisma of such Austen heroines as Elizabeth Bennet and Emma Woodhouse.
This arguably might be one of many famous cases in literature of a character almost running away with the plot!
EYE: Thank you, Natalie, for your insights during your very busy schedule now that your book is on its way to Kindle, bookstores and libraries soon. TWE recommends Austen at Sea as another Natalie Jenner gem!
For an excerpt, follow this link to the bottom of that page.
NATALIE’S SOCIAL MEDIA:
Website: nataliejenner.com
Instagram: @authornataliejenner
Facebook: authornataliejenner
Some links in this post may be “affiliate links,” meaning TWE receives a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you use that link to make a purchase.
Leave a Reply