Interview with the Author - C. Allyn Pierson

C. Allyn Pierson is the pen name for Carey A. Bligard.  Pierson and I met by phone on a Saturday afternoon to discuss her thoughts on Jane Austen sequels, her upcoming novel and her favorite adaptations.

Pierson stared writing her Austen sequel in 2006 when her oldest went off to college.  Suddenly she had no more plays, games and activities to drive her son to.  Her younger son has autism and goes to bed earlier, so she needed something to do.  Being an ardent reader, she has gone though thousands of novels.  Currently her library has 3500 paperback books.  She also crochets, but apparently her hands weren’t busy enough!

She became intrigued by the idea of writing a sequel due to a gift from of one of her past child care helpers.  The sitter, from England, was a big fan of Austen and sent her a book on the making of the 1995 BBC movie of ‘Pride and Prejudice.’ 

‘I read the Austen books all the time.  I’m a dedicated Fan.  I finally decided to read a sequel but was hesitant because of the variety of the reviews I read.’  After reading her first sequel she admits she enjoyed it, but was slightly disappointed.  ‘'I found that I strongly disagreed with how the author was developing the characters, particularly Fitzwilliam and Georgiana and I found that I knew what 'really' happened.'

When Pierson finally sat down and started writing, she didn’t tell her husband.  It was all done in secrecy in the evening or when no one was home.  ‘In April of 2007 I was finished, but I knew my manuscript wasn’t ready for a traditional publisher.’ 

Pierson decided to go the non-traditional route of self-publishing and contacted iUniverse.‘I liked iUniverse because they asked me what my goals were for the book. Did I just want something for my family, or did I want to be able to sell the books to the public. In this way, they helped me determine what publishing package I wanted.’ 

Finally, with publishing goals outlined, she decided she needed to bring her husband in on the news.  ‘I told him on our Tuesday date night at Applebees.  ‘I’ve written a book and I’m going to be publishing it.  So I’m going to be spending some money.’  It’s pretty hard to surprise or startle an eye surgeon.  His jaw dropped.  ‘You know,’ he said, after I had explained the novel to him ‘you might just be able to sell that.’

June 2008 saw Pierson’s novel, ‘And This Our Life’ released to the public.  About a week before Thanksgiving, she received an email from an agent.  For reference, self publishing Authors normally don’t have agents.  He was specifically looking for Austen sequels and knew and editor from Sourcebooks, Inc. who was looking for new writers. 

This is what brings us to today.  ‘And This Our Life’ has been purchased by Sourcebooks, Inc and Pierson has announced that a revised version of the book called ‘Mr Darcy’s Little Sister’ will be released September 1st, 2010!  It is available for preorder from Amazon.com.

‘I think people will really enjoy the novel and if you’ve previously read the first book you’ll enjoy the new characters, new plot lines and the added length.’  Written from Georgiana’s point of view it focuses on her coming out into society and the stress involved for someone as shy as her character is.  ‘Her diary entries are a focus in this book and they put to paper what she is really thinking about.  It puts down what she is feeling.  There is so much turmoil there.  It really does have your typical teenage drama plus Elizabeth, Darcy and the staple characters from the novel are present.’

You can read my review of the Pierson’s first novel ‘And This Our Life’ here.

No interview would be complete without asking the Author of a Jane Austen sequel, which Austen novel is her favorite.  I did however mention that she couldn’t choose ‘Pride and Prejudice,’ as that was an obvious choice.

‘Emma Thompson’s adaptation of ‘Sense and Sensibility’ was wonderful and respectful of the original.  There are a couple of places in the book where it drags a little bit and movie does not.  It’s engaging in its entirety.’

I quizzed her on the latest novel she read and what she recommends for readers.  ‘The last thing I read that may be of interest to those reading this is by Marion Chesney.  It was one of the ‘Six Sisters’ novels.  It is sort of simplistic and light regency era reading with each novel having a sister getting married.’

As a fan of sequels and historical writing, Pierson also recommends Laurie R. King for Sherlock Holmes fans.