Thursday, March 24, 2011

Chawton: A Janeite's Mecca

When I plan a vacation, I separate sites into three categories: If I Have Time, Quite Interested, and Do Not Miss. As a Janeite and author of Austenesque novels, Chawton Cottage definitely falls into the third category.

This house is where Jane spent the last eight years of her life. It was here that she edited and/or wrote most of the six major novels. I hunted around the internet for a picture, and found this on thefemalerambler's Flickr feed:


(I'll have plenty of my own to share when I get back, don't worry!)

Now, while I'm at Chawton I plan to do a little writing of my own. It's supposed to be sunny, so I thought I'd sit outside somewhere with a notebook and engage in some method writing. Where better to get into Jane's mind than at her home?

I mentioned this on Twitter, and one person mentioned she'd be too intimidated to write there. So I'm asking you, friends: If you could visit someplace like Chawton, would you be inspired or intimidated?