The Stories of Scott D. Southard

August 27, 2013

“A great achievement” New book review and interview for A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM
Author and blogger Christoph Fischer has recently given a wonderful review for my new novel A Jane Austen Daydream. Here is an excerpt:

An excellent concept and a great achievement, a must read for Austen fans open for a playful read and those who wish Austen had written more. This is like a little welcome encore for us fans.

I also agreed to be interviewed about the book and my writing. It was a very interesting interview with some fun and serious questions mixed in. This was my response to the question about how the idea of the book came to me:

It was in reading a biography on her that I realized how little her life actually mirrored her books. She did not have a Darcy waiting for her at home, and died far too young and only with her sister and mother for company. So at the heart of A Jane Austen Daydream is my hope to give Jane an adventure she might have wanted for herself… with a few post-modern twists to it. The big twist in the book (which I won’t ruin here) actually grew out of a joke I made once. I still can’t believe I had the guts to do it. But there you go, it’s out there now forever. Let’s see what happens.

You can read the complete review and interview on Christoph’s website here. I hope you will check it out. If you would like to learn more about A Jane Austen Daydream, you can do so on this page for the book (here). A Jane Austen Daydream is available via Amazon (here), where you can find it for the low price of $3.99 for eBook and $13.46 for print.
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August 22, 2013

Author Lori Nelson Spielman is reading A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM!
Recently, popular women’s fiction author Lori Nelson Spielman (author of the wonderful debut novel The Life List, which I reviewed for WKAR here) gave an interview for a site called Laura’s Little Book Blog. The question came up about what she is reading right now.

Her response?

I’m reading a novel called, A Jane Austen Daydream and it’s lovely. Scott Southard, who lives in the same city as I do, is the author. I’m really enjoying it.

That is very cool!

You can read Lori’s interview and learn more about her fun book The Life List on Laura’s Little Book Blog here. (They are also giving away two copies of the book!) And you can hear my book review I gave on Current State (and get a link to an interview she gave before the review) via this link on my site.

If you would like to learn more about A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM, you can do so on this page for the book (here). A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM is available via Amazon (here), where you can find it for the low price of $3.99 for eBook and $13.46 for print.
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August 16, 2013

“Go get it!” Julie Valerie’s Book Blog gives A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM 5-Stars! Review, Interview and Excerpt.
Book reviewer and book blogger extraordinaire Julie Valerie has just given a wonderful review for my novel A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM. I am really flattered by it (and a little overwhelmed). Here is an excerpt from the review about the book:

A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM by Scott Southard, a fictionalized account of Jane’s life, is a book that should be placed on the shelf of every book-loving fan of Jane Austen because she’s absolutely “alive” on the pages of this book. She walks, talks, dreams. Her family (especially her older sister, Cassandra) moves about influencing Jane and the events around her. You’ll find a hauntingly accurate reading from a gypsy who predicts Jane will never die. (Through her words, I believe she is immortal.) And with Jane, you’ll explore love and explore deeper the age-old question: Did Jane ever find love in her own life?

I also gave an interview for the site that you can read below the review. We talk not just about the writing of the book, but also about my blog and my other books. Here is an excerpt:

Like the voice, I also had to walk a line between how “Austen” to go in it. Yes, the book can be considered a treasure hunt for the Austenities, but I also like to imagine that it is unique enough to be entertaining for those outside the Darcy fan clubs. At the heart of it, it is still my book, and I couldn’t help putting in fun post-modern twists and turns (including one very new literary surprise which I won’t ruin here).

You can read the review, the interview and an excerpt from the novel on Julie’s website here. I hope you will check it out.

If you would like to learn more about A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM, you can do so on this page for the book (https://sdsouthard.com/a-jane-austen-daydream/). A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM is available via Amazon (http://amzn.com/0983671923) where you can find it for the low price of $3.99 for eBook and $13.46 for print.
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August 13, 2013

New WKAR Book Review: The Life List by Lori Nelson Spielman
I have a new book review on WKAR’s radio show Current State!

This time it is on The Life List by Lori Nelson Spielman.

If you would like to learn more about this new novel, Spielman also gave an interview on the show, which you can hear by clicking this link (http://wkar.org/post/local-author-explores-relationships-dreams-and-goals-life-list), or you can find it on Amazon here.

My review of the novel can be heard via this link (http://wkar.org/post/book-review-lori-nelson-speilman-s-life-list) or read below after the jump.

(more…)
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August 6, 2013

Only ‘Til Friday! Enter to Win a Signed Copy of A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM!
“I consider this novel one of the best not only in regency era literature, but also in mainstream fiction.” -NovelTravelist.com

Until Friday (August 9) at midnight you can enter to win a signed copy of the new novel A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM! You can do so via this link- http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/58855-a-jane-austen-daydream

“If asked to sum up this book in one word, I would have to choose “unpredictable”… you will, in the end, be rewarded by a quick paced novel unlike any you can ever have read, which injects new ideas and possibilities into the world of Jane Austen.” -The Jane Austen Centre

All her heroines find love in the end–but is there love waiting for Jane?

Jane Austen spends her days writing and matchmaking in the small countryside village of Steventon, until a ball at Godmersham Park propels her into a new world where she yearns for a romance of her own. But whether her heart will settle on a young lawyer, a clever Reverend, a wealthy childhood friend, or a mysterious stranger is anyone’s guess.

Written in the style of Jane herself, this novel ponders the question faced by many devoted readers over the years–did she ever find love? Weaving fact with fiction, it re-imagines her life, using her own stories to fill in the gaps left by history and showing that all of us–to a greater or lesser degree–are head over heels for Jane.

If you would like to learn more about A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM, you can do so on this page for the book (https://sdsouthard.com/a-jane-austen-d…); read interviews, excerpts, and editorials. A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM is available via Amazon (http://amzn.com/0983671923) where you can find it for the low price of $3.99 for eBook and $13.46 for print.

“This is a must read for any Jane Austen fan. And it’s a perfect summer read for anyone.” -Definitely Not for the Birds.
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August 2, 2013

“Delightful Reading” A Book Giveaway and 40 Reviews on Good Reads for A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM!
Today, my novel A Jane Austen Daydream received its 40th review on Good Reads! This review was a 5-start review (the 2oth) by a reader named Mariana, who wrote:

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading Jane Austen and admires her wit. It is a delightful reading, a biography written “in a Style entirely new”, wittily intertwining the facts (from letters and biographies) with fun and fiction. I found myself for the first time applauding at a book – with standing ovations for Mrs. Catherine de Bourgh. Make haste and add “A Jane Austen Daydream” to your shelves.

Also on Good Reads there is one week left in a book giveaway. One lucky reader will win an autographed copy of the novel. You can enter the book giveaway here. Remember, the book giveaway ends on August 9.

If you would like to learn more about A Jane Austen Daydream, on the page for the book on this site (here) you can read interviews, excerpts, and editorials. A Jane Austen Daydream is available via Amazon (here) where you can find it for the low price of $3.99 for eBook and $13.46 for print.
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July 31, 2013

Free on Kindle- Editor Rebecca Dickson’s New Book on Writing!
I had the pleasure of having Rebecca Tsaros Dickson edit my new novel Maximilian Standforth and the Case of the Dangerous Dare. It was a great experience and I am very happy with the result of that work. It is a crazy book and we both had a lot of fun.

Becky has a new writing manual out entitled The Definitive Guide to Writing on Your Terms, Using Your Own, Honest-to-God, Gut-Wrenching Voice and for a limited time it is a free eBook on Kindle! You can check it out here.
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July 28, 2013

Redefining Writing Success: Learning to Fly in Today’s Congested Writing World
I was an innocent dreamer when I arrived in Los Angeles.

I had big plans and it all felt like the beginning of a movie to me. I was about to start studying in one of the best writing program in the country (University of Southern California. Go Trojans!) and I could feel the destiny thick around me like cigarette smoke. I could smell it on my clothes and in my hair; I could taste it on my tongue. In my mind I was certain that this moment, this arrival, was the true start of any future and inevitable biography that someone would write about me.

The stuff of legends.

That first night I had to stay in a hotel. And I practically skipped (already wearing my USC sweatshirt) as I approached the front desk. Behind it was an older, somewhat heavy, bored-looking woman and, noticing my sweatshirt, casually asked if I was a student. Oh, the can of worms she just unleashed!

I quickly talked about the writing program and the professors I was going to study under, about my books, about my scripts, and about my plans, etc. The words (and dreams) flooded out of me. I could have gone on all day.

And when I finally stopped to take a breath, she casually interrupted and said, “Yeah, I’m a writer too. Here is your key.” (more…)
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July 26, 2013

“A tale filled with horror…” An excerpt from MAXIMILIAN STANDFORTH AND THE CASE OF THE DANGEROUS DARE (on sale!)
For a limited time, the new gothic, experimental, fun and odd novel, MAXIMILIAN STANDFORTH AND THE CASE OF THE DANGEROUS DARE is on sale on amazon!

It can be found for the low price of $1.99 for eBook and $9.89 in paperback via this link.

Below is an exclusive excerpt from Chapter 1. Enjoy…

–

The Beginning of Chapter 1 – The Dreaded Invitation

It is with great trepidation and very little pleasure that I begin this next chapter in the life of the great Maximilian Standforth. For many long months I have debated with my soul and conscience on whether to share this work with you, faithful reader. But in these hard times, my wallet and empty stomach have forced me to share this chronicle no matter my misgivings. Yes, hard times have forced my unsteady hand and pen, but I will share no more of that now. It’s not important. If it comes, it will come later in these pages. For now, let me warn you of the morbid and sad tale ahead of you. This is a tale filled with horror, dark passages, ghostly apparitions, and deaths I would give my last shilling to forget. A tale, I am sad to say, that even tested the mind of one of our country’s greatest citizens…. The outcome of that test you will see shortly if you dare continue. (more…)
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July 24, 2013

The Necessary Humbling of Editing
A lot of fantasies, daydreams, and rainbows cloud the world of writing. It’s not surprising; actually completely natural since we spend so much of our time making up stories as writers, why wouldn’t we have stories about the stories?

Have you ever seen that scene in a TV show or movie in which a writer finishes a book or script? The writer may raise his hands in triumph over an old typewriter or do a little dance; then we as viewers are then jumped forward in time to their inevitable success.

We don’t see the struggle over getting the book out, finding an audience, working with an agent or publisher or, more importantly, editing. And, let’s be honest, editing is not as exciting as the victory dance of a finished book or the sparks of coming up with ideas around a first draft.

Like I said, it’s a fantasy, people. I have even been known to say to writers that much of the art around true writing happens in the editing. It is there a work is “finetuned,” perfected into a final piece. This year, I worked with a series of different editors. First for, my novel A Jane Austen Daydream (which was published by Madison Street Publishing) and then for my novel Maximilian Standforth and the Case of the Dangerous Dare.

So why do I love editing so much? Well, because I learned about its importance the hard way. Yes, I have an editing and writing horror story, and I am about to share it. Be prepared, this is about to haunt you like a poltergeist… a writing poltergeist. (more…)
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