A submissive spirit might be patient, a strong understanding would supply resolution, but here was something more; here was that elasticity of mind, that disposition to be comforted, that power of turning readily from evil to good, and of finding employment which carried her out of herself, which was from nature alone. It was the choicest gift of Heaven..." From Jane Austen's Persuasion

"Everyone wants to be a part of something, we all want to connect . . . Cranford is not a dead memorial to times gone by, but a pool of life in which we see ourselves reflected." Heidi Thomas

“We cannot reverse the clock, only move forward, in the way of time itself.” Thomas Holbrook in Heidi Thomas's script for Cranford

"...the only unforgivable mistake is to despair and give up." David Ignatius

“You have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you.” Martha Graham

Update on May 31, 2019:

I'm an editor, as I planned to be, but I'm a writer, too, or plan to be again.

Update on January 1, 2018:

Dear fellow readers and writers, 2017 was a rather strange year for me, the last of a three-year run of total upheaval, but I ended it gainfully employed, so there's that. May you have ended up in a similarly fortunate position, and if not, may 2018 bring all good things your way.

I continue to work on my writing when I have a chance, but don't be surprised if the stories and chapters don't arrive in the order you hoped.

The characters inspire me, but you writers are my true companions on this journey. I'd love to hear how you are doing, and I'd love even more to have you bounce ideas off me.

Remember that people need to hear your voice. Give them that gift.

You can still check in with The Cranford Boots and Bonnets Brigade and enjoy postings from TheAmazons and BellatrixCoraCrawley303. Jack and Mary shippers, the latter is for you. Be sure to drop by the community (during calling hours, of course) and review those and whatever else catches your fancy.

Also, to all you Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes aficionados, and anyone who catches everything Philip Glenister and Joanne Froggatt have done, I was on the (sadly now defunct) Railway Arms website, under the user name OyWeh. Drop a line if you too were part of the action there; I miss you all.

Background and interests:

It is mainly owing to a friend on another continent that I ever became involved in fanfiction at all, but once I saw some beautifully written online sequels to the last of the Harry Potter books, and then the various Cranford and Ashes to Ashes fics, I was hooked. Since that time I've discovered how much good writing is floating around out here in cyberspace -- crackling dialogue, riveting suspense, the occasional out-and-out zinger, and real warmth, wit, and feeling -- and deserves to be read and reviewed.

Time was when I thought there were already enough writers in the world and I couldn't possibly compete. And I should say up front I already know from indifference (I'm a published but unpaid poet and a former blogger). But it's really all about the education, as Lucida Bright observed. And I like supporting other writers.

My very first project, still ongoing, is "A Conspiracy of Concern," a multi-chapter story inspired by the BBC's 2007 miniseries Cranford, which blended the plots/characters of Cranford, Mr. Harrison's Confessions, and My Lady Ludlow, all by the Victorian novelist Elizabeth Gaskell. I first saw Cranford on PBS in the United States in the spring of 2008, then reviewed it on DVD months later. It was the relationship between Mr. Carter (Philip Glenister) and Miss Galindo (Emma Fielding) that launched my foray into fanfic when I decided that if the screenwriter could pick and choose which characters she'd save from the fates Mrs. Gaskell decreed, so could I, especially if several characters were composites and one of them was played by Philip Glenister.

The Cranford-inspired C of C now has eight siblings: seven one-shots ("Winged Cupid Painted Blind," "No Good Deed," "When the Good Lord Has His Way," "She Was the Prize," "One More Day to Stay," "Where Are You Going, Jessie Brown?" and "Margaret, Are You Grieving?" ) and a five-part story, "The Holly and the Ivy," a tale of Christmastime in Cranford.

My take on the Cranford characters is based primarily on the BBC script for series one and the actors' interpretations, plus a good deal of my own imagination, for all that I have delved a bit into Mrs. Gaskell's texts as well. Thus far I have no plans to incorporate any of the plot developments and/or new characters from the 2009 sequel into my stories.

I've taken a great many liberties with the Cranford material, particularly regarding the romances, suggested or otherwise. Not long ago I wouldn't have so much as known what the terms AU and shipper meant, and now I'm happily writing for partisans of the Mr. Carter/Miss Galindo and Dr. Jack Marshland/Mary Smith pairings. Jack and Mary, as a matter of fact, have kept me quite busy; they have roles in no fewer than five of my stories, at last count.

Both couples are featured in "A Conspiracy of Concern." Now I realize that that reading through that particular Cranfic (40 chapters and counting, with 28 through 31 being the most fun) requires a degree of Sitzfleisch, but I have very definite plans for the characters and a lot of story to tell. As Miss Matty observed in episode one of the 2007 series, "It is all go in Cranford."

"A Conspiracy of Concern" is also meant to be in a decidedly Victorian mood, reflected in the language and all those suppressed emotions -- angst, and occasional sensuality and innuendo, though nothing explicit -- but there's comedy as well, all in service of depicting the unfolding relationship between Mr. Carter and Miss Galindo, though the other characters from the canon -- Harry Gregson, Lady Ludlow, Miss Matty Jenkyns, Captain Brown, Miss Pole, and the aforementioned Mary Smith and Jack Marshland -- play integral parts. Cranford, after all, was about love, friendship, and community.

Speaking of community, be sure to visit...

The Cranford Boots and Bonnets Brigade

A one-stop shop for all your Cranford fanfic needs.

Our writers comprise a small but enthusiastic and unabashedly romantic group, drawing inspiration both from the 2007 series and the Christmas special, Return to Cranford, with the former having a decided edge. Among the highlights: GalaMD's Spanish-language works about the Jack/Mary and Mr. Carter/Miss Galindo pairings; "An Honourable Estate," Siggy's entertaining Mr. Carter romance; "Yuletide Acquaintances" by the doctor's next dance; Chicago Brown's "Corner Conversation"; AngeloftheMoor's "Why Do I Love Thee?"; SemixQuaver's "The Invisible Man"; "A Cranford Story," by littlemissunflower;"When the Gorse Is Out of Bloom," by Madgie; "The World She Belonged In," by Lucy Swann28; "Restless Sleep," by Lavender and Hay; and a selection of Harry Gregson-centric tales by MissLaurentia.