Welcome to Austen Itch! We are glad to have another Austenophile in our midst.

Feel free to scroll down to the Forum Section and introduce yourself. If you are creatively inclined, put up a picture and caption on the blog. You can also customize your own page so that you have just the right feel of things when you visit.

We are also encouraging you to get in touch with your Inner Austen Character. If you feel a strong connection to one of the ladies or gentlemen created by Miss Jane, you can create a new account with that name and picture. Once an identity (or picture) is taken, it can't be taken again. So, find a different picture and change the name slightly: Wickham, II or Darcy, Secundus, or JaneB. Keep the name as close to that of the character as possible. (This is an experiment, and if we find it unmanageable, we will go back to being ourselves.)

In deference to the title of this section, morale is kept high when we all mind our manners. As I am sure you will. Though we will be allowing aliases, we will be depending on users to approach this with the right spirit of fun, and not use it as an excuse to behave poorly. Besides, who really wants to be a part of the Brawling Austen Board?!?

All-in-all, we look forward to getting to know you all and exchanging views and ideas and a few laughs.

A new discussion board, Jane Started It! is up HERE.

The conversation is directed mostly at present towards Laura Louise's hilarious and thought-provoking summer read: Mercy's Hard Bargain, but will include discussion about Barbara Cornthwaite's Emma FF, Charity Envieth Not, news about Pamela Aidan's, Young Master Darcy, and Susan Kaye's soon-to-be-released, For You Alone.

And, of course, we will discuss anything Austen related just for the fun of it!

Drop by Jane Started it! and say, "HI."