Photo by Clark Young on Unsplash

The Seduction of Jane Austen

Genre / Action / Object

Historical Fiction / Studying / Brim


Moonlight preened atop a brimming coffee cup, set unsipped on Jane Austen’s desk. Between cup and Jane lay a historical biography, which strove to inform its reader about Important Things.

Distracted by the orb’s reflection, Jane thought about her manuscript; rumpled pages beneath the book. “I could write,” she considered, imagining another Jane at a fancier desk.

The moon dares, then, to suggest her eventual audience: centuries of readers.

A sharp intake of breath precedes a vertigo of timelessness. Hands steadying themselves on the desk jostle the cup, disturb the spell.

Jane blinked, sighed, and devoured the book.


Copyright 2023 by Melani Weber


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