Begun in 2010, this blog offers analysis and reflection by Susan Bailey on the life, works and legacy of Louisa May Alcott and her family. Susan is an active member and supporter of the Louisa May Alcott Society, the Fruitlands Museum and Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House.
From the Louisa May Alcott Society, posted by Aryssa Damron: I just nominated Louisa May Alcott as part of an initiative between the U.S. Mint and the National Women's History Museum to put prominent American Women on circulating coins! It was announced today that Maya Angelou and Sally Ride will be some of the first …
Continue reading "Cast your vote NOW to put Louisa May Alcott’s image on a circulating coin!"
I am pleased to announce that I have completed the first draft of chapter 2 which focuses on the Alcott family’s first home in Concord. This was a fun chapter to write as there was much to say about the sisters. There are a couple of revealing letters from Bronson to Lizzie plus reminiscences from Lizzie’s best friend and next-door neighbor at the time, Lydia Hosmer.
Now that I have finally figured out the methodology for writing this book (and that has taken years as I am teaching myself), the writing goes along much faster. And as I edit, I learn new things — how will I make this book read like a novel rather than just a regurgitating of facts? What words and methods will I use to make the reader feel Lizzie’s story? And how will…
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Knowing how busy everyone is, we have developed an easier format for you to use when submitting your entries for the project "Alcott's Hidden Critics: The Secret Reviews of Little Women." Using the new Google Form allows you to upload your entry directly to us, without having to generate an email. You will need a …
The Spring 2021 issue of Discover Concord magazine features all the details of my current project with Lorraine Tosiello in unearthing and archiving personal references to Little Women in diaries, journals, school projects, blog posts, fan fiction, etc. Here is the link: Discover Concord Spring 2021 - see pages 56-57. We are accepting submissions now …
I am pleased to announce a partnership with independent Alcott scholar and author Lorraine Tosiello for a fantastic new project known as “Alcott’s Hidden Critics: The Secret Reviews of Little Women.” Through this unique and important undertaking, we seek to locate and collect reader responses to Little Women over its 150-year history and archive them …
Continue reading "Exciting new project announcement, and we need your help to make it happen!"
This is a series of scenes that I wrote for fun a few years ago. Sometimes I wish I didn’t work so slowly! I hope I stay healthy long enough to write a novel as well as a biography. I really love taking Lizzie’s point of view and seeing life as I imagine it through her eyes. But I can always write scenes. 🙂
This is the first draft.
My first memory was of his face. It was a kind face with blue eyes like still pools, and I could see myself in them. Such a sweet countenance, one I could look at from morning till night. It broke into a smile, and a quiet voice spoke my name: “Elizabeth.” My arms shot up in an instant, hoping he would lift me. He granted my wish, and as I snuggled close to his chest, he looked into…
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I was stunned by this – she is just so lovely!
Two sisters, Taylor and Victoria, discover an old manuscript of poems tucked away behind a wall on the site of Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House in Concord, MA. The mysterious woman, who wrote the lines over 150 years ago, shared a strong connection with Alcott. The poet would never know the life-changing influence of her …
You may recall late last June that The Strand published an unfinished story written by then 17-year-old Louisa May Alcott uncovered at the Houghton Library. The story left us dangling! The contest is now on to finish the story! Looking for writers The managing editor of The Strand, Andrew Gulli, is inviting writers to finish …
John Matteson did not win the Pulitzer Prize for his first book, Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and her Father, simply because he wrote a good biography. At the time, Eden's Outcasts was an ambitious effort of a dual biography, exploring the lives of daughter and father while also analyzing their …
