Barbara Silkstone - An Author Interview in the HBS Author's Spotlight

Today our blog puts the Spotlight on Author Barbara Silkstone. She is the bestselling author of the Mister Darcy Series, the A Wendy Darlin Comedy Mystery series, the Pride and Prejudice and Witches series and the The Witches of Longbourn.

Author Genre: Mystery, Humor And Comedy, Romance

Website: Second Act Café getting even
Twitter: @barbsilkstone
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Amazon Author Profile



Author Description:
Barbara Silkstone is the best-selling author of the MISTER DARCY SERIES OF COMEDIC MYSTERIES ~ PRIDE AND PREJUDICE contemporary variations. Light comedies based on Jane Austen's timeless tales of love denied and love discovered.


SPOTLIGHT Questions and Answers with the Author

Congratulations on your book: Darcy and Elizabeth Serendipity. Rumor has it that you have a romance bundle on the horizon called Mr. Darcy Loves Elizabeth Bennet. Can you tell us the timeline for its release and give us a little tease?

Mr. Darcy Loves Elizabeth Bennet was released in October. 4 stories for the price of 1! Join authors Elizabeth Ann West, Barbara Silkstone, Kristi Rose, and April Floyd as we each share an exclusive short novella reimagining our dear couple falling in love!

We all know Mr. Darcy loves Elizabeth Bennet, but the question universally wondered is how many ways can they show that love? Two Regencies, Two Contemporaries, there is a perfect story for every Jane Austen Fan Fiction lover!

Jane Austen variations are written in either Regency or Contemporary. This one is Regency style.

There are eight books in my Mister Darcy series comedic mysteries - which are all contemporary.

You have a good following on twitter and Facebook. How important have your social media relationships been? How did you build your following in your niche? Do you see a carry over to your writing success?

I use FB to communicate with my fans. I have a number of pages besides my personal page with over 4K friends, my author page, Mister Darcy series, Wendy Darlin Tomb Raider, Second Act Cafe, and more. I don't use twitter very often as my time allows for only so many outlets.

Do you do any book signings, interviews, speaking and personal appearances? If so, when and where is the next place where your readers can see you? Where can they keep up with your personal contacts online?

Time is so precious I do very little book signings. I recently did a book talk for the Central Florida JASNA (Jane Austen Society of North America) I will be doing a second one at the society meeting in December. Seating is limited to JASNA members or potential members.

You have great covers. They carry a theme and your brand with them. How does your book cover creation process work? Do you hand over the basic theme or do you have more of a hands-on approach? Do you get your readers involved in its development?

I mostly design my own covers, seeking some feedback from fellow authors in my network.

Many of your novels have been converted into audio books. What has been the impact on your regular sales? Has the audio books gained a new audience for you?

Almost all my books are in audio format. I love hearing my characters speak the words I have crafted for them. Since I write comedy, finding a narrator with good comedic timing is critical to me. I think I have about twenty novels in audio. I lose count. :)

I like the idea of Author bundles. You are a part of a novel collection called Mr. Darcy Loves Elizabeth Bennet. What was the impact on your other sales? What was the main objective of bundling your works with other mystery authors? How did you put something like that together?

Multi-author bundles are put together for the short run. Usually only 6 months. It is a wonderful way to introduce your work to new readers. Some of my own box sets (containing all the books in a series) remain in semi-permanent state. I have only one multi-author bundle in existence right now. It is titled Mr. Darcy Loves Elizabeth Bennet http://amzn.to/2djuHgq

You ask how you put together a group for a mystery box set. It's easy. Just be sure to find authors you know well and can rely on to participate in the promotion of the box set while it exists. It is not a long term relationship.

I like the idea of bundling a series of novels. You have put together several sets of your novels. What was the impact on your other sales? What was your main objective in bundling your novels?

Bundles are just another way of making it easy for readers to follow your books in order. (James...see this recent post for info on one of my recent bundles released in early Sept...I think. Here's the link: http://justjane1813.com/2016/10/30/barbara-silkstone-shares-her/

We have had several of the Indie Chicks in the Author’s Spotlight. What a group of outstanding people. I feel so strongly about the group, I added their book in the list of your credits below (You are a co-author). What is the main thing that you get out of this association? Why is the book so successful, besides having outstanding authors?

The book is being unpublished and the group disbanded for no other reason than that it has had a good long run and it's time is over. When an author has a lot of books published you can't always spare the time to promote these box sets. This is fast paced creative track. Last year's book is often history...any older than that it becomes a neglected dinosaur. Sad to say. I would love to add more books to the beloved Wendy Darlin (NO G) series of 5 books as I keep getting asked by fans, but right now I have to go where the greater demand is as time is limited.

Between your book writing, blogging, marketing, family and all the other things that can get in your way, how do you manage your time? Do you have a set schedule or do you sort of play it by ear?

I get up at 3 am to begin writing. I write until noon. Grab my one meal of the day. Nap for an hour and write from 1 until 3 or 4. I'm in bed asleep by 7 pm. I blog once a month on Austen Authors and post on my own Second Act Cafe as I find the time. I do very limited marketing. Happily I have no family, but an adoring cat.

Do you maintain a reader list? What are the methods you use to find your readers and create the list and the relationship? Do you use social media, forums, newsletters and/or support groups to build your list?

I use my FB contacts, I write a monthly post for Austen Authors and rely on my website: Second Act Cafe.com to let my readers know of new releases. Chimp Mail coordinates my mailing list from my Second Act Café newsletter. That's pretty much it.



Author's Book List
Darcy and Elizabeth Serendipity - A Pride and Prejudice Regency Variation
Regency ~
Darcy remembers the perfect love between his parents and believes it can be his. He trusts in destiny— with a little help from serendipity—to find the love of his life.

Serendipity: A fortunate happenstance or a pleasant surprise.

Elizabeth, informed by the example of her parents’ marriage, refuses to believe in destiny. The concept of serendipity is an affront to her logic. She will not marry except for true love and thinks she can control her own fate if she is very cautious. Will she and Mr. Darcy find their Happily Ever After?


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KOBO Store
iTunes Store


Darcy's Magical Message - The Witches of Longbourn Book 3
Darcy and Elizabeth are overcome with magic in this new series –The Witches of Longbourn, a magical and light-hearted Regency trilogy.

Buckingham Palace will never be the same as Darcy risks all to rescue Lizzy from the clutches of the Prince Regent and Lady Anne Darcy’s fatal spell. Fiona Feelgood has reasons to regret casting the prince under a love spell. Can they rescue Herman the Hermit before Lizzy turns to dust? Beware of Caroline Bingley as she lurks the palace halls in search of witches for the London Anti-Magic Tribunal! How will Lizzy break her habit of changing adversaries into potted plants? And where is Wickham?


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Lizzy's Love Apprentice - The Witches of Longbourn Book 2
Darcy and Elizabeth are overcome with magic in my new series - The Witches of Longbourn, a magical and light-hearted Regency trilogy. Love blossoms over three complete but continuing adventures in which Darcy and Elizabeth discover what we have known all along. They belong together. Lizzy’s Love Apprentice is Book Two in the Witches of Longbourn series, a variation on a variation.

Will Lizzy Bennet accept Fitzwilliam Darcy’s hand in marriage? Can a union between two strong willed witches find a happily ever after in the world of Regency? Can Lizzy teach the love witch a thing or two about being lovable? And will one of the most powerful witches in England—who also happens to be Darcy’s mother—accept Lizzy as worthy of her son?


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Darcy's Royal Dilemma - The Witches of Longbourn Book 1
In DARCY’S ROYAL DILEMMA, Fitzwilliam Darcy’s first spell has gone wrong, and he arrives at Netherfield with a small jewel box possessing the power to topple the British monarchy. Desperate to find a witch to undo his botched magic, he is attracted to Elizabeth Bennet—but hijinks ensue as Miss Fiona Feelgood, a darling little love witch, enters their lives.

Time is running out. Will Darcy realize the witch he needs is the witch he desires? And what is in the mysterious box?


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The Return of the Gallant Vicar - A Pride and Prejudice Variation
Who is the Gallant Vicar, why did he disappear, and why has he returned on the day Elizabeth is to marry Darcy? Can his passion for Elizabeth be driving him or does he hold some darker secret? Will Darcy bring the blackguard down?


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The Gallant Vicar - A Pride & Prejudice Variation
In the GALLANT VICAR, Darcy and Elizabeth retain the same jousting banter contained in my MISTER DARCY SERIES, but they have now returned to their own time where insults are an art form and reputations the most valued of commodities.

What would happen if Mr. Collins finally snapped and Elizabeth might be the cause of his breakdown? What if he were replaced at the Hunsford parish by a charming, unwed vicar who arrives on the heels of Elizabeth’s rejection of Darcy?

Darcy is desperate to deconstruct the growing attachment Elizabeth feels for the new vicar. Determined to unearth the truth about the clergyman before Elizabeth is coerced into marriage, Darcy swings into action even as he fears he will appear to be jealous.

Will Darcy save the day? Will Elizabeth accept his help? And exactly who is the Gallant Vicar?

Hold on to your bonnets, as my stories move at a faster pace to match their snappy dialogue.


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Mister Darcy's Maltese Falcon - Mister Darcy Series Book 8
Darcy and Lizzie, now happily married, are off on another Templar quest. With their first baby due in two months, Darcy insists that Lizzie remain in London while he adventures to Malta. Pregnancy will not hamper Lizzie; she is determined to stand by her husband. Lizzie inserts herself in the caper, accompanied by Boris, the Russian wolfhound, and other surprise stowaways. Oh no! Caroline and Wickham return to add to the chaos.


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Happy Christmas from the Darcys - Mister Darcy Series Book 7
With the best of intentions Elizabeth Darcy plans a surprise Christmas Eve for Fitzwilliam Darcy at their London penthouse. How much chaos will little urchin Annie and her seven siblings, plus the entire Bennet clan, bring to One Snyde Park? Add two basset hounds, one borzoi, a shaggy otter hound, and a disheveled nun who bears a striking resemblance to Caroline Bingley; then stir in some holiday magic and you have a Happy Christmas wish from the Darcy home to yours.


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Amazon


Darcy's Honeymoon - Mister Darcy Series Book 6
Under the guise of honeymooning, Mr. and Mrs. Darcy set off to save a quartet of domestic maids being held hostage in London and to return the legendary Red Rosary to the Templars’ treasure vaults. Can they avoid Caroline Bingley, evade the sinister men from Rome, and will they ever get to enjoy their honeymoon?


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Mister Darcy's Templars - Mister Darcy Series Book 5
Darcy shares his secret vow and his bed with Lizzie Bennet in this fifth book in the Mister Darcy series of comedic mysteries. Will Lizzie help Darcy prevent the theft of the legendary Red Rosary? Can Lizzie get even with Caroline Bingley? And who is the mystery woman in Lizzie’s father’s life? Can be read as a stand alone, but it helps to read the series from Book One.

Based on the enduring characters created by Jane Austen, this is a contemporary spin on a classic tale of love denied, and love discovered.


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Pansy Cottage - Mister Darcy Series Book 4
Lizzie plots a secret garden wedding for her sister, Jane and Charles Bingley. Can she outsmart Mother Bennet or will the gorgon prevail? With her nerves in high gear, Mrs. Bennet plans the marriage of her eldest daughter. Behind the scenes, Lizzie races against the clock to design a small garden wedding ahead of her mother’s over-the-top ball. Can Darcy cart the unsuspecting Mrs. Bennet to the garden ceremony? Will Mr. Bennet cooperate with Lizzie’s plans, or does Pansy Cottage still cast a long shadow in his memories?


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Mr. Darcy's Secret - Mister Darcy Series Book 3
Based on the enduring characters created by Jane Austen, this is a contemporary spin on a classic tale of love denied, and love discovered. Each novella is part of the Mister Darcy series but each adventure can be read as a stand alone.

The mysterious Mister Darcy enlists the aid of dog psychologist Lizzie Bennet in his secret quest. Lizzie soon finds herself deep in his battle where familiar villains join forces to stop Darcy at all costs. Darcy’s true feelings for Lizzie bubble to the surface but can she reciprocate? And what about that peanut butter kiss?


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Mister Darcy’s Christmas - Mister Darcy Series Book 2
*** A light comedy novella ***
Based on the enduring characters created by Jane Austen, this is a contemporary spin on a classic tale of love denied, and love discovered.

Christmas just became a lot more complicated for dog psychologist Lizzie Bennet and her sisters. While shopping in London they find little urchin Annie and her dog Sammy. As a fierce snowstorm takes over the city, the aloof but alluring Mister Darcy invites the girls, including Annie and Sammy, to spend the night at his penthouse.

With the best of intentions Darcy asks Annie and her seven siblings to join the Bennet sisters for a quiet Christmas Eve celebration in his London fortress. The skulduggery begins when Caroline Bingley – the villainess Austen fans love to boo – shows up acting the part of the Grinch and Scrooge combined.


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Mister Darcy’s Dogs - Mister Darcy Series Book 1
~ PRIDE AND PREJUDICE Contemporary Variation Novella ~
* A LIGHT COMEDY MYSTERY *


Jane Austen’s beloved characters return in this novella, a contemporary variation on Pride and Prejudice, one of the most popular novels in English literature. This is Book One in the Mister Darcy Series of five books by Barbara Silkstone. Each book can and does stand alone as a separate novella and yet each allows for the relationship between Darcy and Lizzie to unfold in a natural, unhurried way.

Doctor Lizzie Bennet, struggling against her conservative English countryside upbringing, determines to prove her worth as a dog psychologist. Nothing will deter her from her career until she meets the uppity and oh-so mysterious Londoner, Mister Darcy. His on-again, off-again flirtatious manner, and his pompous putdowns challenge Lizzie’s short temper. When Mister Darcy hires her to train his lovable basset hounds for an important foxhunt, Lizzie accepts the task despite knowing next to nothing about the sport and harboring an intense fear of horses.

Two of the villains Austen fans love to boo and hiss arrive to torment Lizzie: Caroline Bingley, in hot pursuit of Mister Darcy does all she can to discredit and humiliate Lizzie. Mister Darcy’s old nemesis, George Wickham, stalks the Bennet family.


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Vulgarian Vamp - A Wendy Darlin Comedy Mystery Book 5
A spooky mystery about a cute little vampire who lives in the wine cellar of Carfax Abbey. “Think Airplane and Young Frankenstein, and you may have a clue about how coffee-snorting funny this book is!”

You are cordially invited to the destination wedding of Wendy Darlin Tomb Raider and Doctor Roger Jolley, world-renowned archaeologist to be held at the Van Helsing Resort and Spa in Loutish, Vulgaria. In lieu of wedding gifts please bring whole garlic buds. The ceremony will begin once the forty bloodless monks are contained in Carfax Abbey.


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Miami Mummies - A Wendy Darlin Comedy Mystery Book 4
The legendary mastermind criminal and mummy thief, Kyzer Saucy, strikes again. Part-time tomb raider and full-time real estate broker, Wendy Darlin joins her lover, archaeologist Roger Jolley as they struggle to save a rare Miami mummy from the clutches of this evil genius. Can Saucy be stopped before he kills again? Meanwhile can Wendy keep her promise to Alfred Hiccup as he attempts to transmigrate from the afterlife? Or has Wendy finally made one promise too many?


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Cairo Caper - A Wendy Darlin Comedy Mystery Book 3
Wendy Darlin joins her lover, archaeologist Roger Jolley, in a quest for Cleopatra’s tomb. All they have to do is get from Cairo to the Temple of Taporisi Magna alive. Armed only with a couple of hijacked ashtrays and faced with a trek across the blazing Sahara desert can Wendy out-maneuver Russian oligarchs, a dozen Dark Force mercenaries, and Roger’s chubby ex-girlfriend in time to find the tomb and seal it before chaos erupts in Egypt?


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London Broil - A Wendy Darlin Comedy Mystery Book 2
When we last saw Wendy Darling and Roger Jolley in WENDY AND THE LOST BOYS, they were hot on the trail of Egyptian icons stolen from the British Museum. Wendy is now in a frantic race against time and a murderer as she searches for the last Lost Boy hidden somewhere in London while a killer heat wave invades the city. Wendy is held captive over a fish ‘n’ chips shop while Roger’s life is threatened. Can Wendy escape her captors, rescue Roger, and find the missing Lost Boy before the murderer strikes again?


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Wendy and the Lost Boys - A Wendy Darlin Comedy Mystery Book 1
Real estate agent for Miami Beach millionaires, Wendy Darlin, clashes with “SEC Investigator” and world famous archaeologist, Roger Jolley. He follows her out to sea on a mega-yacht owned by Charlie Hook, a Ponzi swindler on the run from federal agents and angry investors. Despite her fear of water, she finds herself a tomb raider on the Caribbean one step ahead of modern day pirates. Will she find the Lost Boys? Will she escape Hook’s clutches? And whom will she find on Nevis Island? Oh... and is Roger a good kisser?


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COLD CASE MORPHS - A Silkstone Series Standalone Comedic Mystery Book 2
Newly minted Morph* Fedora Fingerman follows her heart as she joins Shadow Hopkins in Cold Case Morphs… Asheville’s first Morph-suited detective agency.
Walk-ins Welcome.

The Cold Case Morphs enter the world of noir comedy as they rush to the aid of a lonely Victorian ghost. Can Fedora save the protoplasmic damsel? Who is the serial killer? And will Shadow ever notice the Morph with the heart on her sleeve?


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KOBO Store
iTunes Store
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Zo White and the Seven Morphs - A Silkstone Series Standalone Comedic Mystery Book 1
This is a Romantic Suspense featuring MORPHS. Zo White, aerial dancer and star performer in the Grimm Brothers’ Cirque is stalked by an unknown assassin. The Seven Morphs acrobatic team tumble to her rescue while preparing to leave on a covert mission. What secrets are hidden by their bright colored spandex body suits and will Zo find love with Green Morph? Romantic Suspense on the light side.Throw in outrageous plot twists, a magic mirror, 400 baby turtles, a giant python, Miami mobsters, and a few murders on the side, and it all adds up to a zany whodunit that keeps you laughing and guessing till the end.


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Check out the index of other Spotlight authors. Spotlight Index.