Sense and insensibility

What are they thinking?  Last week it was announced that Joanna Trollope is to 're-write' Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility and now today we hear P.D. James will be working on the re-write of Pride and Prejudice.

Both of the above women are excellent writers: accomplished, successful and set a high standard for authors everywhere.  So why do they want to re-write another novelist's works?  Jane Austen is beloved by many (I'm her number one piggy fan) and so to re-invent/re-write/re-work (however it will be described) is blatantly asking for a multitude of Austen fans to jam up twitter for eternity ... though all good publicity for when the books actually come out.

And why re-write any author's works?  The film world is suffocating from a plethora of remakes and "new" versions (Jane Eyre just released and Wuthering Heights coming soon...) so heaven help us if this trend escalates within the book world.

I love the classics and enjoy re-reading cherished novels (Pride and Prejudice is definitely one of these), but I also adore reading new fiction, exploring new genres, new authors and sprinting out to buy the latest copy of a favourite series (Lindsey Davies, Peter James etc).  My plea to all writers is look forwards and challenge us with new stories, new characters - please don't keep us in our comfort zones.

This has been my rant of the day.  Now need a good wallow in some choice mud.