Louisa's room at Orchard House
Yesterday my granddaughter and I visited Orchard House, the home of the Alcott family for twenty years and where Louisa wrote Little Women. Wandering the grounds and stepping back in time seemed to verify my romantic vision that the writing experience of early successful women authors was entirely idyllic and leisurely—always in a sun-filled room in the quiet morning hours of summer. Wherever did I get such a notion?
Seeing Louisa’s room kept that image alive, at least somewhat, but as I listened to the guide’s story it became apparent that very little in Louisa’s life was leisurely. How could it be with five women (Louisa, her three sisters and mother) living in the same house and trying to stay out of poverty, and with a fascinating father always coming and going with schemes to fulfill his education and philosophical dreams?
Louisa did what was needed. The family was in poverty when her publisher asked her to write a book for girls. She wrote for fifteen hours a day and completed Little Women in just a few months. Published in 1868, it was an immediate success.
So much for silence, solitude and simplicity. Louisa had none of that, unless we want to consider the ease with which she was able to write.
Seeing Louisa’s room kept that image alive, at least somewhat, but as I listened to the guide’s story it became apparent that very little in Louisa’s life was leisurely. How could it be with five women (Louisa, her three sisters and mother) living in the same house and trying to stay out of poverty, and with a fascinating father always coming and going with schemes to fulfill his education and philosophical dreams?
Louisa did what was needed. The family was in poverty when her publisher asked her to write a book for girls. She wrote for fifteen hours a day and completed Little Women in just a few months. Published in 1868, it was an immediate success.
So much for silence, solitude and simplicity. Louisa had none of that, unless we want to consider the ease with which she was able to write.