Dear Jane

I've been reading the book "Dear Jane Austen" which has modern day letters to me and I respond in my Regency way. I'm not really sure I like the idea of me being a Dear Abby type character. It's not that I don't want to help my readers, it's just that I don't really have all the experience that I need to really help with today's problems. The first letter is of a woman who wants to get married and feels like she's getting too old. Here's the thing: in my time being a spinster was looked down upon and it also occurred earlier. You were a spinster if you weren't married at 24. Now it's different. Plus I was a spinster and I didn't do so bad. I think it's not good to let women think they have to get married. I know we'd all like to find someone special and have that great Lizzy/Darcy love story, but is that all we as women can really hope for? Isn't there more to life? Yes we should all get the chance to live with our Darcy, but that could happen when we're 24 or when we're 42. There isn't as much of a stigma on being single now as there used to be. I'd love to help with my reader's problems, but the truth is we are no longer in Regency England. Times have changed and we must as well.