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Interesting thought! I JUST read about this mysterious “Polish boy” last night in her essay titled “My Boys” and wondered if he (and the age gap) actually inspired The Professor, but I suppose the “Laddie” nickname IS also a nod to Laurie!

I am fascinated by how authors use real life to inspire their fiction. It’s tempting for me to think “oh this person is THAT person” (and sometimes it is), but there’s also the idea of pulling from multiple people for inspiration for one character…and that is something I want to try myself with my own fiction.

This whole mysterious ordeal also reminds of Jane Austen’s (possible) elusive lover. She is another favorite author of mine and this similarity between the two is so intriguing!

Could I link to this post in an upcoming post I’m working on for discussing Little Women? 🤓 This is an excellent post!

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Of course you can! Thank you so much for reading!

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Wonderful! Thank you! ❤️

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