Editing Frances Burney (section)

==''Cecilia''==
{{Main|Cecilia (Burney novel)}}
In 1782 Burney published ''[[Cecilia (Burney novel)|Cecilia, or Memoirs of an Heiress]]'', written partly at [[Chessington Hall]] and after much discussion with Crisp. The publishers, [[Thomas Payne]] and [[Thomas Cadell (publisher)|Thomas Cadell]], paid Frances £250 for her novel, printed 2000 copies of the first edition, and reprinted it at least twice within a year.<ref>Journal entry of Charlotte Ann Burney, 15 January, [1783]. In: The Early Diary of Frances Burney 1768–1778, ed. Annie Raine Ellis (London: G. Bell and Sons Ltd., 1913 [1889]), p. 307.</ref>

The plot revolves around a [[hero]]ine, Cecilia Beverley, whose inheritance from an uncle comes with the stipulation that she find a husband who will accept her name. Beset on all sides by suitors, the beautiful and intelligent Cecilia's heart is captivated by a man whose family's pride in its birth and ancestry would forbid such a change of name. He finally persuades Cecilia, against all her judgement, to marry him secretly, so that their union – and consequent change of name – can be presented to the family as an accomplished fact. The work received praise for the maturity of its ironic [[Third-person narrative|third-person narration]], but was viewed as less spontaneous than her first work, and weighed by the author's self-conscious awareness of her audience.<ref name="Encyclopædia Britannica 451" /> Some critics claim to have found the narration intrusive, while friends found the writing too closely modelled on Johnson's.<ref name="Commire, Klezmer 229" /> Edmund Burke admired the novel, but moderated his praise with criticism of the array of characters and tangled, convoluted plots.<ref name="Encyclopædia Britannica 451" />

Jane Austen may have been inspired by a sentence in ''Cecilia'' to name her famous novel ''Pride and Prejudice'': "'The whole of this unfortunate business,' said Dr Lyster, 'has been the result of pride and prejudice.'"

Her fellow  [[Bluestocking]], [[Anna Laetitia Barbauld]] wrote to Burney in 1813 encouraging her to publish her novel ''[[The Wanderer (Burney novel)|The Wanderer]]'' in the United States where her work, including ''Cecilia'', was popular.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Parisian |first1=C. |title=Frances Burney's Cecilia: A Publishing History |date=2016 |publisher=Taylor and Francis |page=75 |isbn=9781317133421 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qDcHDAAAQBAJ&dq=anna+laetitia+barbauld+Frances+Burney&pg=PA75 |access-date=30 June 2023 |quote=n addition, a letter dated July 6, 1813, and addressed to Burney from Anna Laetitia Barbauld attests to Burney's popularity in the United States. In it Barbauld recommends that Burney make arrangements to publish her forthcoming novel, ...}}</ref>