Austen appears to have left the novel untitled. Two of the 158 pages of this manuscript are watermarked 1805, suggesting that she transcribed her earlier draft (which does not survive) between 18, perhaps for possible publication. There is no conclusive evidence for the date of composition, but Austen probably wrote Lady Susan in 1794–95. The manuscript of Lady Susan is a fair copy in Austen's hand, almost free of corrections or revisions. All of the manuscripts of Austen's novels were probably destroyed after serving as printer's copy, and neither she nor her family retained any of the earlier, rough drafts of the four novels published during her lifetime or the two novels published posthumously. The manuscript of Austen's Lady Susan is the only surviving complete draft of any of her novels.
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