A nineteenth-century southern writer, she published nine novels, including Inez (1850), Beulah (1859), Macaria (1863), St. Elmo (1866), and Vashti (1869). She is known for her sentimental, Victorian literary style and for the domestic themes of her works. She was a staunch supporter of the Confederacy during the Civil War. Her 1863 novel, Macaria, in fact, is considered a masterpiece of Confederate propaganda.
