Epistolary – The tale of letters
One of the most challenging and creative forms of writing (fiction and nonfiction) is to compile sequence letters or other forms of correspondence, such as journal entries, emails, and blog posts, into one cohesive piece of literature. Interestingly, this form of story writing is called epistolary.
The subject of the book could be a love story, a memoir, or even a series of correspondence with God. Yes, you read correctly; God Another interesting aspect of a literary work written in form is the number of participants/protagonists in this communication. Quite frankly, the books of epistles offer a sublime reading experience when the plot revolves around single or dual characters. However, that does not mean that multiplayer stories are considered literary errors.
My current work, entitled “Dear Elisa”, is a series of letters written to a non-existent fictional character and doesn’t really fit into any particular genre. In fact, it is a neat tape that shines in the saga and the romance shines.
One of the advantages of this form of writing is the brevity of the letters or chapters as they are known in their native form. It allows readers to stop and start at will, unlike traditional writing where the reader tends to flip through previous pages to reconnect with the story. Letter writing is also a boon for writers who are unusually fond of the first-person point of view. Whether it’s letters, emails, and journal entries, writing in the first person is a default form of expression. Does it mean that other forms of POV cannot be exploited? No problem!
By the way, epistolary comes from a Greek word, ‘epistole’, which means “letter” and therefore lacks dialogue or in most cases reflects a limited presence. Remembering chat events or conversations verbatim while writing letters or blog posts can be quite a daunting task, especially when writing after a long break. Therefore, the idea is to write down the gist of the conversation, extracting the salient points from recent or past memories.
The epistolary is about compiling letters in a manuscript. While some writers deliberately try to take this form (like me), most renowned works actually started out as an innocent collection of personal records. Just search on Google and you will discover some amazing literary works that fall under this category. Alice Walker’s The Color Purple is one such example.
For more contemporary fiction articles, books, writing tips, creative writing, and free short stories, visit nlalit.com/blog.