Tag Archive for 'letters'

The Art of Letter Writing

Published on August 9, 2010 in Anais Nin, Author Blog, cathartic writing, Creative Nonfiction, Creativity, Healing With Words, Letter Writing, Musings, writer blog, writing, Writing for healing and Writing, journaling. Tags: , , , , , .

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The letter can be a vital tool to clarify your feelings to either yourself or to others. The purpose of a letter might be to inform, instruct, entertain, amuse, explore psychological problems, keep in touch, or offer love. The advent of the telephone was viewed as a replacement for letter writing, but with the birth of email, there seems to be a resurgence of the age-old art of letter writing.

Many people use  letter writing to release pent-up emotions, such as complaint letters to companies about a malfunctioning product  or letters to the editor about a pressing current event. Typically, when confronting someone on an issue, it’s easier (and healthier) to blow up on the page rather than directly toward the person. Letters are also a good venue to gather your thoughts first, and can be used as a segue to discussion.

Most writers are good letter writers. Authors such as Pam Houston, Fenton Johnson and Shawn Wong frequently write letters. Wong views letter writing as practice for his craft. He says:

“When I was eighteen I started thinking about becoming a writer but as an undergraduate student and later as a graduate student in creative writing, I didn’t really have a career as a writer so I wrote letters, sometimes as many as five or six letters a day. In looking back at the thousands of pages of letters, I realize those letters were how I practiced my writing.”

Author, John McPhee, once said that every book he wrote began with the words, “Dear Mother.” His letters didn’t typically usually end up in his published book, but serves its purpose—it gets him writing. Diarist Anaïs Nin began her first journal entry as a letter to her deranged father as a way to remain connected with him, although she also never sent it. In fact, it is not always necessary to send letters. Sometimes the exercise in writing the letter is all that is needed to clear the mind and calm the psyche.

Some writers use the letter form to warm up their writing. Sometimes it helps to one get into the swing of a story and helps to develop voice. Many, such as myself, write letters in their journal, particularly if they’re having difficulty developing a character in their story.

Others may decide to write letters to their pets. You can really write to whoever or whatever inspires you. It is important to date your letters and in case you decide to send the letter, to keep a copy of it. In the future, it will be amusing and informative to reread your letters, plus you never know how their contents may be used in a future literary work.

When beginning a letter, the best way to start is to say what prompted you to write the letter or why you were thinking of the person at that particular time. The letters we most enjoy receiving are those which carry the writer’s personality. When reading well-written letters we feel as if the person is sitting beside us, looking at us and speaking to us.

Perhaps the most satisfying aspect of letter writing is the opportunity to communicate exactly what’s on your mind. What more could a writer ask for than a specific, hand-picked, captivated reader? So, if you could say anything you wanted to anyone in the world, who would you address?  What would you say?  Sit down, take out a sheet of paper or crack open your journal, choose your audience and begin your journey!

Some Letter-Writing Tips

•                Use simple and easy to understand sentences

•                Avoid using complicated and long words

•                Be specific

•                Break your letter into small parts or paragraphs

•                Make sure your voice or tone is appropriate to the subject of the letter

•                For clarity, read the letter aloud

•                Write, rewrite and polish your letter

A Writer's Spring Cleaning

Published on March 15, 2010 in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , .

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For me, springtime is the perfect time for cleaning, not only our physical space, but our literary domains. This could mean organizing everything from our desk to our thoughts to our musings, to our unfinished poems or manuscripts.

In order to initiate this process, the writer needs to visit their favorite writing place. Visiting that special place in the springtime offers a unique opportunity to clean up the clutter sprawled about our literary world.

Virginia Woolf, author of Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, Orlando, and A Room of One’s Own coined the term, “A Room of One’s Own.” Woolf referred not only to the physical room—but also to the figurative room, the places writers go to tap into their subconscious or to find the muse that sparks their creative energy. This is a place writers are safe and happy, whether it is in the confines of their own home, in a coffee shop or in a retreat. Most writers are aware of their “place.”

While in your place, think about simplifying your life. One reason to consider doing this is so that you have more time to do what you really want to do, and that is write. To begin your cleaning, try composing , a literary to-do list. Start by making three columns. The first one could be called,  “Works-in-Progress,” the second could be “Future Projects,” and the third might be called “Back Burner Projects.” Preparing this list  will make it easier for you to prioritize and help you see that all of your projects may not be viable. Springtime gives you permission to make decisions about what’s important.

After preparing your list, go to the right column and start by filing away projects on the “Back Burner.”  Just get them off your desk. Perhaps you will return to them at a later date, but don’t let them clutter your work space. Remember that your goal for spring-cleaning is to de-clutter. Next, put your “Works-in-Progress” and “Future Projects,” in order of their priority. Now glance at your list again. Perhaps you have some insights about your work. This might be the time to crack open a new journal and jot them down.

I think of springtime as a time of new beginnings. Many of you know that I’m a journaling advocate for both the young, old, happy and sad. I believe there is a place for notebooks in all of our lives, whether it’s a small pocket notebook like the one carried by poet Kim Stafford or a larger format like I keep on my desk.

You might choose one notebook to lump all your musings, or you might favor separate ones for different projects. You might considering beginning a gratitude journal to write about what you’re thankful for and what brings  joy into your life, whether it’s people, places or things. Sometimes half the battle of achieving happiness, rests in the ability to verbalize or write down what brings you joy. What makes your heart dance? Writing empowers you to discover your deepest desires.

Springtime is also a good time to shed bad energy. Focus on surrounding yourself with people who make you feel good about yourself and those who nurture and inspire the writer in you. Wean yourself from what I call ‘toxic persons,’ who cast negative energy your way. This might be more challenging if those people are family members, as my father used to say, “You can choose your friends, but you cannot choose your relatives.”

If you have a relative who you don’t see eye-to-eye with, you might want to consider writing a letter expressing your feelings. Not only will this help relieve some of your stress, but it may also help foster a new beginning in your relationship.

Springtime often floods me with memories of lost loved ones and this is a good time to write about them. I like to think of every day as a new beginning, but springtime has its own unique kind of charm.

Enjoy your own writing and springtime!