Letters in the Mail and in Books

Two letter writing challenges take place in February--A Month of Letters and InCoWriMo.  I've done A Month of Letters before, but not this year.  I have been busy with catching up with mail I owed, some postcards to the grand's, a birthday postcard.  I love getting letters in the mail, and I love decorating envelopes and homemade postcards--it brings out the child in me--to cut and paste, paint, collage, etc.  

Finding a letter in mailbox is a treat I never tire of, and while it is exciting to get a decorated envelope, it is the message inside that means the most.  Some of my favorite letters have nothing on the envelope but a canceled stamp and my address, but inside is a handwritten message that catches me up with what is going on in a friend's life.


I'm interested in this book by Nina Sankovitch after reading Leslie Stahl's comment:

“How sad to think our children may never get a letter from a friend or a lover, the art of both—the sentiment and penmanship—fading away like an old Polaroid. Nina Sankovitch’s lovely, elegant book about the intimacy of letters is rich with treasures from politicians, soldiers, mothers, prisoners, husbands, and wooers. It is a joy to read, savor, and remember.” – Lesley Stahl







I try to write my grands pretty regularly, mostly with postcards, so they will have had the experience of receiving personal mail addressed to them.  Only one of my grands has ever written back, but I treasure those few letters.  It is difficult to compete with technology, which is why I find the InCoWriMo term "vintage social media" especially appealing.

A postcard to my granddaughter.  

This is an excellent article:  9 Reasons Not to Abandon the Art of the Handwritten Letter

Some of  my favorite  books are written in epistolary style:  Dracula,  84, Charing Cross Road, Griffin & Sabine, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Historian, Sorcery & Cecelia....  And I enjoy letters written by famous people, and fan letters to authors and the replies, and The Graceful Envelope, and hand illustrated letters on Pinterest, and more mail art on Pinterest.

The next letter writing challenge is in April--The National Card and Letter Writing Month sponsored by the United States Postal Service.  Not that you have to wait to write letters or send cards through the mail.  I like the idea of setting my own challenges--a letter a week or two a month or whenever I feel like it!  :)

Do you write letters or send cards?

Is letter writing really too old-fashioned in the world of email and text messaging?

What are your favorite books about letters or written in the form of letters?