Gift Guide: Writing Craft Books:

If you are shopping for a writer this holiday season, one of the best gifts you can give them is a book on the craft of writing. Despite the lonely nature of writing, writers love to form strong communities and help each other out, and one way that experienced writers do this is through publishing craft books. As a writer myself, I love reading the advice of other writers, learning about their methods, and their lives as writers. There are dozens of books on this topic available, but here are twelve books that your writer would be happy to receive this holiday season.

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How to Write Epistolary Fiction

by Melody E. McIntyre

Epistolary fiction includes stories told through documents instead of a regular narrative. Although the term “epistolary” derives from the Greek word epistole “letter”, this term is often extended to include works comprised of other documents, too, such as diary entries, newspaper clippings, memos, etc. Sometimes this style of writing is called “found fiction” like the movie version, “found footage”. Instead of a narrator telling the story, the reader must piece it together by examining fictional documents. This style of writing can be challenging but can also be rewarding to write and to read.

Epistolary fiction has a long history, dating back to at least 1485 when the first truly epistolary novel, the Spanish “Prison of Love” by Diego de San Pedro was written. Despite drifting in and out of fashion through the centuries, epistolary novels continue to be written and enjoyed. Likely the most famous example is Dracula, which uses letters, diaries, dictation cylinders, and newspaper articles to tell its story. Today, we are going to look at some examples for ideas on how you can use epistolary fiction in your own writing.

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