Syme's Letter Writer

A literary jaunt in praise of the lost art of letter writing that explores a cultural history and the undeniable thrill of old-school correspondence—from journalist and cultural critic Rachel Syme.

Inspired by a famed correspondence handbook penned by a persnickety Victorian who had strong opinions on how to lick a stamp, cultural critic Rachel Syme has rewritten the staid letter-writing rules of yore for the letter writers of today. Syme insists you must stuff your envelopes with flat frivolities (and includes guides for how to press flowers and make a matchbook-mark), teaches you how to perfume a parcel, and encourages you to cultivate your own ritual around keeping up with your correspondence. Even if you have never sent a hand-written letter before, this book will make you want to begin – and will show you just how to get started.

Immerse yourself in this epistolary bric-a-brac celebrating the intimate (whimsical! expressive!) art of written correspondence, covering every part of the process from courting and keeping a pen pal, down to buying the best nibs for your refurbished vintage fountain pen. As you read fragments of letters and journals from storied literary figures—Zelda Fitzgerald, Willa Cather, Pat Parker, Vita Sackville-West, Djuna Barnes, Octavia Butler, to name a few—you can take note of how to write about the weather without being a total snooze, how to write a letter like a poet, and how to infuse your correspondence with gossip and glamorous mystique. You’ll learn about the magic of hotel stationery, the thrill of sending postcards, and the importance of choosing a signature paper that captures your essence.

After all, the words you write on paper and send to another person, are precious, offering comfort, shared sorrow, cathartic rage, hard-earned insight, refreshing strangeness, absurd silliness, understanding, delight, commiseration, and beauty—and often all of those things all mixed up at the same time. Letter-writing is meant to be enjoyed—so pick up a fountain pen and get writing!

Rachel Syme is a writer, reporter, and cultural critic. As a New Yorker staff writer, she covers style, Hollywood, and the arts. Her past work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, GQ, Esquire, Elle, Vogue, and on NPR. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, where she writes her letters on a big walnut desk that looks out over a garden.