I am in the middle of an essay for
International Paper but thought I'd
drop you a line. Hi to your sweetie too
dash off a note to a pal. Envelopes,
stamps, address book, everything
in a drawer so you can write fast
when the pen is hot.
A blank white 8" x 11" sheet
can look as big as Montana if the
pen's not so hot - try a smaller page
and write boldly. Or use a note card
with a piece of fine art on the front;
if your letter ain't good, at least
they get the Matisse. Get a pen
that makes a sensuous line, get a
comfortable typewriter, a friendly
word processor - whichever feels
ment: I'm sitting at the kitchen table
on a rainy Saturday morning Every-
one is gone and the house is quiet. Let
your simple description of the pres-
ent moment lead to something
else, let the letter drift gently along.
Take it easy
The toughest letter to crank
out is one that is meant to impress,
as we all know from writing job
applications; if it's hard work to slip
off a letter to a friend, maybe you're
trying too hard to be terrific. A let-
ter is only a report to someone who
already likes you for reasons other
than your brilliance. Take it easy.
write to, a compadre, a soul sibling,
then it's like driving a car down a
country road, you just get behind
the keyboard and press on the gas.
Don't tear up the page and start
over when you write a bad line -
try to write your way out of it.
Make mistakes and plunge on. Let
the letter cook along and let your-
self be bold. Outrage, confusion,
love-whatever is in your mind,
let it find a way to the page. Writ-
ing is a means of discovery, always,
and when you come to the end and
write Yours ever or Hugs and Kisses,
you'll know something you didn't
when you wrote Dear Pal.
An object of art
Probably your friend will put
your letter away, and it'll be read
again a few years from now -
and it will improve with age.
And forty years- from now,-
your friend's grandkids
will dig it out of the attic
and read it, a sweet and
precious relic of the an-
cient Eighties that gives
them a sudden clear glimpse of you
and her and the world we old-timers
knew. You will then have created an
object of art. Your simple lines about
where you went, who you saw, what
they said, will speak to those chil-
dren and they will feel in their
hearts the humanity of our times.
You can't pick up a phone and
call the future and tell them about
our times. You have to pick up a
piece of paper.
"Outrage, confusion, love - whatever is in your mind, let it find a way to the page."
easy to the hand.
Sit for a few minutes with the
blank sheet in front of you, and
meditate on the person you will
write to, let your friend come to
mind until you can almost see her
or him in the room with you.
Remember the last time you saw
each other and how your friend
r looked and what you said and what
perhaps was unsaid between you,
and when your friend becomes real
to you, start to write.
Tell us what you're doing
Write the salutation -Dear You
-and take a deep breath and
plunge in. A simple declarative sen-
tence will do, followed by another
and another and another. Tell us
what you're doing and tell it like
you were talking to us. Don't think
about grammar, don't think about
lit'ry style, don't try to write dramat-
ically, just give us your news. Where
did you go, who did you see, what
did they say, what do you think?
If you donit know where to
begin, start with the present mo-
Don't worry about form. It's not
a term paper. When you come to
the end of one episode, just start a
new paragraph. You can go from a
few lines about the sad state of rock
'n roll to the fight with your mother
to your fond memories of Mexico
to your cat's urinary tract infection
to a few thoughts on personal
indebtedness to the kitchen sink
and what's in it. The more you
write, the easier it gets, and when
you have a True True Friend to
Today, the printed word is more vital than ever. Now there is
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