Today’s team review is from Terry, she blogs here http://terrytylerbookreviews.blogspot.co.uk/
Terry has been reading Letters Never Meant To Be Read by Marc D Crepeaux and other authors
Letters Never Meant To Be Read by Marc De Crepeaux
3.5 out of 5 stars
Isn’t the cover gorgeous? This is a collection (by a group of writers) of those letters you’d love to write, to get off your chest what you really want to say to people like the friend you’ve fallen out with, your ex-husband, ex-employer, the descendent you’ll never meet, etc. A clever and unusual idea, I thought.
As is always in compilations, the quality of these little pieces vary, though they are all well presented. Generally, I liked the contributions by Meghan best; they were more acerbic, witty ~ and more concise, which I think works better for this. Others reminded me more of blog posts, or essays, with far more background and explanation than might be found in a real letter to someone. My absolute favourite, though, was ‘Dear Mother Prostitute’ by Marc, which was excellent. I could tell which ones Brandon had written from the title and first line; I guessed each one, after reading his first two, and was never wrong. They seemed brooding, introspective; the styles of the writers was much in evidence. Interestingly, the last letter is from older Marc to his younger self; I liked that, and it made me want to write my own.
I don’t know if they were written as catharsis for the writers, but I would guess so. I am sure they worked very well for this (I bet most of us have written that email or letter in such a vein, that we’ve never sent!). As such, they were perhaps less entertaining than they might have been, had they been written more with the reader in mind, and now and again I felt a bit of professional editing might have served the book well, but the honesty and emotion certainly shone through in each one. A thought-provoking exercise, and there’s a good bit at the back showing a photo and a small bio of each writer, which meant so much more after having looked inside their minds. For the record, only Marc looked anything like I imagined him.
Incidentally, Marc also invites contributions….
Letters Never Meant to be Read contains a compelling series of writings which have been created by five accomplished authors. Immerse yourself in these amazing letters and allow your full range of emotions to be experienced as you rediscover the power of the written word in letter form.
I really like the sound of these letters and you’re right T, that cover is stunning.
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I’m so glad you like the cover! It came out perfect, exactly how I wanted.
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You did it yourself? Crikey! It’s really lovely. Well done!
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Thanks, Terry. An interesting idea and a great cover.
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Reblogged this on Anita Dawes & Jaye Marie.
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Interesting concept… I have written something like this myself!
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Send some letters in, submissions are on my page. We do generous profit sharing for letter writers, by-line and %. They can also be made anonymous…
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it’s an idea…
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Agreed, the cover is a real draw.
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Thanks for reading, chaps – it’s such a good idea. I think if it had just been slightly less personal, and slightly more punchy, it could be a real winner. It’s good anyway, though. I felt ‘Meghan’ really ‘got it’ 🙂
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My sister will be so proud you said that, I will tell her. We are taking your comments into consideration for the next volume.
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It’s hard to be critical, Marc, and this is a splendid idea. You’re all good writers, but Meghan’s contributions really ‘spoke’ to me – it’s a matter of personal taste, that’s all!
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I really like the sound of this as well – I do love a letter 😀
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Having read this and another review, I’m really tempted. I’m wondering, were the letters genuinely originally written without thought of publication, or were they written with publication in mind?
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Not sure Wendy, I expect Terry can advise you.
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Just like the “Dear Reader” forward suggests, I wrote the first letter ever, “Dear Foster” from a true encounter. All are real encounters and at first, weren’t meant for publication. After sharing some and using some for assignments during my MFA in Writing, I thought it would be great to publish mine and others. Now, I intend to publish at least one volume a year, including some of mine but mostly other letter writers. I want nothing more than to have letters coming in from all over the world. It is my dream to be a curator of lost love, distress, confusion, and hope. I tend to be a little more story-telling with my letters but I think with some I am getting from readers, the next volume will be a bit more punchy. And, to my younger sister, Meghan Rynn’s delight, her letters seem to be the most popular.
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Thank you Marc, and good luck with the project.
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Thanks for clarifying that, Marc. What a wonderful dream – “curator of lost love, distress, confusion, and hope”. I wish you all the best with your project.
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‘A curator of lost love, distress, confusion and hope’. Love it 🙂
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