Letters you'll never read (except this one)

In which Rosianna talks about a recent letter writing project.

Molly: http://www.youtube.com/mememolly
Lauren: http://www.youtube.com/devilishlypure

the diaries for you to find:
http://www.twitter.com/papertimelady
http://rosiannawrites.wordpress.com
http://hermionejg.tumblr.com
http://hipsterlit.tumblr.com (not been updated for a while but sure to get a few updates as it is finals week)

The Interminable Suicide of Gregory Church by Daniel Kitson at St Ann's Warehouse in DUMBO, Brooklyn, NY, U.S.A.

Single Father - starring David Tennant, Suranne Jones and Laura Fraser, written by Mick Ford and directed by Sam Miller

A combination of many things led me to start this project a couple of months ago. I don't write them that regularly, only when I need to, only when the other "diaries" don't suffice. Yesterday, we looked at Emily Dickinson's Master letters in a seminar and I had no idea that they even existed (I've only ever read her poems, as we don't do a lot of U.S. literature in secondary school in the U.K., except for the mandatory Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry). Anyway, the whole project struck me as similar, although ED's letter's were to one (fantasy? real? who knows. I think he's created) individual and mine are to many people. But the practice of letter writing is so utterly cathartic. I love it. That's one thing that being abroad has allowed me to do — send and receive lots of letters on Air Mail paper with familiar stamps and familiar cursive coming my way. The letter is dead, long live the letter!

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• letters
• to
• you
• epistolary
• projects
• writing
• youtube
• open
• closed
• envelopes
• handwriting
• freewriting
• magicwriting

[missrosepip]

Rosianna, I loved this video! I comment a lot on your videos with nerdy English-major stupid shit that probably sounds pretentious but I'm just so much of a literature nerd that I don't care. Right now I'm itching to reference a specific scene from Shakespeare but I will restrain myself (I'll probably go write a blog about it so as not to clutter up your video comments with my literary ramblings haha). Anyway, I've been writing unsent letters my whole life, so I really enjoyed this video.

[missxrojas]

@missrosepip Hahaha I don't think your comments sound pretentious! I have really enjoyed them. But perhaps we're both pretentious English students :) and wow, it's really cool that you've been writing them for such a long time. I really can't stop.

[WeWillShareAnecdotes]

This is a kind of project I could get behind. I find that, since most of my friends throughout my life have lived rather close, the art of letter writing has long since gone unpractised by me ever since I reached the point where school stops arbitrarily using letters as writing exercises. I think I want to change that.... and it's all your fault.

[missxrojas]

@WeWillShareAnecdotes Those school letter-writing exercises! I'd completely forgotten about them.

[puddin437]

Could you please do a video on what you think of the AV voting system?

[missxrojas]

@puddin437 Eep, I wanted to do one before the referendum and can't really motivate myself to do one after, but I'm pro-AV as I think it means there's a better chance of my vote/opinion/voice being heard than under FPTP.

[missloisjones]

writing letters is such therapy....who needs a psychiatrist?! :p

I loved writing letters to my uni friends whilst I was away from them over summer, now I don't really have anyone to send them to, it's quite sad!

Pen friends need to make a comeback!

[Pdftprngs]

This is yet another wonderful idea, and I'm happy to say that it is one I can partake in. I feel a bit weird saying this in a YouTube comment, but I started this project a while ago, and the first letter was to you, Rosianna, about how you inspire me and why I am begining this project, an idea I've stolen from you.

[BizarreGoblin]

This is such a beautiful, fantastic idea! I must do it. I wish I had known about this when I was little. You see, I have tried in vain to keep a diary since I was quite small. But I could never be constant with my writing and I thought that in order to have a diary , I needed to write every day. Now that I'm older, my love for writing has grown. I adore keeping journals and I write almost daily. And now, Rosi, you have opened my eyes to a creative and totally rad writing project! Thanks.<3

[BizarreGoblin]

This is such a beautiful, fantastic idea! I must do it. I wish I had known about this when I was little. You see, I have tried in vain to keep a diary since I was quite small. But I could never be constant with my writing and I thought that in order to have a diary , I needed to write every day. Now that I'm older, my love for writing has grown. I adore keeping journals and I write almost daily. And now, Rosi, you have opened my eyes to a creative and totally rad writing project! Thanks.<3

[zexxaar]

Rosianna.

You brilliant girl =]

[chunkymonky218]

Great vid! Ever visited the site futureme[dot]org? It's kind of awesome. You can write letters to yourself and choose a date in the future to receive the letter as an e-mail. It is both wonderful and strange to look upon your prior voice. I highly recommend it! And I do think the written voice is a clearer, less self-conscious voice than the spoken voice, and that one can gather a great deal more about a person from a letter than from a spoken conversation.

[kelann89]

The only trouble I'd find myself having doing a project like this is finding my words. I use my dialog in my head as a way to filter stuff out and writing has never been my strongest suit but I think if I were to take on a project of letters then I would be able to develop my writing. Thoughts to ponder over. I adore your videos and look forward to everyone you publish on the inter-webs. Have a wonderful day -Kelley

[holyherro]

@missxrojas It works now thanks :) I just re-watched it :) xx

[JoelJoel321]

Do you ever write a letter to your future self? To remain sealed until a certain date?

[robotnic]

I love this. I used to take a class with a director called Allison Anders, and she told us how she thought journaling was dead, and used to write letters to Paul McCartney and Wim Wenders as a letter-diary. I always liked that notion (even though I think it's a bit weird to tell a celebrity about your life assuming/as though they're reading and caring). But I like this even more, because picturing your audience brings clarity, and by keeping them and knowing who it was aimed at makes it special.

[desertislanddream]

I love this idea, Rosi. Brilliant.