My family recently rediscovered letters that my dad wrote to my mom before they were married; he was stationed in Texas during World War II. They are full of humor, show his voice, and highlight the power of communication. I want to do something with them, but what?
I could mix them with my memories of dad; write an essay; write a narrative; write an essay about the disappearing art of letter writing. Any ideas?
Kate
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Kate, That is awesome. We just found letters my dad wrote to my grandma. I never thought about using them for something. Do you have siblings? Could you create somewhat of an anthology for everyone?
ReplyDeleteWhat about a multigenre piece with the letters as the repetense? Then like Nikki said, put it together for the family in a book format. If you have siblings, they might want to share their memories in writing as well, and that would create a nice keepsake for children and grandchildren. You might also include family recipes, photos, etc..
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful story...You must read Tom Romano's Writing with Passion. I agree with Laura that the letters would work amazingly well in a multigenre piece.
ReplyDeleteHi Kate,
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking of the piece Laurie Timberlake did last summer with the WWII letters from her dad. I know she submitted them to be published in The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw, but the most enjoyable part for me was her reflection on her memories of how her dad hardly ever talked about the war because of the painful memories, but that he revealed a lot through the letters that he wrote and the ones that were sent to him by families of his fallen soldiers. It might be helpful to email Laurie for advice. Whatever you do, I'm sure it will be a lovely tribute to your dad that your family can enjoy for years to come.