“Eudora darling,” the letters would begin.

The paper yellowed, but the handwritten script very much still alive.

Katherine Anne Porter’s very intimate words intended for her friend and mentee, Eudora Welty, somehow in my gloved hands to be archived after the renowned Mississsippi author died.

During college I’d managed to land myself in a class whose primary project was to spend time IN EUDORA WELTY’S HOUSE READING HER LETTERS FROM FELLOW AUTHORS.

It was… literally quite literary.

And… almost voyeuristic, reading Porter’s words to Welty and escaping into their reality.

The latest news from Yaddo (the artist community in upstate New York where Porter lived) was mailed to Welty’s home in the Belhaven area of Jackson, where she’d returned to care for family after a stint in New York.

I became a bit addicted to the epistolary exchange, feeling as some fiction writers and film creators can make us feel: a bit too close to the story.

The way you’d feel if you’d found a box of your grandmother’s letters in the attic.

I’m reflecting on this at this very moment, fellow newsletterers, because I’ve begun to notice a lovely exchange that occurs after sending an issue of Opt In Weekly: a handful of repeat responders who send me their thoughts, to which I always reply.

What began as “Subscribe to my newsletter” has grown into real relationships.

And the exchange has inspired an idea I don’t quite know how to pursue: what if there were a newsletter that made you feel as if you were witness to the back-and-forth email discussion between 2 people?

“I think this.”

“But have you considered this?”

“Oh, that’s even better. Here’s my attempt at trying that…”

The way Porter mentored Welty, yet was her friend, too.

Is it far-fetched?

Would you enjoy feeling like you hacked an email account?

While I ponder that, here’s something for you to consider:

Make your reader feel as if you are writing to them alone. Newsletters as a genre allow senders to create that sense of intimacy. Immerse in it.

 

A Few Announcements

Congratulations to Opt In Weekly curator and commentary writer Samantha, who had a baby earlier this week. We’re so excited for you!

Thank you to Seth for helping with commentary this week. We did it!

Opt In Weekly is taking a spring break vacation next week while I enjoy some family time. See you in 2 weeks.

Ashley Guttuso