I didn’t set out to include a whole chapter of texts in my upcoming Christmas collection, We Three Kings, and I honestly didn’t even know if it would be allowed. However, it helped to quickly show connection between characters over a span of time, which is important when writing shorter forms of fiction. My editor called it genius, and now it’s my favorite part of the book.
This writing style is known as epistolary, which was a term I hadn’t heard until my roommate at a writing conference described her manuscript as such. Traditionally, the term meant a story was told through letters, but in contemporary novels, communication can be expanded to texts and emails.
In honor of my favorite chapter, I offer other contemporary epistolary novels.
- Then Came You by Becky Wade. This is the first book I’d read in such a style, and it quickly endears the reader to each of the various characters. It made me cry (happy tears) on a plane.
- Authentically, Izzy by Pepper Basham. Such a sweet, bookish tale and the first in her trilogy.
- Dear Mr. Knightly by Katherine Reay. I haven’t read this one yet, which seems to shock all my author friends. Apparently, I need to download a copy ASAP.
- Greetings from Next Door by Chautona Havig. This novella is the beginning of a whole epistolary series in the works! Available in October, you’ll be able to buy the paperback from her website or get it in the Once Upon a Starry Night collection on Kindle.
- Heart’s Song by Aaron Gansky and Kaye Morrison. This one is internet romance with a rock star. I’m intrigued!
- Three Little Words by Melissa Tagg. I do love Melissa’s Walker Family Series. This one is about a couple who sparred in the high school newspaper column He Said/She Said, and after their ten-year reunion, they pick back up through email. How fun is that?
- Writing Home by Amy R. Anguish. Inspired by her grandparent’s letters, this heroine decides to look for a deeper relationship from a modern-day pen pal. It’s only partly epistolary but sounds completely adorable!
- Dear Henry, Love Edith by Becca Kinzer. The book isn’t epistolary, but the story depends on letters between two young characters who both assume the other is elderly. I couldn’t put it down.
- Tacos for Two by Betsy St. Amant. This fun adaptation to You’ve Got Mail includes my favorite trope of hidden identities when the competing food truck owners fall in love through text messages.
- Plum Upside Down by Valerie Comer. This cute romance also includes a series of emails that plays a big part in drawing two characters closer.
Now that I’ve explained epistolary novels, I’d love to know your thoughts. Answer the following question for a chance to win a copy of We Three Kings, which releases tomorrow!!!
Question: Have you read an epistolary novel? If so, which one, and what did you think? If not, would you want to and why?
Angela Ruth Strong sold her first Christian romance novel in 2009 then quit writing romance when her husband left her. Ten years later, God has shown her the true meaning of love, and there's nothing else she'd rather write about. Her books have since earned TOP PICK in Romantic Times, been optioned for film, won the Cascade Award, and been Amazon best-sellers. She also writes non-fiction for SpiritLed Woman. To help aspiring authors, she started IDAhope Writers where she lives in Idaho, and she teaches as an expert online at WRITE THAT BOOK.
I haven’t read an epistolary novel that I can think of. I may have read the old text in a book but can’t think of one with a lot more in it. It sounds interesting. I did listen to a recent story chat that mentioned this style.
Your book sounds interesting. I also like the song We Three Kings.
I LOVE that song!
A Very Terrible Text by Donna Jefferies
That sounds entertaining!
The Diamond Cove series has a lot of text messages as part of the books.
So fun!
I’ve read several on your list (I think Dear Mr Knightly was my first) and I generally love them! I have encountered a couple over the years that I didn’t love, but most have been fabulous. It did take a little bit of reading for me to get into the groove of reading letters though.
For sure. It’s a unique style.
I’m not sure if I’ve read epistolary novels or not but I’m always willing to try new reading styles. It sounds interesting.
Good for you, Jeannie!
Mostly I read books from the west, etc. So some are all about the letters received and given. I do enjoy those showing deeper heart issues.
The Wild West? That’s generally not contemporary fiction, though I would suggest the west is still wild.
I have not read one, but they do sound good!!! I’ve read books with bits and pieces of texts and letters and emails in them, and they were really good! I’ll be checking these out!
Yes! I like to mix things up like that too.
I can’t think of any I have read but I do have Writing Home by Amy R. Anguish on my reading pile so I guess once I read that will be remedied.
There you go. Enjoy!
Dear Mr. Knightly is a wonderful book! I enjoyed it so much. Things We Didn’t Say by Amy Lynn Green is another epistolary novel that is terrific. (It’s historical fiction, not CCR.)
Yeah, Amy is the one who explained it to me!
I’ve read Dear Henry, Love Edith – I really enjoyed it, it was such a great idea and really well done.
I love that epistolary novels are getting an update into emails and texts.
Yes! I loved Henry and Edith so much!!!
I haven’t, but I’d love to try one. I started Dearest Josephine but never got to finish it (it has email, texts, a novel within the novel, and letters). I also have on my TBR “The Accident” by A.M. Heath.
Ooh… I’ve heard good things.
I recently finished Authentically, Izzy and thoroughly enjoyed it! I just got the next in that series, Positively, Penelope, from the library and I’m looking forward to reading it. It is also somewhat epistolary. I’ve read several other books that have included letters and/or texts, including Becky Wade’s Then Came You. I can’t think of any of the other titles right off hand, though! Fun fact: a well-known classic epistolary novel is Dracula, by Bram Stoker. (I haven’t read it, though!)
So fascinating! And good choices.
Though not completely epistolary, the Scripted Love series by Inspy Romance author Emily Dana Botrous includes letters, notes, and/or texts as an integral part of each of the books in the series. The titles hint at that: With Love, Melody; Forever Yours, Lucy; With All My Heart, Joy; and Hugs and Kisses, Charity (prequel) My understanding is that she is working on a final book for that series, Always and Forever, Elizabeth. From the series description: “Join the Halverson siblings as they grow their faith and find love through the written word.”
Sounds fabulous!
I really enjoyed Tacos For Two by Betsy St. Amant. Thank you for sharing. God bless you.
Same!
I’ve read numbers 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, and 9 and enjoyed them all. I wouldn’t want to read this style of writing exclusively but it is a fun change once in awhile. I enjoy it more when it’s interspersed throughout the book rather than the whole book.
Good choices! And I agree on variety.
I’ve read several epistolary novels and enjoyed them. As an occasional read they are fun. One I’ve read is Things We Didn’t Say by Amy Lynn Green. I’ve also read Authentically, Izzy by Pepper Basham
So fun!
I haven’t read any but have a few of the ones u mentioned on my to read pile.
Hope you enjoy them!
Authentically Izzy! is beautiful and Her sequel Positively Penelope also has text messages.
Absolutely!
I don’t think I have read a book like that but I would!!! It’s always fun to read different styles of books!!
Hope you find one you love!
I have not read any books in this style but I am ready to give it a try. The ones you mentioned sound good.
Yes! I hope you find one you love!!!
I haven’t read and epistolary book…it would be interesting!
Hope you find it one you love!
I haven’t read one yet.
I hope you find one you love!
Three Little Things by Patti Stockdale, which was inspired by letters her grandparents wrote each other. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
I need that one!!!
I loved Authentically, Izzy and Positively, Penelope!! The epistolary style is probably not my very favorite, but it is a fun change of pace when done well, and these two were fabulous!
Absolutely!
I have read #2, 3, 9. And Positively Penelope, too. I love them!
So fun!
I have read Then Came You and Dear Mr. Knightly. I loved both of these books!
Yes!!! So fun.
I haven’t read any epistolary novels before, but they do seem interesting. We are so used to reading and writing texts in our everyday lives that I do think a novel such as this would be a lot of fun! Thank you for this opportunity!❤️📚☕️
Right? Enjoy!
I have never read an epistolary novel before. That being said, it sounds like it would be a fun read so I would probably give it a shot! 😁
I hope you find one you love!
I have read some old French novels in epistolary style. One of them was titled The Persian Letters. I wrote partially one novel in epistolary style.
It was a family saga, the last volume of a tetralogy. In 1830, the sons of the Venetians who had settled on Mississippi River in 1803, in the second volume, returned to Italy to fight in the revolution on the Carbonari side. This was sort of mid-volume, and from there the story splits, one chapters the parents in the US, one chapter letters from one of the fighting sons, telling also about the others, and between letters the musings of the mother who receives and reads them. It was the best way to tell that part of the story.
Very cool.
Epistolary Is definitely a new term, and style, for me. The closest I’ve come was with a book by Rachel Fordham titled: “Yours Truly, Thomas”.
However the main characters didn’t write letters back and forth, from what I remember she was reading his lost letters meant for another.
I would have never thought of texting, what a cool idea!
A fun idea!
No, I have not read one, but find it interesting and would like to.
I hope you find one you love.
Yes! I’ve read Tacos for Two, it was such a fun read! I’ve also read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. The latter was written completely in letters and, though I was worried it was going to be hard to follow, it worked beautifully.
Oh yes! A reader fave. <3
I have not read an epistolary novel, but I think I would enjoy it. We Three Kings sounds like it would be a great Christmas read. I belong to two book clubs, and each one reads a Christmas book each December. This book is definitely one I will recommend!
Yes! Hope you enjoy it.
I’ve read #1,2&3. Now I’m very excited to read Melissa Tagg’s and Dear Henry, Love Edith. Maybe all of them!!!
The one that comes to mind is Bridget Jones Diary. And yes, I enjoyed it, ha! Oh, I’ve also read Authentically Izzy and Dear Henry, Love Edith and enjoyed them both.
Yea! That was the beginning of “chick lit.”
Things We Didn’t Say by Amy Lynn Green is the only book I have read that was written in this style. I enjoyed the book, but it was very different for me.
I still need to read that one. I’ve heard good things.
Yes, I read some epistolary novels. Tacos for Two by Betsy St. Armant and Positively, Penelope by Pepper Basham are two of them. I can’t wait to read We Three Kings.
You have good taste! Lol
haven ‘t tried
Hope you find one you love.
I have never read this type before… I’m not sure if I have ever come across one. Maybe I just read what I already know and like. I think I would be interested in reading something new and unique.
It’s fun to try!
Yes I have, one called “I hate everyone but you” & I enjoyed it. Writing style made it quick to read through.
Sounds like something I would love.
The only book I can remember reading that fits the category is the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It was also made into a movie, which somehow I missed knowing.
Oh yes! I’ve seen the movie.
I think I read Katherine Reay’s and maybe Melissa Tagg’s too! I don’t like reading books writte in first person, so tend not to pick them up very apt…😏 it’s not too bad if it’s some first and some third…🤷🏻♀️
Makes sense.
I have not read any epistolary novels, but they sound intriguing. You get to see added traits into the character’s personality, humor etc… in addition to the story line. I think it is very creative.
Absolutely!
I think there’s also a Denise Hunter book that has this type of writing style in it & I really liked it. Because it’s one of the ways of communicating now, it just seems so familiar, so it was easy to understand and read & if it fits into the story well, then it makes good sense to use.