One of the key problems with epistolary literature (or really most anything told in the first person) is the simple fact that eventually what you're reading has to be written down. What you're reading is not only an account of an occurrence, but its an account given ex post facto. If you want a good example of the problem that this paradigm creates, read The Pit and the Pendulum by Poe. Tension in horror stories comes from us identifying with the main character, or otherwise relating to or feeling sorry for them, and being ultimately uncertain as to what will happen to them. So, unless the writer does that lame cliche of cutting off the narrator in mid-sentence (as even I've done), or leaving things on a cliffhanger promising a future account that will never be (something I've also done), the story is spoiled because you know they survive, at least intact enough to dictate the preceding memoir.
Epistolary Rough by *533497 on deviantART
1 comment:
I may be a little late on this comment, but I think that one of the reasons epistolary literature was so well accepted in its heyday (or at least the one we discussed in classes) was because in the 18th century, novels were really self-conscious. When novels of the time regularly had third person narrators cutting into the story so that they could comment on the behavior of the characters, I think it must have seemed less artificial to have characters who wrote nice enough letters to one another to detail a novel's worth of events from start to finish. When more realistic styles started to come into fashion in the 19th century, I think the epistolary novel fell out of favor because newer writing was starting to highlight its flaws. (I've only got a bachelor's in English, though, so please take what I say with a grain of salt- I'm not an expert and have probably over-thought the whole thing.)
That being said, I do think that for stories that end up being more about interpersonal issues than horror and suspense, first person narratives and even the epistolary format can still be very effective. Even in suspense and horror, a first person narrator can add a lot, especially if you want to convey fear through the narrator's state of mind rather than leaving the reader curious about his or her fate.
Anyway, I've typed way too much for now, but your project seems intriguing and cool! I wish you the best of luck with it!
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