Editing Letter (message) (section)

== Importance of letters in the 18th century ==
During the 18th century, called the "Great Age of Letter Writing", the [[epistolary novel]] became a hugely popular genre and came from the format of letters. The novel also debuted in the 17th century with ''[[Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister]]''. Letter writers used this to communicate and explore their identity and daily life at the time. As a medium of writing that lies ambiguously between the public and private worlds, letters provide an appealing peek into other people's thoughts, feelings, and lives. During this historical period, publishing these "private" letters so they could build and preserve literary prominence became common for the first time. Just as social media streams now allow modern celebrities to present versions of their intimate lives for the public to see and read all about, so did early modern and 18th-century figures carefully build themselves in their letters for audiences to be excited to read these works of literature.  In the 18th century, readers frequently associated personal letters with the ideals of honesty and truth. Writing in the 18th-century was a rough process that required a lot of materials, many of which were difficult or expensive to get. Researchers interested in the links and connections between migrants, settlers, and refugees have increasingly concentrated on letters and their purposes. Surprisingly, academics only began examining letters as artifacts in the late twentieth century; most studies continue to focus on the national course of epistolary novels.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=British Library|url=https://www.bl.uk/restoration-18th-century-literature/articles/letters-letter-writing-and-epistolary-novels|access-date=2021-10-05|website=www.bl.uk|archive-date=2021-10-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005205430/https://www.bl.uk/restoration-18th-century-literature/articles/letters-letter-writing-and-epistolary-novels|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Letters and Letter Writing|url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199730414/obo-9780199730414-0187.xml|access-date=2021-10-05|website=obo|language=en|archive-date=2021-10-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005205429/https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199730414/obo-9780199730414-0187.xml|url-status=live}}</ref>

Letters also offer information on changing conceptions of privacy, secrecy, and trust during a period of widespread censorship, especially in war. Lastly, study on letter writing and mail services culture exposes the economic and technical roots of letter writing, as well as how links required resources ranging from writing tables and ink to postal employees and ships to carry letters over the world.  A lot of letters that were written in this time also showed up in a popular magazine called ''[[The Gentleman's Magazine]]''. People were also charged for postage during this time. They either had to pay before or during transit. Writers took great caution in their number of pages so they did not have to pay so much. These writers were considered very clever in their way to avoid the overcharge. Letter writing also became a really important pastime for some. Women were among these people to write letters and express themselves. A lot of female friendships were formed from women being encouraged to write letters. In fact, the most popular character who wrote in this period was named [[Clarissa Harlowe]]. This was also a chance for women to express their intelligence. They used letters also to separate themselves from their husbands and have their own voice to enter more into society. Even when the epistolary novel lost its popularity, people did not stop writing letters. It gave everyone a voice when they did not think they had one and it is incredibly important to people to have that, especially the women of this time.<ref>{{Cite web|last=BluestockingOxford|date=2011-03-01|title=Public and Private, Real and Fictional: The Rise of Women's Letter-Writing in the Eighteenth Century|url=https://blue-stocking.org.uk/2011/03/01/public-and-private-real-and-fictional-the-rise-of-womens-letter-writing-in-the-eighteenth-century/|access-date=2021-10-05|website=Bluestocking Oxford|language=en|archive-date=2021-10-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005205429/https://blue-stocking.org.uk/2011/03/01/public-and-private-real-and-fictional-the-rise-of-womens-letter-writing-in-the-eighteenth-century/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=sjmuseum|date=2019-07-02|title=Writing Letters in the 18th century|url=https://sjmuseum.wordpress.com/2019/07/02/writing-letters-in-the-18th-century/|access-date=2021-10-05|website=The Samuel Johnson Birthplace Museum Blog|language=en|archive-date=2021-10-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005205428/https://sjmuseum.wordpress.com/2019/07/02/writing-letters-in-the-18th-century/|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Alexander Pope]] was the first English writer to publish from his own letters during his lifetime, putting out a new example for authors and other important people's epistolary works.  Pope recognized that writings may reflect both personal religious devotion and cleverness. Pope's works are lacking in formality and informality. He had written his letters all about his life and what he did. Pope also wrote about his friends and the health and work of them. "All the pleasure of using familiar letters is to give us the assurance of a friend's welfare," Pope said. He had also taken to describing himself as "a mortal enemy and despiser of what they call fine letters." There was a letter addressed to Pope's father that ended up being used as writing paper for the ''[[Iliad]]''. When Alexander Pope's letters were published, they were widely read by a number of people.<ref name=":1" />