Sandra Gulland guest post: On the Writing of Love Letters

To kick off my “Most Romantic Week on the Blogosphere” featuring the Love Tarot app, I am fortunate to have Sandra Gulland as my guest. Sandra is the internationally acclaimed author of the bestselling Mistress of the Sun and of the Joséphine B. trilogy, which has sold over a million copies worldwide and been translated into thirteen languages.

In this post, Sandra offers a very touching history lesson about the writing of love letters in seventeenth century France. On top of that, we’re giving away a copy of Mistress of the Sun to one lucky blog commenter. Details at the end of this post.

Tomorrow’s post: Historian Holly Tucker spills about the seventeenth century’s favorite sex manual.

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In times past, a girl was told never to open a letter from a boy. A virtuous girl was expected to hand it over unopened to her parents. But of course lovers always found ways around such strictures. Josephine, who had received ardent love letters from Napoleon when he was courting, was strict about her daughter not receiving letters. Josephine had been an adult when Napoleon came courting, and living in the unsettled period after the French revolution. Ironically, it was that very daughter who, in later life, published the letters Napoleon had written to her mother after they had married — but she made sure to edit out the erotic lines.

In my novel, Mistress of the Sun, the King slips or writes notes into the margins of books he sends Louise de la Vallière, the young woman he courts. In truth (for this great love is a true story), they exchanged poems. They each enlisted the help of one of the King’s Gentlemen of the Chamber to carry the poems back and forth, but also — perhaps feeling inadequate to the task — got him to help in the composition of the missives. I changed this account somewhat for the novel, but I am charmed by the story.

Someday, perhaps I will write a story about a go-between between lovers. In the 17th century, public scribes could be hired in the Cemetaire des Innocents in the heart of Paris, and some of these, no doubt, were called upon to write letters of love.

Imagine: a young man in love, venturing into the stinking cemetery, stepping around open graves, wending his way around the statue of Death, thinking only of the love he feels, the words he wishes to compose.

Shyly, he sits across from the old scribe, stutters out his need.

If only we could overhear him … and read the lavish, embellished words that the scribe scratches out. Will it read, simply: I love you? No, these words are too powerful! (And too, the scribe is paid by the word.) No doubt the scribe will suggest flowery images to express the young man’s emotion, describe his sighs and tears, his unimaginable torments, sign him as a slave, ready to follow his beloved’s every request.

The young man leaves with a letter — a scrap of paper which he will (somehow) put into the hands of his beloved, and thus change his life forever. For in spite of the flowery language, she will read, simply, in his eyes: I love you.

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TODAY’S GIVEAWAY: We have a copy of Sandra’s wonderful novel Mistress of the Sun! (Read my full review here.) To enter, simply leave a comment for this post. For a double entry, tell us about your favorite love letter!

Maybe this love letter — or e-mail, if you’re the modern type — was one you happily received from a beloved. Perhaps you were its enthusiastic author. Or it was a letter from literature or history? Personally, I find Napoleon’s letters to Josephine to be rather hot stuff: “A kiss on your heart, and one much lower down, much lower!”

(I wonder if these are the edited versions mentioned by Sandra. If so, I’m blushing to imagine the original letter….)

The small print: You have until midnight EST on February 14 to leave your comment. Winner will be chosen at random and announced on this blog Monday, February 15, 2010. Sorry, but the giveaway is limited to U.S. and Canada only.

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Top art: Cupid and Psyche from the Love Tarot app by Kris Waldherr.

More about the Love Tarot app: Considered to be the most romantic app in the App Store, the Love Tarot app offers gorgeous tarot readings inspired by famous love stories, such as Tristan and Isolde and Cupid and Psyche. This five star-rated app was recently relaunched to include a tarot journal for users to save their readings and other inspirations.

Available in Lite and Full versions, learn more here. Or download the Full version on iTunes now.

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