This I wrote for the final project in my World Lit class. We had to write two letters, each to a different author. I chose to write one to Fyodor Dostoevsky, of Crime and Punishment fame. Before reading C&P, we read "Notes From Underground," which was significantly worse. I wrote this letter as though I had just finished reading "Notes From Underground" when it was first published, before C&P had been written. If you ever had to struggle through C&P or "Notes from Underground," you'll get the humor in this letter. If you never had to read it, think about all the verbose works you have read, and I'm sure it'll be fairly applicable. If you ever read Tolstoy, I hear that he's fairly similar. Enjoy.
November 13,1864
Re: Editing
Dear Mr. Dostoevsky:
I am writing to you concerning your recent novella “Notes From Underground.” I congratulate you on exploring so well the subtleties of the alcoholic, anti-social jerk. I do wonder what inspired you to write such a comprehensive study of such a character, although I agree that it is a unique work. Perhaps some particular individual inspired the Underground Man? It is certainly amazing how well that you managed to explore the depths of his mind.
However, in my opinion, the short story, while short, could easily have been written much more concisely. While I understand that the story was written to explore the concepts of ennui, pain, and nastiness, I don’t believe that readers should be forced to feel pain and boredom deeper than the Underground Man himself feels during the novella. Additionally, I think that your stories might be significantly more popular if you inserted a smidgeon of cheer. For example, the Underground Man is well defined, but he does not change at all. At the end of the book, he is just as unhappy and despicable as he is at the beginning. As such, I think that you ought to appreciate my services as an editor.
As your editor, I would prevent you from repeating mistakes that you made in Notes From Underground. If I had been working with you while you wrote Notes From Underground, I would have suggested a happier ending, for Liza, at least. For the Underground Man himself, some character growth would have made the story significantly more likeable – for example, after his awful cruelty to Liza when she comes to visit him, the Underground Man should have attempted to change his pitiful and terrible attitude towards life and other people. After all, while your Underground Man was certainly well developed, modern audiences consisting of decent people may find him difficult to identify with. If I had been helping you, your character would have found redemption in the end, and the unfortunate victim Liza would have been lifted out of her sinful prostitution and her awful position.
Besides your characters, I would recommend that you alter the constitution of your writing. Your writing style is commendable, but Notes From Underground was extremely long winded – I’d hate for your next book to have 500+ pages. Although you are not repetitive, I do feel that many of your ponderings were redundant. That is, while you did not directly repeat things, you certainly did use and overuse ideas. As your editor, I would try to prevent your beating concepts into the ground. For instance, if you were to write a thrilling murder mystery, I would advise you to not write more than three hundred pages exploring guilt.
My final suggestions as your editor would be plot – please have some. Although there were certainly events in Notes From Underground, they were certainly less than thrilling, and I believe that your talents could create an absolute cliffhanger. Again, I do suggest a murder mystery. I believe that you could certainly make readers sit on the edge of their seats, chewing their nails, wondering who the killer was, if you would only abandon this obsession with character development.
I thank you both for writing Notes From Underground, and for reading this letter. I hope you’ll return my interest in my aiding you with your writing. I’m sure you realize how much more marketable and appreciable your writing could be, were I to help you with it, and I certainly do hope you find my suggestions agreeable.
Your devoted reader,
Carlin
