Events

The Epistolary Research Network (TERN) is pleased to announce its seventh annual conference, to be held 2-3 October 2026 (online symposium)

lit·er·acy /ˈlɪt(ə)rəsi/ ability to read and write

Oxford Concise Dictionary, cf. literacy.

“It might be possible to speak of different kinds of literacy, for example ‘military literacy,’

‘administrative literacy,’ or ‘literary literacy’.”

Pauline Ripat, “Literacies,” in Christian Laes, A Cultural History of Education

in Antiquity. Bloomsbury Academic, 2020, 133.

Literacy is more than reading and writing. Though historically associated with the educated and the privileged, it carries varied social meanings and remains essential for many as a means of communication. Even societies we consider literate, past and present, contain those who are not – or not fully so – varying widely in their levels of proficiency and ability to engage with some forms of writing over others. Much knowledge from the recent and distant past resides in written texts, be they documents or manuscripts, a significant number of which are letters.

What does it mean to be “letter literate”? Traditionally, the composition of letters relies on familiarity with writing equipment and epistolary conventions in addition to being able to read and write for the purposes of mediating and maintaining personal and professional relationships. TERN2026 welcomes proposals that seek to contribute to a rich discussion around the conference theme in relation to diverse time periods, geographical locations and disciplines. Topics might include but are not limited to:

use of third parties to read/write letters and their impact on relational dynamics and notions of trust
social meanings behind spelling and grammatical mistakes in letters
interface between letters, literacy, and empowerment or disempowerment
letter writing and the socialisation or education of children, women, marginalized groups
oral versus written communication, difference between delivering oral messages and written letters
expectations held by the most literate, or placed upon them concerning letter writing

Abstracts of 250 words (maximum) for 20-minute papers should be sent as a DOCX or PDF document to ternetwork@hotmail.com by 16 May 2026. Both individual and panel submissions are accepted. This conference is online only.

Sixth Conference: 3-4 Oct, 2025, Virtual

Our sixth conference explored the materiality of letters and letter writing. We hosted scholars who addressed what a letter’s materiality can reveal about emotions, interpersonal relationships, epistolary habits and social conventions, as regards letter creation, delivery and preservation, with a particular focus on the atypical, hidden, misunderstood and little-known. Topics included:

digitizing and cataloguing epistolary manuscripts
archiving epistolary materiality
smuggled letters and how they were concealed
the tactile materiality in letters of a blind community
lost materialities and meaning in printed letters and letter writing)

Fifth Conference: 4-5 Oct, 2024, Virtual

TERN's 2024 conference provided a space for scholars to discuss how to define a letter by asking if one definition is even possible for this form of communication that has been adapted in many ways by many people over millennia and across the globe. Topics included:

epistolary communications on atypical materials (pages torn from books, fabric, handmade ink)
written under duress or difficult situations (war, exile, prison, refugee camps, censorship, travel)
examine conventions specific to one group of people (secret societies, coded letters, academic or philosophical letters)
letters written by those unfamiliar with letter conventions and formats (children, those with limited literacy, or those writing letters for the first time)
hybrid forms (poem letters, essay letters, petitions, literary letters, etc.)

Fourth Conference: 6-7 Oct, 2023, Virtual

Our fourth symposium revisited themes surrounding temporality, whether in reference to material form or technology, delivery, calendar time or epistolary contents and conventions. We welcomed topics such as

anachronisms
letters written or delivered under temporal constraints (war, illness, incarceration, difficulty finding carriers)
epistolary tenses, time expressions and dating conventions
time spent letter writing vs email, societal expectations
undated letters, letters removed from calendar time
periods when letter writing gained or lost popularity and the social context
open letters, letters written for later time periods or no specific time period
epistolary conventions concerning letter or letter archive dating
best time to write and reply to letters
mail art that addresses the concept of time
causes and consequences of postponements, delays and other non-delivery
letters used to date events in history or the lives of people
chronology of letter collections, gap between date letters composed and published

Third Conference: 30 Sept - 1 Oct, 2022, Virtual

This online symposium sought papers from scholars everywhere who have an interest in letters and correspondence throughout history. For thousands of years, in every region of the globe, letters brought people together when physical distance separated them. They derive from many parts of society. From princes to prisoners, letters transported greetings and farewells, news from distant friends, consolation in times of anxiety, triumph against rivals, submission to fate. We usually know who wrote them, but who read them?

TERN addressed a theme which emerged from last year’s conference, “The Other Reader(s).”

From the ancient world to the post-modern, epistolary efforts have often been undertaken with at least one eye toward future unknown readers. For instance, Pliny the Younger used his private correspondence, reworked into books, to give himself and his uncle, Pliny the Elder, distinct identities that continue to impact how we understand these men today. And it was not always the case that letters were destined for the general public or even a specific person. Sometimes epistolary writings ended up in unexpected hands with unintended consequences for those who composed them.

Second Conference: 1-2 October 2021, Virtual

For thousands of years, in every region of the globe, letters brought people together when physical distance separated them. From princes to prisoners, letters could offer reports across time and distance – greetings and farewells, news from distant friends, consolation in times of anxiety, triumph against rivals, submission to fate. TERN held its first virtual meeting to explore this aspect of letters and letter-writing in the broadest possible sense, across a range of disciplines and times. Who wrote letters? To whom, and for what reason? What did they discuss? What light do they shed on the human condition, and how are they different from simple conversation?

So many great presentations from participants around the globe!

Inaugural Conference: 5 July 2018, Bangor University, Wales

The theme of TERN’s inaugural symposium was Correspondence & Communities. Communities might have referred to the linking of groups or individuals who share common interests or facets of identity. Themes included the communal reading of letters, exchanges between individuals, and governing bodies concerning public issues or open letters. Contributions addressed questions exploring the dynamic nature of letters and letter writing.