dear lynda barry,

gosh! what to say?! this letter is long overdue. i used to be quite a fan of writing celebrities letters when i was younger. i still blush thinking about it. oh boy. i even sent my awkward high school poetry once to an unnamed celebrity. talk about mortifying!

anyways, i think the way of the snail mail fan letter is unfortunately disappearing as everything is done via email now and days. twittering and whatnot. heck i am writing this letter on the computer!

but now and days one of the only times i get star struck are with writers who i connect with their work. if ever i see them in person it's like i just don't know how to express my appreciation. to be honest i even rewrote this letter to you already a few times!

i wish i would have read your stuff earlier on in life. books have always made me catch a strong sniff of all the possibilities that are out there in the world. lives to be lived. experiences to have. people to know. people to love. ways to change the world. make things better. its like lying in bed and hearing airplanes fly over with their lonely hum at night. how it makes you feel so small in your bed. but also alive in the way of knowing there is a whole huge world out there that just keeps on keeping on. and you there awake. listening to its voice.

your books make me feel understood. make me sad in that good way of knowing that there are others out there who feel sometimes bummed out. different. who want to connect as human beings. who have had less than marvelous childhoods. who take that early feeling of loneliness and carry it around with them always but who through it, try to reach out and touch another and make things not feel so alone for everyone.

your books make me cry. make me laugh out loud. make me go to sleep more easy. make my brain buzz with excitement.
and i love when parts from books become memories like they are your own past and you feel nostalgic for them in the same way. your stuff makes me feel like that too.

maybe one day i will meet you in person. and be speechless of course.
maybe i will find your address in a non-stalker type way and send you an actual snail mail letter.
but for sure i will keep reading your stuff and you will keep creating it. and isn't that just as miraculous as can be.

lynda barry, you are groove-tastic. you are magic. indeed!

thank you!

sincerely,
lesley kartali