epistolary

[ ih-pis-tl-er-ee ]

/ ɪˈpɪs tlˌɛr i /

contained in or carried on by letters: an epistolary friendship.

of, relating to, or consisting of letters.

Origin of epistolary

First recorded in 1650–60, epistolary is from the Latin word epistolāris of, belonging to a letter. See epistle, -ar¹

un·e·pis·to·lar·y, adjective

Epistolary novels often function best as exercises in pacing.

This Week’s Hot Reads: Jan. 21, 2013 |Nicholas Mancusi |January 22, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
Chatwin's tone throughout Under the Sun recalls the Duchess of Devonshire's epistolary adieu, "In tearing haste—."

The Enigmatic Nomad |Kirk Davis Swinehart |February 26, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
It is as if the Zodiac Killer and the Unabomber were having an epistolary debate in the newspaper.

Headless Bodies in Endless War |Bryan Curtis |June 8, 2010 |DAILY BEAST
Dear Sir,—I am very grateful for your kind letter and the pleasure of making your acquaintance even through an epistolary medium.

The Life and Letters of Lafcadio Hearn, Volume 1 |Elizabeth Bisland

He had the good fortune to succeed in the epistolary way once before.

Clarissa Harlowe, Volume 9 (of 9) |Samuel Richardson
His advocates admit that they are to be judged rather by the rules of oratorical than epistolary composition.

Introduction to the Literature of Europe in the Fifteenth, Sixteenth, and Seventeenth Centuries, Vol. 2 |Henry Hallam
It was to gratify the two great passions of asking and answering, that epistolary correspondence was first invented.

The Biglow Papers |James Russell Lowell
And personally I find my epistolary faculties collapse at about 100° in the shade.

Letters from Mesopotamia |Robert Palmer

epistolary

/ (ɪˈpɪstələrɪ) /

relating to, denoting, conducted by, or contained in letters

(of a novel or other work) constructed in the form of a series of letters