The Screwtape Letters 1: Letters 1-12

Welcome to the R&W’s first deep read of 2025: The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis. In this episode, Shari and Rhea go through some background for Lewis’s writing of Screwtape, and then dive into discussing Letters 1-12. They talk about the art of letter writing, hearing a one-sided conversation as a story, and discuss what kind of story Screwtape is, anyway. They discuss what narrative arc, if any, they see developing thus far, wonder who the main character might be, and set up some questions to consider as they continue to read. Here are links to websites and resources mentioned in their discussion:* Dr. Jerry Root Lectures on The Screwtape Letters with PDF of notes. * Beauty & the Arts podcast episode on the Art of Letter Writing (connected to a larger study of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians)* Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “Everything That Rises Must Converge”* R&W’s OAI podcast episode on The Screwtape Letters live performance they saw in Dec. 2024, as well as Lewis’s introduction to 1961 edition of The Screwtape LettersThanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to receive new podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox. Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe