How to Write a Valentine's Day Love Letter
Expressing Feelings in Writing to a Spouse, Girlfriend, or Boyfriend
Jan 31, 2009
Writing a love letter is an inexpensive and heartfelt expression of your feelings, and it will become a gift that your partner will really treasure. However, it’s easy for love letters to become cliché or corny, so writing a good love letter can be tough. Avoid these four common mistakes and use the process below to write a great love letter.
Mistake #1: Sloppy Presentation
Lined paper or paper from a spiral notebook is fine for everyday letters, but it’s inappropriate for a love letter. You want this letter to be a special keepsake, so it’s important to make it look nice. Letters written on a word processor look clean but lack personality. Instead, use a high-quality pen to write in your neatest handwriting. Consider buying paper from a specialty stationery store, taking care not to let your handwriting droop or go crooked.
Mistake #2: Not Using Specific Examples
It’s great to praise your significant other, but you need to back up your compliments with concrete examples for them to be meaningful. Saying that your partner is “amazing” or “selfless” is a good start, but make sure to support your statement with a story from your relationship that illustrates the point.
Mistake #3: Being Too Dramatic
It’s easy to get carried away in a love letter, but remember to remain honest and sincere. Ask yourself what you love about your partner and jot down the first three answers that come to mind. Of course you’ll want to polish your sentences and clean up your grammar later, but don’t overdo it. The most important thing is not what the letter actually says, but that it comes from you and is sincere.
Mistake #4: Only Writing a First Draft
Maybe drafting and revising feels like something you only do for school essays, but it’s important with love letters, too. One reason is simply that you don’t want your misspelling or incorrect grammar to be immortalized in writing. Another more important reason is that taking the time to refine your words into the perfect love letter will show how much you care.
Steps for Writing a Good Love Letter
- Brainstorm what you love about your significant other and why you love it.
- Focus on a few reasons and illustrate each with an example or story.
- Write a first draft and read it out loud to yourself.
- Make corrections until the letter “flows” just right.
- Copy your final draft in your best handwriting on high-quality stationery.
Whether you are on a tight budget or just want to give a truly meaningful gift this year for Valentine’s Day, consider writing a love letter. Taking care to organize your thoughts and putting them down in a letter will be a gesture that your significant other will really appreciate.
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