'Je-n'ecris-que-pour-ecrire ...' The letters of Jacques Ferron to his sisters

Jacques Ferron's letters to his sisters, collected in Laisse courir ta plum e, predate his genuine birth as a writer. However, the image that the young college student gives of himself in this correspondence suggests that he i s already caught up in the game of fiction. As the correspondence evolves, Ferron successively constructs for himself a letter-writing persona and a w riter's persona. His readings quickly become triggering factors, enabling h im to discover his own conception of the writer's work and to find his styl e. Gradually, Ferron becomes capable of imposing his own style and personal ity through a discourse that has become more and more free of conventional constraints.