Lettercol
Prozines used to have long ones in the pulp era, thirty pages or more published in minuscule 6 or 8 pt. type and it was by means of those letters that fans first found each other in the early 1930s out of which SF fandom grew.
According to one theory, Fourth Fandom (because of paper and other shortages faced by fans during WWII kept the number and frequency of fanzines to a minimum) took place mostly in the lettercolumns of the pulp prozines, mainly Planet Stories, Startling Stories and Thrilling Wonder Stories (the two latter referred to in shorthand form as SS and TWS).
There have been fanzines in which this letterhacking kind of activity can be found (for example, Voice of the Imagi-Nation), including a few letterzines, albeit Not Too Many all that recently.
Publishing |