The ideal pen pal would be a great friend who gets as excited about receiving a letter as I do. They would be open and thoughtful and a joy to write back and forth with.
catholicamanda
My ideal pen pal would share my love of fantasy stories and our letters would be a joined creation of a story and a universe, with everybody playing their character.
Toucan
My ideal pen pal is patient. I have a difficult time (especially lately) with making prompt replies. They would also have some interests that overlap with mine, and some that are different. Someone who likes sending and receiving inserts, found objects, tea, etc.
I try to read the profile and each person gets a different letter – something I think they might be interested in. Then there’s sometimes washi tapes and wax seals
Toucan
I typically tend to use stationery I print myself, write with my fountain pen, and seal it with a wax seal. I’m not super artsy or creative so that tends to be the best I can get for crafty personalization. What I write depends on what was written to me. I don’t like to use form letters so I don’t.
catholicamanda
I try to personalize my letters with stickers, crafting paper and everything else I can think of.
I usually write my letters at the very desk I work at ( I am working from home) for two very simple reasons – the light is the best and I have my washi tape and stamps right next to me.
It’s a whole different deal with reading: if it’s government letters or invoices, I read them directly in the staircase – and the same is true for postcards. Letter on my couch, with a hot beverage to really dive in.
Toucan
I love to write letters sitting at my desk or the kitchen counter. I write most often with my fountain pens, so I do need a flat surface and some space to set my things out.
As for reading letters, I’ll read letters anywhere but I love to sit down with a cup of tea and my cat purring in my lap when I open letters from new and old friends.
Hello, My favorite place to write letters is oddly enough at my kitchen table.
The reason being is I have a great view of my window to see all the birds at my feeders and boy do I get alot of birds! So i love sitting there at the table with my stickers, my stationery, or my plain ole notebook paper, my variety of pens, my cards, my washi tape and just write away! Very relaxing and peaceful and enjoyable! It’s just incredible to see all the birds at the feeders while I write.
If it’s night time…. and I am a night owl….I still love writing at the table but also will write on the couch with my stickers etc around me.
Alaina
I love to sit in an armchair with a cup of my favorite tea and read my letters with a direct view of the trees in front of my window. When writing I prefer my desk cause I can’t concentrate on the letter fully otherwise. Although in the last years I learnt how to write on trains cause I spent a damn lot time in trains thanks to a long distance relationship.
Fabi
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Tell us about a letter you received / sent that has special meaning to you.
My pen pal who is the farthest away from me? Mhm…I guess from Germany it would be Uruguay that is the furthest away. And we just started writing like a year ago, so not too much to tell. It is interesting to see the different kinds of cultures though.
Fabi
From Florida, the pen pal who is furthest away from me is from Australia. I met her here, through the LetterMo.com site. I find it interesting to realize that when I’m suffering from a cold winter, she is deep in summer, and vice versa.
Christy S.
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Where is your favorite place to write letters? To read them?
I have been told that my handwriting can be impossible to read, so I TRY to write legibly which means s-l-o-w-l-y. When I speed up and my thoughts to express are flying to fast for my hand to keep up, it gets messy. (I can still read it but, yeah, I get it!) Fountain pens help me to write pretty and also help slow me down, and if I have been told that it is hard to read my script, I will type. I wonder sometimes what a handwriting expert would say about my personality — I tend to lean left AND write and switch up my cursive with print, even in the same sentence.
Carrie H.
I prefer to write in cursive, cause it is faster for me. I like to read all kinds of different hand writings.
Fabi
Hello I prefer cursive writing because it just feels more natural more connected to my pen pal. I love the feel of pen on paper. I have used my computer tho when I’m behind on writing and want to catch up or I have access to the computer and can ‘write’ several letters quickly. However I much prefer pen on paper …. different color pens and themed stationery when possible.
Alaina
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Tell us about the pen pal who is farthest away from you, geographically.
Welcome to the first day of Month of Letters 2023. Here are some tips from our members to help you get started.
Find a simple way to keep up with the letters that come in. For example, when a letter comes in, I like to read it right away. If there are any “goodies,” I won’t take them out until I reply to the letter. The letter, back in the envelope, then goes on a small (or larger) pile that is rubber banded together the the order they are received. When I’m ready to reply, I take the oldest letter first.
It is helpful to have a basket or bag to have favorite pens, stationary, stickers or other goodies, stamps, and envelopes or whatever you need so you don’t need to go searching for writing supplies.
Kris R.
“Just sit down and think about a different setting when you’re writing to someone. Like…what would you tell that person when you first meet them in a coffee shop? Or what would you share about your surroundings if they were blind? I love to just sit down and sip my coffee while writing whatever comes to my mind.” – Fabi
Here are my tips/tricks to those new to letter writing:
Have a designated space/area that brings you joy when you write.
Store all of your letter writing items, i.e., pens; washi tapes; envelopes; postage stamps; stationery, etc., in a nice storage container that will make you smile; easy to find and easy to keep organized.
I tend to write how I speak, meaning, a long letter, 2 or more pages. I view letter writing as a conversation, with the only difference being that we’re not face to face.
Don’t expect an immediate response and don’t be surprised to not receive one at all. If that should happen, please allow grace and do not send a letter that hints along the lines of, “I wrote you and you didn’t write back.” I wrote someone and they responded a year later. They explained the delay, but for me, the joy was to find a letter in my mail box.
Remember that the purpose in letter writing is to make someone’s day and perhaps yours as well.
ILove2Write
Find a place that you enjoy where you can sit and write. A peaceful place, a relaxing place. Mine is my kitchen table or my couch. I also have a writing container that has my pens, my stickers, my stationery and just plain old paper so I just grab it and go to my writing place and it’s ready to go. It also has envelopes and a variety of stamps and seasonal address labels so that everything is there and my letters can be written and addressed and sent easily.
