If you’re reading this, you might be wondering about the world of pen pals and happy mail. You might be considering getting a pen pal or two, or perhaps you’re just surprised that this is still even a thing in this age of emails and messages. Let me walk you through it and then you can decide whether a pen pal could be for you.
Is There A Pen Pal Community?
Absolutely! I’d say it’s thriving.
You only need to pop over to Instagram and check out pen pal and mail related hashtags to see it, check out pen pal videos over on YouTube or pop by our Facebook group for happy mail fans.
There are plenty of people all across the world sending mail back and forth to one another.
Why Have A Pen Pal?
So many reasons!
Friendship, learning about other places, connections, using pretty stationery, receiving fun mail, the relaxation of sitting down to write, the list could go on.
In fact, I put this question to our Bring Back Paper community a little while ago, and these are the wonderful reasons to pen pal they gave me.
But, What Would I Write About?
This one does seem to be a stumbling block for some. Don’t let this put you off!
You’ll be surprised how easy it is to write to people once you start.
I’ve also shared how to write the best pen pal letter, packed with easy tips to get you going.
Where Can I Find A Pen Pal?
I’d always point people in the direction of here or social media for this one.
Pop over and join our Bring Back Paper Facebook group and either post a bit about yourself and ask for pen pals, or search the group for people who may have been asking for pen pals recently.
Alternatively, go over to Instagram and search the #penpalswanted hashtag. There will be lots!
I also run Patreon Bring Back Paper memberships (for those of us who love our papery fun!) where I run an ongoing pen pal sign up.
Happy Mail Without Any Commitment?
If everything you’ve read is tempting you to get a pen pal, but you’re still wavering, there is another fun option.
If you’d like to dip your toe into this without any commitment or the feeling that you might let a new pen pal down, you could start off with Postcrossing.
This is a free site to use where you send and receive postcards from all over the globe.
There is no minimum or maximum you have to send and no commitment at all to post any more than you want to. You needn’t reply to any mail you receive, so this is one you can do as and when you want to, with no expectations.
I hope this has helped those of you who are curious about pen pals.
It’s a fun hobby, could it be for you?
You might also enjoy Getting Started with Snail Mail and What to Write to your Pen Pal and do pop over to my YouTube channel, sharing all things papery!
If you’re new to Bring Back Paper, you can find out more about it all here. You can join our Facebook group here and you can sign up to join my mailing list below, for all the latest news, updates, ideas and activities.