Friday, August 5, 2016

The Start of a Penpalship


So, you have a new penpal. You’re ready to send your first letter and excited to get to know this new person. But the big question, especially if this is your first time writing to a penpal, is how to start.

Penning your first letter to a penpal can be an overwhelming experience. You want to introduce yourself, but you don’t want to sound self-centered. You want to talk about your interests, but you don’t want it to get boring. Today we’re going to give you a few tips to write a great first letter!

First off, don’t overwhelm your new friend by giving them every detail about your life. When you meet someone new in real life, you don’t get into very asinine details such as your favorite color, the name of your first pet, or your favorite high school memory. Treat your letter like the first meeting with a potential friend. Tell them about your hobbies and interests. Your job or school. Where you live. Just make such not to give too many details, or they have nothing else to learn about you!

Once you have these personal details out of the way, talk about what inspired you to find a penpal. It’s not an activity everyone participates in, but you and your penpal do! It is one thing you already have in common, so acknowledge it. Discuss why you were drawn to it. Ask if your new friend has had a penpal before.

Don’t make the letter all about you. Make sure you ask some questions too! A letter should feel like a conversation. Ask about their life (but keep it general, not too personal). You may ask what they do, what their interests are, their favorite movies or books, etc. If you already know about something you have in common, ask some more specific questions about that. You have to give them something to respond to as well.

It’s also a good idea, at some point in the letter but generally the beginning, to mention where you got this person’s information. This is simply polite and we highly encourage you to include this in your letter.

For the first letter, don’t make it too long. A page or two is sufficient for an introduction. And, this is important, don’t make them feel obligated to write back. You don’t want to make this person uncomfortable. The goal of course is that they do write you, but pressuring them into it isn’t going to do you any favors.

That’s it! You’re ready to reach out to a new potential friend. Good luck!