Letter Writing Ideas

Do you want to keep the art of writing letters alive, but aren’t sure where to start? Writing letters was

much more common before phones, and especially before social media. Sitting down to write about the updates in your life seems daunting when you can instead pick up the phone or send a message on Facebook. Luckily, those aren’t the only types of letters you can write. Today we’re presenting some great ideas for letter writing!

1.      Write a letter to someone you admire. This may be an author, a celebrity, a former teacher…anyone you can think of! Express your admiration and why they inspire you. You may not get a response, but it’s not impossible!

2.      Write to a child. This can be a family member or a friend. Kids are delighted to get something in the mail addressed just to them. It can be a funny letter filled with jokes, a letter asking about how they are doing…anything you like!

3.      Write a letter with updates on your life to a grandparent. Letter writing was more common for them, so they’re sure to appreciate a handwritten letter from you.

4.      Write a letter to a friend with a small gift inside. If they’re a reader, send a bookmark. Do they scrapbook? Send some stickers. If they love coffee, send a small gift card so their next drink is on you. It’ll be a big surprise and it’s a great way to keep a friendship thriving.

5.      Write to someone who lives far away, whether this is across the country or across the world. This is a particularly good idea if it is a recent move and your friend/family member may be lonely.

6.      Send a recipe to a friend or family member. If you had someone over who raved about one your dishes, send them the instructions, your personal tips, and a quick note saying you’re glad they liked the food.

7.      Send a thank you note to someone thanking them for a service they provided or a gift they gave you. People often expect these after events such as weddings or baby showers, but do it for something simpler. They won’t be expecting it!

8.      Write someone a letter giving them advice. If you’re a mother, write to a new mother giving your advice and insight. If you’re a recent college graduate, write to someone still in school about your experiences, and what you advise they do before they graduate. Advice is precious, and this is a great way to offer it.

9.      Write a letter to yourself. Maybe you open it in a year, maybe in a month. Use the letter to describe your life as it is and your current goals. When you read the letter you’ll be able to see the progress you have made. It’s a great way to keep yourself motivated.

10.   Write a letter to your significant other describing why you love and appreciate them. When you have been with someone a few years, the romance can start to fade. This is natural. Your partner becomes a part of your everyday life, and you have your own life away from them. Writing them a love letter can spark some of that romance and remind both of you why you fell in love.

Give Your Child a Letter From Santa

Christmas is a magical time of year, especially for children. You can make Christmas even more

magical by giving your child a letter from Santa!

The Letters From Santa program by the USPS allows your children to get a personalized response from Santa, including a postmark from the North Pole. You don’t want to wait too long to make this magical holiday memory though, because the deadline is coming up. All letters must be received by December 15^th, so you want to get those letters out ideally by the end of this week.

So, how does it work exactly?

First, have your child write their letter to Santa. You’ll want to have them address their letter to “Santa Claus, North Pole.”

Next, open the letter when you are alone and read the letter. Now is when the response comes in. Write a personal response to your child’s letter. This response should directly respond to the content of your child’s letter. It’s also a good idea to highlight some of your child’s accomplishments in the letter, such as good grades or how they help around the house. If you’re worried they will recognize your handwriting, ask another family member or a friend to re-write the response for you.

Put this response letter in an envelope and address it to your child, with the return address reading “Santa Claus, North Pole”. Don’t forget to add a stamp, preferably a Christmas one.

Now you need to place this response letter into a larger envelope, along with the correct postage, and address it to:

North Pole Postmark
Postmaster
4141 Postmark Drive
Anchorage, AK 99530-9998.

Please remember that your child’s letter must arrive in Alaska by the 15^th to guarantee a response!

The look on your child’s face will be priceless when they see the envelope addressed to them from Santa. So what are you waiting for? Remind your child to write their letter to Santa so you can get working on that response for them!

Tools of the Trade

Have you recently been inspired to start writing letters? But are you also intimidated by the letter

writing tips you’ve found on Pinterest? While you can certainly strive to create beautiful letters like you see online, if you’re just starting this new hobby you have to remember it takes practice. We’ve put together a list of supplies you’ll want to have on-hand if you want to take up the habit of writing letters.

1.      Stationary. There’s thousands and thousands of options out there when it comes to stationary. Choose one that you send all the time, giving your letters a signature look. Or choose different types so you can change it up based on the person, occasion, and season. Stationary will make your letters stand out, plus it’s more fun to use than plain paper.

2.      Pens. It may be obvious, but there’s many types of pens you can choose from. Want to keep it simple? Go for black. Want something more eye-catching? Write in a different color. Maybe you want to learn to use a fountain pen, which will give your letters a more elegant appearance. Invest in some high-quality pens specifically for letters!

3.      Stickers. If you’re looking for an easy way to dress up your letters and envelopes, stickers are a cheap and easy way to do that. There’s tons of options out there to choose from. Just make sure you don’t block the address or the return address.

4.      Stamps. Stamps are another easy way to dress up your letters and envelopes. Like stickers, you can find tons of options at your local craft store or online.

5.      A letter opener. If you’re going to be sending a lot of letters, you’re going to start receiving a lot of letters as well. You’ll want to have a tool to make it easy to open those letters without destroying the envelopes. Maybe this is to keep the return address safe, maybe it’s because a lot of work went into the envelope. No matter the reason, you should plan to invest in a letter opener.

These simple items will help you get started when it comes to letter writing!

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!