Do most pen pals still write letters instead of sending emails nowadays?

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Do most pen pals still write letters instead of sending emails nowadays?

by Michelle
(Singapore)

Is actual Pen-and-Paper pen pals decreasing in numbers in today due to the advance of technology like internet and email-ing?

Wendy's reply: Most pals do both -- email and snail mail letter writing. Some prefer snail mail alone.. they like the letter in the mail box, viewing the envelope/stationery/stamp, reading a real letter, possibly handwritten, it's an experience. Some pals are "long letter writers" -- they literally write long long letters, 50 pages, 100 pages, fill a notebook with a long letter.

Like anything in life, everyone is different -- we have different likes and dislikes, it just simply depends on the person.

YES, lots of ladies (and a few men) prefer snail mail pen pals!

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Do most pen pals still write letters instead of sending emails nowadays?

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Postal Letter Writing
by: Rebecca

Technological advances in communication have made it easier and faster to relay comments and concerns to another party, be they next door or halfway across the world. The convenience of email allows for quick response, for immediate resolution of problems and answers to queries.

In business, this fast efficiency is essential; but whilst I don't wish to try and look down upon email pen-pal friendships via email, nothing that compares to receiving a handwritten epistle from a far-away friend.

Words on a screen are an ersatz form of writing. Sure you can choose your font, add and subtract info to arrange it into the best format and even paste pictures into the document, but when you shut down the computer, there is nothing tangible to hold onto.

Picture this: it's a stormy December evening. You come in from a hard day at work to a pile of mail on the doormat; mostly bills, statements and junk mail. Glancing through the myriad machine printed envelopes, you see a handwritten one addressed to you.

It's a letter from your pen-pal! Kicking off your shoes, you hang up your coat and sink onto the couch with your as yet unopened envelope.

You can see and feel just from the outside that the person who wrote it must have put a lot of effort into it and as you pull out the pages, you count 5 or 6 pages of handwritten communication. You know as a letter writer yourself, just how long it would have taken to write such a letter and before you even begin to read, you appreciate and effort that went into it.

Turning to the first page you feel something slip out into your lap - it's a postcard from your pen-pal's hometown. Turning the postcard over you catch the merest scent of a fragrance, wafting up from the card - it's the new perfume her husband bought for her and she wanted to let you smell it too.

Then, as you begin to read....blink - there's a power out. You're plunged into darkness. Just as you're about to resign yourself to the situation, you remember the candles & matches on the sideboard and light a couple.

Again, you sit back to read your letter, bathed in candlelight. You give a silent thank you to no one in particular, that your pen pal hand wrote their letter and that even though the stormy weather outside caused the power to go out temporarily, you were still able to sit and read and be kept company by someone from far away.

It's the fact that you can physically hold a letter that makes the difference. It relies only upon being delivered, where once in your hand, it requires only the light to read it. It's knowing that you hold an item that was physically once in the possession of your friend and that they had to manually record their communique onto the pages for you to enjoy.

The connection is more real, more tangible knowing the journey your letter had to make. And that is why you will never beat the feeling of receiving a handwritten letter.

Depends.
by: Tipasa (Male)

Sometimes my letters disappears through or in the mail. Even if you register them. But then email people can bluff you they are your long lost friends. So I think maybe coffee shops friends are out of the topic because I am asked which of the two I prefer.(Snail mail or Email)
But letters can go through sometimes.

Yes, people still write letters....
by: Shirley

A lot of people still write letters the old fashioned way--by pen & paper and prefer the Personal touch it gives over emailing.

Emailing has its place in society and I think the issue has more to do with the fact nowadays that everyone is rushed taking care of various issues such as work and family and its very difficult to find the time that most otherwise would devote to writing.

The biggest obstacle I have at the moment is the cost of postage, but I love to write and hope this recession ends soon.

Rosalind in Northern Spain
by: Rosalind

I prefer snail mail. I don´t have the luxury of internet at home. Living in a mountainous area I can´t connect to the internet. I have to rely on going to the TeleCenreo for my internet connection. So for me snail mail is the best!!

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