Blog
July 21, 2026
In Praise of Waiting: Why Slow Correspondence Feels Better
Every messaging app is built to shorten the gap between messages. Letters are the one format that keeps it — and the gap turns out to be doing something useful.
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July 14, 2026
How to Ask a Question Someone Actually Wants to Answer
The difference between a correspondence that thrives and one that dies is usually the questions. Here is why big questions get short answers, and the four kinds that reliably work.
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July 7, 2026
A Short History of Pen Pals, From Sailing Ships to the Internet
Letter friendships between strangers are older than the postage stamp, and they have been organised by everyone from Quaker peace campaigners to Cold War governments. A brief history of an idea that keeps coming back.
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June 30, 2026
Getting Past Letter Three: Why Most Pen Pal Friendships Stall
Almost every correspondence that fails, fails in the same place. Here is what happens at the third letter, and the four habits that carry a friendship through it.
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June 23, 2026
How to Run a Classroom Pen Pal Exchange (A Teacher's Guide)
A complete guide to setting up a class exchange — finding a partner class, matching students, what to do about the child whose partner never writes, and how to keep it going past week three.
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June 16, 2026
Stationery for Beginners: What You Actually Need to Write Letters
You can start with a biro and printer paper, and plenty of good correspondents never move on. But if you want to enjoy the object as well as the writing, here is what is worth buying and what is not.
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June 9, 2026
Sending International Mail: Costs, Customs and What You Cannot Post
A practical guide to posting letters and small parcels abroad — what a stamp costs from a dozen countries, what customs will confiscate, and how to fill in a CN22 without ruining the surprise.
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June 2, 2026
Language Exchange by Letter: A Method That Actually Works
Most tandem partnerships collapse within a month, and it is almost always the same three mistakes. Here is a correction format, a ratio that scales with your level, and how to keep the exchange fair.
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May 26, 2026
Pen Pal Scams: The Warning Signs, and What They Actually Look Like
Every warm, open community attracts people who exploit warmth and openness. Here are the scripts scammers use on pen pal sites, in the order they use them, and the single rule that defeats all of them.
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May 18, 2026
50 Things to Write to a Pen Pal About When You Have Nothing to Say
Every pen pal friendship hits the wall where you feel you have run out of material. You have not. Here are fifty prompts that actually produce good letters, and why the boring ones work best.
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