Receiving replys

[Nashtah]

I write both letters and postcards to family and friends (about 35) yet only four write in in reply except for when I travel in the summer all receive one or more pieces of post a month. They post on Facebook that they enjoyed the post or so I am informed when speaking to family but I lack both a Facebook account and the firewall of China (where I live and work) blocks Facebook. I mainly send postcard due to both lack of knowledge of my family and dislike of writing lenghtly monologues as I feel that my live is nothing big and feel that writing about my thoughts on books and the like is pointless as I never hear back.

As you are writers are longer letters more likely to receive replys or should I be content with the one direction of mail flow. In order to receive mail I joined postcrossing I find it in no way to be as fulfilling as receiving letters from those which reply. Do you know of any way to receive more mail form those who would like conversations which can only that place in two way mail? I tried writing to people for a month of letters yet replys are only a single reply. I question if the long wait of about sixty days for a letter to travel both to me and the reply by mail is the main problem. Are letters more likely than postcards to receive reply?

Thank you

[Holsworth]

I have written to family and friends, and most of them time I don't expect a reply. I know my family like receiving letters, they tell me so, but I know they have no interest in replying as they don't enjoy the process and tools that go with it like I do. I have a couple of friends that I see regularly in person that do reply to me but they enjoy the pens and the stationery that goes along with it.

Most people here (if you look at the 'InCo pals for the rest of the year' and 'did you correspond today?' Threads) would be happy to enter in to longer correspondence if that's what you're after. Waiting a while for a reply is rarely a problem as I think pretty much all of us have several penpals so are never short of a letter to reply to!

[Morgaine]

My average postcard travel time is 24 days and 29 days receiving, for China (Postcrossing stats). I wonder if it would help you if you enclose a label with your address in Chinese characters. I try to reply within a fortnight of receiving a letter (although recently, that has gone up to a month).

I joined Postcrossing when I wasn't getting replies to letters I sent out via some penpal sites. Although I do like all the postcards I have received, a postcard in general isn't as satisfying as a letter. I haven't sent many postcards recently and I am missing receiving them.

[caribbean_skye]

I guess it depends on what you want out of it. There is always something wonderful about receiving personal mail and for some they dont want to have to respond, where others like the on-going conversation. Only you can decide for yourself what mixture of the two you would like. as Holsworth mentioned, InCo pals and Did you correspond today threads are fairly active with members who write regularly. If that is something you are interested in, I would suggest filling out your profile, introducing yourself in the new members thread and participating in either/both of those threads.

As a side note, there are a number of us who always seem to have a stack of letters to reply to, so dont feel as though you wont get a response, it may take us some time. If you start off writing to a lot, you may soon find yourself with the opposite issue, more letters than time to respond.

[Nashtah]

My average postcard travel time is 24 days and 29 days receiving, for China (Postcrossing stats). I wonder if it would help you if you enclose a label with your address in Chinese characters. I try to reply within a fortnight of receiving a letter (although recently, that has gone up to a month).

I joined Postcrossing when I wasn't getting replies to letters I sent out via some penpal sites. Although I do like all the postcards I have received, a postcard in general isn't as satisfying as a letter. I haven't sent many postcards recently and I am missing receiving them.

I must ask if you have tested the address in Chinese characters theory. I ask as when I tested it I found that if the English address worked, that only the address in English had the fastest had the fastest delivery.

[Nashtah]

As a side note, there are a number of us who always seem to have a stack of letters to reply to, so dont feel as though you wont get a response, it may take us some time. If you start off writing to a lot, you may soon find yourself with the opposite issue, more letters than time to respond.

The question of how you get reply is that in the last 12 months I have sent out over 250 letters and postcard yet have received 15 pieces in reply. As such I feel that I need; one to find a to find a different site for penpal a month of letter( about the same as InCoWriMo also in the month of February) and two I would like to know if there is something I can do to move my ratio of sent to reply closer to 5:1.

Thank you

[Morgaine]

My average postcard travel time is 24 days and 29 days receiving, for China (Postcrossing stats). I wonder if it would help you if you enclose a label with your address in Chinese characters. I try to reply within a fortnight of receiving a letter (although recently, that has gone up to a month).

I joined Postcrossing when I wasn't getting replies to letters I sent out via some penpal sites. Although I do like all the postcards I have received, a postcard in general isn't as satisfying as a letter. I haven't sent many postcards recently and I am missing receiving them.

I must ask if you have tested the address in Chinese characters theory. I ask as when I tested it I found that if the English address worked, that only the address in English had the fastest had the fastest delivery.

I haven't tested this but some people, especially away from the big cities (not Beijing/Shanghai...) have said that having the address in Chinese characters has helped (read this somewhere on the Postcrossing forum last year or before that).

[Morgaine]

As a side note, there are a number of us who always seem to have a stack of letters to reply to, so dont feel as though you wont get a response, it may take us some time. If you start off writing to a lot, you may soon find yourself with the opposite issue, more letters than time to respond.

The question of how you get reply is that in the last 12 months I have sent out over 250 letters and postcard yet have received 15 pieces in reply. As such I feel that I need; one to find a to find a different site for penpal a month of letter( about the same as InCoWriMo also in the month of February) and two I would like to know if there is something I can do to move my ratio of sent to reply closer to 5:1.

Thank you

I've tried various sites - have had no longlasting correspondence via Interpals. I have some good penfriends from Postcrossing forum but still also a high ratio of "failure"

[mtnbiker62]

I can't speak for anyone else, but I much prefer to correspond with someone who is willing to share and who teaches me things. I have some penpals who write very superficial letters, and others who tell me about their lives or interests or family or where they live, etc. I much prefer the latter over the former, and am more willing to continue corresponding with them. I participated in InCoWriMo this year, and got about 15 penpals out of it. Right now, I am still corresponding on a regular basis with 8-10 of them, which is really nice. I would like to add a few more to the rotation, however. For me, about 15 people is just about right. That way, I can usually get each one of them a letter a month. If I write any more than that, I find myself repeating things I've already written to them about.

[alc3261]

I write both letters and postcards to family and friends (about 35) yet only four write in in reply except for when I travel in the summer all receive one or more pieces of post a month. They post on Facebook that they enjoyed the post or so I am informed when speaking to family but I lack both a Facebook account and the firewall of China (where I live and work) blocks Facebook. I mainly send postcard due to both lack of knowledge of my family and dislike of writing lenghtly monologues as I feel that my live is nothing big and feel that writing about my thoughts on books and the like is pointless as I never hear back.

As you are writers are longer letters more likely to receive replys or should I be content with the one direction of mail flow. In order to receive mail I joined postcrossing I find it in no way to be as fulfilling as receiving letters from those which reply. Do you know of any way to receive more mail form those who would like conversations which can only that place in two way mail? I tried writing to people for a month of letters yet replys are only a single reply. I question if the long wait of about sixty days for a letter to travel both to me and the reply by mail is the main problem. Are letters more likely than postcards to receive reply?

Thank you

I'd be happy to write to you from the UK if you like?
I am a very reliable correspondent!!

[Waski_the_Squirrel]

I like to get correspondence or some kind of acknowledgement back. They don't even have to use a fountain pen!

If I don't get a response back, I usually don't keep writing. Right now, the exception to this is my brother. He says he enjoys getting the letters, though he has never once responded to one. I've been considering giving him a pen and paper for christmas as a hint. (Nothing too expensive.) He doesn't even E-mail back.

[mtnbiker62]

I am also a very reliable correspondent, and would love to have a few more pen pals. If you are interested, PM me for my address. I try to write one letter per month to my consistent pen pals.

[ypsilanti]

The question of how you get reply is that in the last 12 months I have sent out over 250 letters and postcard yet have received 15 pieces in reply. As such I feel that I need; one to find a to find a different site for penpal a month of letter( about the same as InCoWriMo also in the month of February) and two I would like to know if there is something I can do to move my ratio of sent to reply closer to 5:1.

Thank you

PM me your address and I will send you a letter.

[VertOlive]

Nashtah, you've come to the right place! Post or PM your address around here and you'll see the ink start to fly!

[caribbean_skye]

if youre curious about ink colours you may see some letters written in those colours

[mtnbiker62]

Your letter was received yesterday, and a reply will be in tomorrow's mail.

[Nashtah]

Thanks a ton

[VertOlive]

Nashtha, I just tonight got one from you, wondering when you sent it?

[Nashtah]

Two to three weeks ago
The day after the date of the letter is when I sent it

[00Photo]

When ever I send out a letter I just assume the recipient assumes I am mentally unstable, based on the cartoons, mis-spelled words, and random incoherent rants, and will never reply. When I do receive replies I am genuinely surprised.