Sponsor Challenge Update: Sakura of America

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“To me, writing a letter is thinking about the past, writing a note in the present and sending it off for someone to receive in the future. A letter can travel through both space and time and that is pretty cool to think about.”

We sat down with Michaela of Sakura of America, a Write_On sponsor, to get a feel for how the 30 day challenge was going! Be sure to check out the rest of our Sponsor Challenge Updates after this. 

Write_On:  How many years have you participated in Write_On? 

Michaela:  This is my third year participating and I couldn’t be more thrilled!

Write_On:  What does your letter-writing habit usually look like? 

Michaela:  I don’t write as often as I’d like, but I do enjoy writing cards for the holidays along with our family photo and thank you notes to let people know just how grateful I am for their generous gifts. I also really like lettering and sending “Congratulations!” cards for graduates, friends who work hard and get promotions or new jobs, or if anyone is expanding their family – weddings, babies, even new pets. I have been really into hand lettering so sending a letter I also a good excuse for me to practice and decorate my envelopes. 

Write_On:   How's it going? How many letters have you written? Are you trying to write daily?

Michaela:  I have been pretty diligent about writing my cards and it has been so nice to have a good excuse to send out “I am thinking of you just because….” cards. It’s like sending a hug! I have 15 cards mailed out, although some days I am playing catch up and write 2 in a day.

Write_On:  What do you find most difficult about writing a letter?

Michaela:  Making the time has been tough! Since I have a new baby, it’s been hard going out to dinner with friends or socializing like I used to. Sending cards that just say “Hello! I’m still okay and I’m thinking of you” have actually been pretty fun to write. As a busy person, it’s easy to come up with excuses of why there isn’t time to connect with people. But Write On has shown me it’s actually quite easy to sit down, have a thoughtful moment, and reach out to a friend.

Write_On:  What's been your favorite thing about Write_On so far? 

Michaela:  I’ve had a lot of fun coordinating pens with cards. Working for a pen company is a nice perk because any color I need is right at my fingertips. It’s also been so wonderful seeing all of the posts of Instagram and seeing how excited people are just sending letters. This simple act seems to bring a lot of joy to people – both the sender and recipient. It makes me feel really happy to have the job I do. I get to spread the word about pens for people to express themselves in a colorful and unique way. 

Write_On:  How have hand-written letters shaped your life and relationships?

Michaela:  I would write long letters to my parents when I first started college, when email was still a bit new and they hadn’t gotten the hang of it yet. I would write down my intentions for the semester, check in on them and let them know how I was doing. My mom would write back and send care packages, which was so comforting to receive when I was homesick. I would post her cards up and look at them when I was studying. It was nice to see her penmanship and have a piece of home in my new place. It was just a bit more special than a phone call. We all still have those notes saved.

When my boyfriend (now husband) and I were first living together we were both working odd hour jobs and going to grad school so often times we were just two ships passing in the night. We would leave silly notes about chores or to-dos for each other. But he would always leave a nice love note along with his updates. It made me feel really special and appreciated. I still have a lot of those notes in a keepsake box.

This past year when we had our baby we received so many well wishing cards from friends and family. I am keeping them for when he is older to let him know how many people we excited for his arrival.

Write_On: What’s the best advice you’ve ever received about letter-writing?

Michaela:  That letter writing is like a meditation. It is an opportunity to sit and slow down in the crazy busy world of ours and just reflect. To me, writing a letter is thinking about the past, writing a note in the present and sending it off for someone to receive in the future. A letter can travel through both space and time and that is pretty cool to think about.

Write_On:  What’s the next letter you’re planning to write?

Michaela:  I plan on writing a note to my mom and let her know how helpful and kind she has been to me as a new mom. I appreciate her now more than ever! And even though I tell her all the time, I think it would be nice for her to hold something in her hands that lets her know just how grateful I am to have her.

LA Pen Pal Club

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“Whenever you’re thinking of someone and wish to let them know, try writing your sentiments in a letter or card. The experience you’ll have and the impression you’ll make will be so personal and cherished. ”

We sat down with Victoria of LA Pen Pal Club and asked her a few questions about what sparked the idea and where she see the future of letter-writing heading. Be sure to check out the rest of our Q&As after this. 


Write_On: Tell us about yourself! What's your background and what inspired you to start the LA Pen Pal Club?

Victoria: Pen Pal Club was originally one of the clubs held at Reform School. There I met Margaret Haas, who organized the Pen Pal Club meetings. She and I (of Paper Pastries and Paper & Type, respectively) grew to be friends, and we kept in touch by letter when she moved away for a while. Upon her return she was eager to reestablish the club and invited me to help co-host. So, LA Pen Pal Club began (again). 

Write_On: Describe the Club. How often does it meet, and what happens during a typical meeting? Do you pick a theme? Read each other's letters? Provide writing prompts? How many members do you have?

Victoria: Anywhere from 5 to 15 attendees—a mix of regulars and new—fill our seats each month. There is space for members to quietly write, or to engage in conversation and show-and-tell of recent mail and postage finds. And while we don't direct the meetings in any particular way, we do provide a spread of stationery and supplies.

Meetings are usually held at Margaret's stationery studio/shop, but we're portable! We recently brought our club over to Announcement LA, an event and co-working space.

Write_On:  How have hand-written letters impacted your life and relationships? Why is having a Pen Pal Club important to you?

Victoria:  Letter writing has always been my primary way of staying in touch with faraway friends, so I very much treasure this practice. I enjoy the pace of connection through letter writing. And I appreciate the openness and intimacy and relief that it allows as well. With letter writing being such a personal activity, LA Pen Pal Club provides a welcoming, dedicated space to gather with others who also endeavor to keep handwritten correspondence. It's good for the soul, and refreshing! Plus, I get to spend some time with Margaret.  ;) 

Write_On:  What does your letter-writing practice look like? How often do you write, and what types of letters do you write most often? What do you do for inspiration and to make time and space for letter-writing?

Victoria:  I keep a small folder stocked with essentials: stationery, postage, strips of washi tape, and my Letter Ledger. I enjoy writing away from my desk whenever possible—at the park or in a coffee shop or wherever I may be with an extra moment—so this kit comes in handy. I try to write once a week or every other week, whether it be a few (post)cards or one longer letter. My pen pals and the LA Pen Pal Club keep me inspired. I love seeing each person's unique way of starting out a letter or addressing an envelope. Simple pleasures!

Write_On:  Modern times have made digital correspondence increasingly available and convenient. Why is it important for people to send handwritten cards and letters?

Victoria:  Handwritten correspondence brings delight, comfort, or pause. It's become extra meaningful and it's less fleeting than other forms of communication.

Write_On:  When is it better to send a letter than an e-mail, phone call, or text?

Victoria:  While it's easy to email and text Thank you or I miss you, a handwritten note means the sender took time to focus care from his or her heart to pen to paper to envelope and into your hands and eyes and heart. Whenever you're thinking of someone and wish to let them know, try writing your sentiments in a letter or card. The experience you'll have and the impression you'll make will be so personal and cherished. 

Write_On:  What's the best advice you've ever received about letter-writing?

Victoria:  This is more from my observation, but: send postcards! They're the simplest way to get into the habit of sending mail. And the postcards needn't be from faraway places; local cafés and boutiques often have fun postcard takeaways you can use to send to your pen pals.  

Write_On: What's the next letter you're planning to write?

Victoria:  I owe a thank you note to a dear friend!

Photography: LA Pen Pal Club

WRITE_ON + BUILD

Write_On brings letter-writing to college and elementary school students

We're super excited to introduce you to one of the Write_On's 2016 non-profit partners, BUILD (Berkeley United in Literacy Development). BUILD is one of the largest literacy programs in San Francisco's East Bay, with UC Berkeley mentor teams providing one-to-one literacy support to 21 after school locations in the Berkeley and Oakland public schools.  We’ve donated over 600 cards, generously provided by Write_On sponsor Chronicle Books. 250 college mentors will be writing and helping 600 elementary school students write their own letters this month.

On Friday, April 8, Sabrina Moyle of Hello!Lucky and Tess Darrow of Egg Press visited BUILD at UC Berkeley to introduce Write_On to over 50 college student mentors.

We were curious to see what the response to letter-writing would be from 18 - 21 year-olds, who’ve grown up with social media and have probably written very few letters so far in their lives. We were pleasantly surprised!

One BUILD mentor shared how she had written a letter to her future self when she was 13 and had opened it recently; it was really meaningful.  Letters are in fact a way we can connect the dots of different phases of our lives.  The choices we make and the experiences we have at each life stage influence and build the foundation for future phases, so visualizing and setting intentions for the future or coming full circle to the past through a letter-writing can be an illuminating, satisfying exercise.

Another BUILD mentor shared how one of her scholars (what BUILD calls student mentees) had written a thank you note to a children's book author.  The author is passionate about creating children's books that reflect diversity and had donated several of her books to the scholar’s school. They are hoping that the author will write back!

Sabrina reflected on how she had first met her college roommate through letters. She recalled receiving her first letter from someone named Laura Christian in Katonah, New York, and how much she learned about her future friend just through the form of her handwriting and the things she chose to express.  There was an unraveling sense of mystery as she and her future roommate exchanged letters, and their friendship continued to grow organically. Fast forward to the present and they are still best friends, about to attend their 20 year college reunion. Sabrina shared that she had just written a new letter to her, reflecting on how much her friendship had meant and expressing appreciation about all the aspects she admires in her former roommate.  Even though they see each other regularly and communicate by text and email, the letter gave her a way to pull up from the day-to-day and reflect on the bigger picture. What is it like to meet your college roommate for the first time, today, she wondered?  Is it a flood of Facebook and social media information?  Does it remove some of the mystery and intimacy of developing a unique one-on-one relationship over time?

We exchanged tips about letter-writing with children:

+ Ask open-ended "who, what, when, why, where" questions like:  Who matters most to you in your life?  Why are they your friend?  What do like most about them?  Can you remember a time they did something kind for you? How did it make you feel?

+ Encourage them to write on a piece of paper and then tape the finished draft into a card.  Children who are learning to write often need a few tries before they are happy with the result.

+ Let them know it's okay to mess-up and either scratch out your mistake in a "beautiful oops" (to quote best-selling children's book author Barney Saltzberg), or start again.

+ Keep a positive, open-minded, low-pressure attitude. Letter-writing is fun and gives you a chance to make yourself and the recipient feel good - it's not an obligation.

+ Write to an adult who is likely to write back.

+ Mentors could write a letter to their mentees about child and what they appreciate about him / her, and perhaps about their hopes and dreams for them -- to be either delivered now or in the future.

Big huge thanks to Carrie Donnovan and Rosa Ortega for coordinating our partnership with BUILD!  We’ll be sure to share any images and stories about the BUILD team’s Write_On adventures over the rest of the month!

Postcrossing Giveaway!

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Today, Write_On is very excited to be partnering with Postcrossing on a giveaway! Postcrossing is a project that allows people to receive postcards from all over the world. By sending a postcard you can turn your mailbox into a box of surprises and meet new people from all over the world. In February they reached 34 million postcards sent -- what an awesome movement!

Head on over to the Postcrossing blog to enter to win a collection of stationery supplies from the likes of Social Preparedness Kit, Gelly Roll Pens from Sakura, Chronicle Books, and the generous Write_On sponsors.

Designer Q&A: Red Cap Cards

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“Connection through hand written letters in invaluable, we should all do it more often….”

We sat down with Carrie Gifford of Red Cap Cards and asked her a few questions about how she got started and where she see the future of letter-writing heading. Be sure to check out the rest of our Designer Q&As after this.

Write_On: Tell us about yourself!  What’s your background and what drew you to design cards and stationery?

Carrie: When Hal and I started Red Cap Cards I was directing children’s theater and Hal was running a coffee roasting company. We always wanted work together and had a lot of ideas brewing at the same time. In 2005 were playing with 3 business ideas. A brewing company (Hal’s a beverage man), a toy company ( I was making dolls) and last a card company. Long story short… our future was in the cards.  

Write_On: How would you describe your design aesthetic?

Carrie: Our cards are art driven. I have a storytelling background and I tend to curate art of this nature. The artist that we work with are animators, painters, designers and illustrators that all have a distinctive look and an amazing capability to tell a story in one picture.

Write_On: How do you use your designs to inspire people to connect in writing?

Carrie: I think when people find our cards they are inspired by the art. They see a story that’s familiar or intriguing and make it their own. They want to share what they’ve discovered and they sit down and write. I love how our cards can trigger a memory or create a dream world that people want to connect through.

Write_On: What does your process look like for creating a new card or stationery design?

Carrie: It all begins with the artist that we are working with. Every artist is different so the process is always changing. Our goal is always the same, to support our artists in creating work that they love. We typically give our artists minimal direction in the beginning, such as an occasion to help inspire a story or perhaps a general story concept, then we let the artist create what they feel. Creating art for greeting cards is not as easy as it seems. We often receive beautiful artwork, but then you have to figure out how to turn it into a card. That can be tricky.

Write_On: How have hand-written letters shaped your life and relationships? 

Carrie: All I can say is that anytime I’ve ever sat down to write a letter it’s always felt amazing. I think the process of sharing our feelings with someone through pen and paper is a healing meditation and a great habit.

Write_On: What do you find most difficult about writing a letter?

Carrie: These days it’s just the discipline of sitting down to write. 

Write_On: What does your letter-writing practice look like? 

Carrie: Well it’s not as creative as it was when I was in 7th grade. Boy, those were the days. The amount of time and effort I put into writing was beyond! I must have written a million letters a day. Not to mention I had pen pals. Do you remember having those? I had a teacher that set us up with complete strangers in other countries and we’d write to them every week. How awesome is that. It makes my current letter writing process seem very sad. That’s why I’m looking forward to your challenge!

Write_On: Modern times have made digital correspondence increasingly available and convenient. Why is it important for people to send handwritten cards and letters? 

Carrie: Recently my Dad passed away and I found a box in his desk with all the letters and cards I had written to him over the years. Each letter was a bit different. I thanked him for money, I wished him a happy birthday, I reminded him of favorite childhood memories, but in each letter at some point I always express my love and gratitude for him and my mom. As I read each letter I realized how important they were to him and how grateful I was that I took the time to sitdown and let him know how I felt. Connection through hand written letters in invaluable, we should all do it more often….

Write_On: What’s the best advice you’ve ever received about letter-writing?

Carrie: Not to edit. To let go and free flow. 

Write_On: What’s the next letter you’re planning to write?

Carrie: I think it’s time to send a love letter to my husband. It’s been a long time and I think it’s overdue.

Live Well, Write On!

One evening, 100 people, and 100+ letters

Last Thursday evening, over a hundred people gathered at Coffee Bar in San Francisco’s Mission District to do something unusual: write letters.  Hosted by the Write_On Campaign and The Dinner Party, the event was called “Live Well, Write_On” and invited people to reconnect and deepen their connections through the written word.

As guests of all ages, backgrounds, and persuasions entered the room, they found group writing tables set up by theme:  Thank you, I love you, Please forgive me / I forgive you, and Sympathy.  Each table was stocked with stationery, pens, and writing prompts.

Sabrina Moyle of Hello!Lucky kicked off the program with a welcome and background on the Write_On Campaign. Launched in 2014 when Tess Darrow of Egg Press challenged herself to write 30 letters in 30 days, Write_On has grown into a national movement. This year, we’re giving away 10,000 free letter-writing card kits and thousands more free cards, thanks to sponsors Sakura of America, Mohawk Paper, Chronicle Books and nine independent card studios.  People worldwide, ranging from people who grew up writing letters to kids in the public schools, are taking up the challenge to bring back letter-writing.

Why?  

Sabrina observed that in today’s world, we have more social connections than ever but many of them have taken on a superficial, performative quality. Handwritten letters provide a way to deepen relationships, to say things that would be too awkward or embarrassing to say on social media or in person. They are private. They are personal. They are permanent. She went on to share three personal examples: of her six year-old son’s letter to a homeless man, a funeral where a letter written to the deceased was at the center of the service, and a letter she had just written to her college roommate, whom she had first met by letter.

Lennon Flowers of The Dinner Party, a non-profit organization that brings together 20- and 30-somethings over potluck dinners to talk about loss and life after, then gave her own examples of why letter-writing is important. She spoke about a friend of theirs by the name of Dr. Ira Byock, one of the world's leading palliative care doctors. After decades spent working with patients living with advanced illness and their families, Dr. Byock found that there are just four messages that patients wanted to say and hear at the end of their lives: “thank you,” “I love you,” “I’m sorry,” and “I forgive you.” What better way to express those messages than in a handwritten letter? And what better time than now? To write a letter, she observed, you don’t need an address. Each year, one of The Dinner Party’s members goes down to the beach, opens a bottle of beer and writes a letter to her dad, who was a surfer.  She then puts the letter in the bottle, and tosses it out to sea.  

Guests then got to watch Dear You, a short video of people reading letters they’ve written and received and were treated to readings by Shelby Cowell (author of the blog Future Stella, I Love You), Eliana Bruna (826 Valencia), Eva Silverman, and Christina Tran.

More than one hundred letters were written that evening. As participant Bobbie Pinto noted, "I aways knew I liked writing letters. Now I understand WHY".

Join the Write_On Campaign at www.writeoncampaign.com and #Write_On. Our next San Francisco event, The Last Letter, will be on April 28th from 5 - 7 p.m. at Chronicle Books and will feature Letters to My… author Lea Redmond. Find out about more Write_on events here.

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Love letter to Pam

We received an anonymous Write_On submission that we just couldn't pass up sharing...


About 30 + years ago the mother of a school-friend died rather suddenly and, after clearing out her things, the daughter asked if I would like all her old dressmaking patterns and hoard of fabric. They were a well-to-do family and the mother was always effortlessly elegant and soignée and here were some beautiful items of both pattern and fabric from the 1950's when she had been a debutante.

Some years later when I went to use one of the patterns I found this letter inside the Lanvin Castillo design. 

I've no idea if anyone ever knew of the admirer/lover, somehow it's more poignant not knowing - a little touch of Madame Bovary or a sub-plot from a Trollope or Dickens novel.

-Anonymous

Designer Q&A: Fugu Fugu Press

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“I love it when I receive a letter and it tells me something about that person I didn’t know about.”

We sat down with Shino of Fugu Fugu Press and asked her a few questions about how she got started and where she sees the future of letter-writing heading. Be sure to check out the rest of our Designer Q&As after this. 

Write_On: Tell us about yourself!  What’s your background and what drew you to design cards and stationery?

Shino: I was an illustration major at a college, then a freelance illustrator for a number of years when I started working for my friends who owned a letterpress greeting cards company.

Write_On:  How would you describe your design aesthetic?

Shino: I love Scandinavian designs, vintage children’s book and advertising illustrations, and Japanese character designs.  My Japanese upbringing definitely shows through when I design our cards. I try to design cards that communicate immediately, and evokes some sort of emotion.  They tend to be more of ‘illustrations’ than ‘designs’.

Write_On: How do you use your designs to inspire people to connect in writing?

Shino: My hope is that people see our cards and somehow make them think of specific people in their lives, and inspire people to send the cards.  When I design, I usually have specific person in my mind for that particular design.

Write_On: What does your process look like for creating a new card or stationery design?

Shino: I have so many papers and half-filled sketch books lying around everywhere - printshop, computer desk, dining table, on a night stand… I brain storm constantly. Once I have a rough idea, I sketch it out, and sometimes do a finished drawing to scan it into Photoshop, or I re-create the image in Illustrator, depending on what feels right.  

Write_On:  How have hand-written letters shaped your life and relationships?

I used to write long letters all the time to my friends when I was a kid.  My family and I moved around within Japan and then from Japan to Texas when I was 13, and there was no Skype or email then, so I wrote.  I’d check the mailbox everyday to see if my friends wrote back.  Then when I started college in California, the rest of my family moved back to Japan, so again, I wrote to them.  My mom would send care packages, I still have many of the letters my mom sent to me from those days.  After college, some of my friends and I sent little comics to each other about what’s going on in our lives.  I still have those as well, and they crack me up.  We were pretty silly.  I also made zines for a short while, and it was exciting for me to receive letters from total strangers requesting to purchase them.  I think I sold them for something like $3 each.

Write_On:  What do you find most difficult about writing a letter?  

Shino: It’s really weird, because I used to LOVE writing letters, and now I don’t know what to write about!!  

Write_On: What does your letter-writing practice look like?

Shino: I still write to my friend from college (she is an avid letter-writer and a mix CD sender), but other than that, they’re pretty limited to writing notes to our customers and also birthday and Christmas cards to friends and family.

Write_On: Modern times have made digital correspondence increasingly available and convenient. Why is it important for people to send handwritten cards and letters?

Shino: Both personally and professionally, a hand-written note or memo immediately makes whatever that’s written so much more personal.  When I receive a hand written note, I can imagine the person behind the writing.  Not as much with emails or texts.

Write_On:  What’s the best advice you’ve ever received about letter-writing?

Shino: I don’t remember if I ever received any advice about writing letters.. but I love it when I receive a letter and it tells me something about that person I didn’t know about. So I try to do the same when I write to other people.

Write_On: What’s the next letter you’re planning to write?

Shino: To that college friend/pen pal. I owe her a response.