Letter Writing In The Age Of Technology

Communication has taken on a new era with computers, smart phones, texting, and email. When was the last time you actually wrote, or received a personal letter? Other than a few thank you notes here and there, I can’t remember.

When I was young, I went to sleep-away camp. Shopping for the perfect stationery and pen to tuck into my camp trunk was a treat. We had a designated letter/journal writing time after lunch. When in the bunk lights went out, the flashlights would glow, and the girls would write letters to their family and friends. At the end of the summer, we exchanged addresses and became pen pals.

This New York Times article, The Fading Art of Letter Writing sums it up the feelings:

“A good handwritten letter is a creative act, and not just because it is a visual and tactile pleasure. It is a deliberate act of exposure, a form of vulnerability, because handwriting opens a window on the soul in a way that cyber communication can never do. You savor their arrival and later take care to place them in a box for safe keeping.”

Technology Takes Over

The average teenager sends 3,339 texts per month! Check out the rest of the eye-popping statistics in this CNN article.

I know, I know, blame the latest technology. I am a lover of technology – the amount of time I spend on the computer is massive. But, maybe that’s why I’m longing for a different tactile communicative experience – one that involves puts pen to paper.

3 Ways to Inspire Letter Writing (with the help of technology):

1. Letterheady is an online homage to offline correspondence; specifically letters. The focus of Letterheady is design. They recently reached 10,000 followers and the site is delightful to explore.

2. Letters of Note Letters of Note gathers and sorts fascinating letters, postcards, telegrams, faxes, and memos.

3. Design*Sponge’s DIY Feather Pen Pal Stationery Kit

Do you still write letters? What happened to the finely tuned art of writing a letter? As handwritten notes and stationery take a nose-dive, should personalized letters be ditched in the face of all the new technology? In the digital age, can we rekindle that flame? What will be the legacy of letter writing in a digital age?

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

ii q.

3:34PM PDT on May 2, 2012

even emailing is becoming obsolete already!

send a green star

Fred K.

11:38AM PST on Jan 16, 2012

This system in itself demonstrates the space limitation a little; wish they would add a character count script to this message system.
I'm far more comfortable choosing a font for a digitally editted letter, printing it and signing, then mailing that off (in a hand lettered envelope, because feeding envelopes through a printer is a chore unless you send a lot of them) vice taking too much time trying to make a letter make sense by hand. I guess it's the spirit of the age... and using spellcheck is fine but can we please also learn a little basic grammar if we're making more than colloquial messages?!?!

11:32AM PST on Jan 16, 2012

I guess I'm one of those who prefers email - prepaid via the ISP - to having to stick nearly half-dollar stamps on envelopes containing either tediously hand-printed or illegibly hand scripted letters. I prefer properly (Oxford, Webster, and/or Sydney are fine) spelled eMails; I tolerate unambiguously spelled ones, and detest those with gross and ambiguous spellings. While I can understand using 'abbreviated' spellings in messages on networks where length of message is severely limitted (like Q code on ham or 10 code on CB and police radio, the odd codes on Twatter let the communicants cram more drivel per post), I detest seeing it in messages where no such limits apply. Would it kill to spell 'you' vice 'u', 'great' vice 'gr8', or otherwise spell decently when space isn't at a premium?

As well, I sometimes like to edit my messages, and ink on paper isn't conducive to that. An eMail message is edittable bytes on a drive, unless I convert it to a printed letter after all my creation and editting, then hand sign it and envelope it to send for the excessive current postage rates via a slow and often erratic carrier system deteriorated from the once proud US Postal Service.

Like many people even in the 60s and 70s, I never developed a legible 'cursive' or 'connected' hand, only using a signature from that. I prefer to block print if I write by hand, it's legible, and never really got the hang of fast reading of cursive either, reading 'connected' script is a chore. I'm much

Francesca P.

4:05AM PST on Nov 9, 2011

I started pen palling at 11 years old, and now I have about 50 pals from all the world. I think it's a marvellous way to know other people. If all people could write to one far friend, knowing his life style, different from own, maybe world would be more peacefull. If you know someone different, you don't hate him.

Carol B.

7:37PM PST on Nov 7, 2011

I received a handmade Thank You card just a few days ago for flowers I gave for my friend's birthday. It was a pleasure to receive.

Sheela P.

6:47AM PDT on Oct 30, 2011

The Art of handwriting is almost forgotten.Even primary kids are into facebook & e-mail.technology is in & its always the I have no time syndrome.i`m sure snail mail letters & cards doo warm our hearts.We can only hope it dosen`t vanish altogether.

Anne B.

4:26AM PDT on Oct 30, 2011

I still send handwritten cards and notes to friends and family, but I admit that I also send many more emails. I treasure the handwritten correspondence I have received over the decades...but I suspect that with technology so prevalent, instant gratification from email and texting will win over snail mail more and more often...

Debbie L.

10:19PM PDT on Oct 25, 2011

I used to write letters for fun but now I don't know who to write to anymore. I do agree that I would prefer a letter any day over a email or text.

Tina H.

10:01AM PDT on Oct 25, 2011

I still like to write letters and send personal handmade cards, it tells people you care enough to take the time to actually write it out. It is way more personal and a much better keepsake than an e-mail.

Pradip C.

4:05AM PDT on Oct 25, 2011

I fully agree with your article - the technology has ruined the spelling ability, the grammer, the personal touch, the joy of sending and receiving letters, I remember fondly the exchange of letters frommy sister in London and we in India. She used to no, the letters and we used to do the same so that we know that we have not missed any. She used to compatment the air letter so that there was something to read for my father, mother and myself and of course everybody read everyones. Oh what a joy it was!!!!!!!