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For a long time now, I've been writing letters both email and snail mail. I've noticed that some things work better than others. Perhaps this won't be useful to many people, but just for fun, here are some tips for better letter-writing:

1. First, be positive. Letters are more enjoyable to read when they have a cheerful feeling. Of course we all have our hard times, but there is always something good to write about as well, such as the color of the sky or a wonderful friend. So, when writing about hard or sad times, don't forget to be positive and end with good thoughts. You'd be surprised by the difference it makes.

2. Questions are a wonderful letter writing tool. They show that you are interested in someone else's life; they also help people who have a hard time thinking of what to write about. So, ask enough questions to keep the conversation going, but don't ask *too* many. Questions are like the frosting on a cake. They are good, but don't forget the cake. :)

3. Most people have an easier time reading and understanding what you have to say, if you use punctuation and both capital and lowercase letters. If you don't believe that this is true, try speed reading something in all caps with no punctuation and see how fast you can understand what's being said.

4. Share real experiences. Sure, a real friend would like to know what you look like, how many people are in your family and the name of your dog and goldfish, but real friends go beyond the basics. They cry together, laugh together and most importantly, they are "real" together. Write about what you saw, but also what you felt in different experiences. Deep sharing creates deep friendships!

I am sure there are more letter writing tips that would be useful to have on this page, but I can't think of any at present. If you have some suggestions of your own, please email them to me.

Written by Stephanie Billings
Email your comments and suggestions to: sbillings@wband.com