It is nearly February, and yet...

I am not as enthusiastic as I usually am at this time of year for the February letter writing "madness" - the letter writing projects A Month of Letters (LetterMo), and International Correspondence Writing Month (InCoWriMo). Maybe as I've been taking part in these from 2012, and am, I dunno, a little disappointed that out of so many of the 300+ people I've written to through these February projects, just shy of 50 have led to longer more meaningful correspondence (although some of those have faded away - one through moving, another through a not-great-postal service...), with over half of that 300+ having not responded at all.

Perhaps I should stop putting my heart & soul into these surprise letter. Should I do the equivalent of the bare minimum seen over at Postcrossing where the sender has, other than the address & postcard ID, only written, "Happy Postcrossing" and write nothing else? NO - because I wouldn't be "happy" to receive that outside of Postcrossing. Send the sort of thing you are happy to receive! It doesn't have to be much... e.g.

Seeing as you wrote that you like cats, I saw this cat card and thought you might like it. I hope you are well. Take care...

Even something as brief as that says something. 

And then there are those who write their entire biography/family history, with names of pets, siblings, parents, aunts/uncles, children, work history: all about them, perhaps even all printed out with very little to hook you into replying, or with generic questions you've already given answers to in an incowrimo disqus comment they'd have seen to get your address. I know, I'll send some of my favourite meat recipes to everyone I choose to write to, even if they've stated in their address/profile post that they are vegan!! 

So, I have not put my address up this time. However, it is up on LetterMo (restricted access), but I'm having to decline a few requests. I'm not sure if everyone actually reads the profiles of those requesting friendship (access for the postal address) as I've noticed one profile seeking addresses for someone incarcerated (written backwards and in background colour so to read, you need to highlight, for the crimes of: yhpargonrop dlihc, esuba xes dlihc according to a prisoner penpal site he has a profile on) has over 60 "friends" on the LM site.