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Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 2:59:05 PM

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It's not an officialy rant, because I am not really *upset*, but a little irritated and wonder if this is a fluke, or a sign of the new generation.
Let me preface this by saying that I am not accusing ANYONE who posts or reads here of this; if anything you are the counter to what I am talking about, because you actually take pleasure in reading and writing thoughts and opinions. But are you experiencing what I am about to describe also?

It seems that people online don't want to write letters. I call them letters, but I mean emails - it seems that emails and the idea of emails has been reduced to a series of a couple of lines, following by a request to go to IM. The IM format is better for the kind of dialogue people want, because it's back and forth and short and quick. Granted, that serves a purpose. But I enjoy reading and writing letters. The kind you sit down and compose, share thoughts and feelings, pontificate a little, ramble. Even a short email is fine - but some thoughts and feelings and ideas in those short lines would be nice.

Very few people seem -- well, verbose. Again, those reading/writing on collarchat are obviously the exception. So I assume that like me, you all like to read a long letter and respond to it. Or, is it just me? Is the preference to keep it short and sweet and get right to IM and phone? Is there any purpose for longer forms of communication?

Akasha

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:00:49 PM

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Oddly enough it wasn't very long ago I remember a thread or a comment on a thread complaining that so few people actually wrote real handwritten letters anymore.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:03:56 PM

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I *love* letters. I write many. Oftentimes not to send but to sort out what I think before I talk to someone.

I rarely jump to IM within the first ten emails, and find requests to "go to a faster form of communication" something that puts me off. It's like they don't have time to spend getting to know me, or something.

I've been guilty of one line emails, usually they are replies to one line emails. It's very hard to write a lot when you've got 4 words as a stimulus.

(in reply to AAkasha)

RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:09:16 PM

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I personally like to have both occurring if I am attempting to develop any kind of relationship with someone. I like the back and forth conversation of an IM or phone contact, as it gives me an idea of what it will be like to be in an intimate social setting with the individual. I also like to get and send extensive emails. I typically like these for times when I need to express a thought in depth or explore an issue that concerns me and prefer to receive these in turn for communication from others on significant topics.

I also like the quickie offlines and one liners that let me know someone has been thinking of me, and like to send them for the same reason. I do not want such things from someone from whom their thoughts of me mean nothing (strangers) as that feels more like stalking behavior than the warm fuzzies I desire.

I guess maybe I just love to communicate, in all it's forms as much as possible with people whose company I enjoy.

lovingpet

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:10:14 PM

RCdc

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When we first 'met', we wrote letters, sometimes incredibly long ones. Even after we began speaking on IM or telephone, we wrote. There is not real 'need' to write now as we live together, but we often send each other little loveydovey (or in Darcy's case, sometimes very explicit messages) via email or text.

the.dark.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:23:55 PM

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Yes, I have seen that unfortunate tendency as well. Been there, done that, got a blank t-shirt, as it were. Personally I think it has a lot to do with the current ADD generation. Everything must be fast and convenient. Don't read a book - get it on tape, that's assuming the people in question are interested in books at all. Letter writing seems to have gone the way of Thank You notes and such - yeah, I'm old-fashioned.

It is one of the things I enjoy about Collar Chat also. There is so much to be learned from a real letter or email - both about the subject under discussion and the writer. I've checked any number of profiles simply because I liked what they had to say, or how they said it, and wanted to see if we had anything else in common. Mind you, there is also much to be learned from someone's voice, and so on, but perhaps I just prefer to go more slowly. I wish people would write more in their personal 'introductory' emails as well. One line, and no details in your profile - Oooh, I'm fascinated.

I must confess, the temptation was there to reply to your post, AAkasha, and just say, "Yes", or "I agree" for the comedy value...

kay

(in reply to AAkasha)

RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:34:12 PM

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I still write (& read), it gives you more of a chance to edit what you are writing and be certain you get your point across. Granted, some e-mails are short and sweet, but again at least you have the opportunity to make yourself clear. Also you can hang onto a letter or e-mail for future reference, just in case you tend to forget an important detail now and then. IM...hmmm, I rarely would go to IM to communicate with anyone. I'm not much more fond of a phone call either, actually. Instant thoughts in either case and then it's done. If someone insisted that the only way they wanted to talk to me was on IM , I'm afraid the communication might be rare to nonexistent at that point.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 3:40:10 PM

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Hello all,
I write letters - the real kind. In fact I give a workshop on that very thing. One of the exercises I have people do is look out the window and describe what they see. What they say tells a person a lot. If they say "nothing" or "just a bunch of trees", well I know they are not for me. I want someone who is alive and passionate and notices beauty everywhere.
peace,
sunshine

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:05:26 PM

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As Bob Dylan once said, "Oh the times, they are a changing."...often a lot faster than we like.

I never could write longhand for any length of time because my hand and wrist would cramp up making my writing just about illegible. I took two years of typing in high school (because it was an easy course!) and got my first typewriter as a graduation present. Last year my dad died and as we were going through his things we came across that old typewriter that he had hung on to for all these years. My sister's grandkids, about 5 and 9 years old, had to ask what it was. They had never seen such a thing!

From typewriters I moved on to a word processor and used that for several years not only to write actual snail mail letters, but to store other forms of writing that I have worked on such as music lyrics and science fiction. I still have those old 3.5 floppy disks that they are written on, but no longer have any way to access them after selling the word processor since it was in a totally different format from anything else I have been able to find.

Finally....oh....about 10 years ago I guess, I finally graduated to a computer. Still used it for writing my snail mail since at that time I still knew a lot of people that did not have computers for sending email or using messenger. And I wrote quite a bit of snail mail. But email was taking over as more and more people went online. Along with email came yahoo messenger along with the other messenger formats. As much as I enjoyed using Messenger I still wrote quite a few emails since without the back and forth chatter it was easier to keep my mind focused on a single issue rather than to be interupted every few seconds with a different item to respond to. Often I would chat with someone for a while, then have to go write them an email to fill in the gaps of the things that got glossed over (or just forgotten) in the chat discussion.

I still write the occasional email, mostly for business purposes and to correspond with those people that simply will not talk via messenger. It has been years, I think, since I last sent any snail mail that wasn't simply a bill being paid.

Now, with the national and even international long distance charges being dropped from many cell phone companies, and the on-the-go text messages of the "modern" era even things like email and messenger chat are moving down that road to being "things of the past". In another 35 years are kids going to look at peresonal computers and ask, "What is that?" It's very possible.

I think that there will always be those that want to write, as long as there are those that enjoy reading. Times when a loved one is not available to talk to or "chat" with are great times to sit down and write a lengthy letter sharing your thoughts, feelings, and experiences, just so you are feeling closer to them.

So what does all of this have to do with the OP? Hell, I don't know. I guess what I am saying is that as technology changes so will our forms and lengths of communication. But yes, I do think there will always be a way or place for people that do like to write and read long letters regardless of what form the reading and writing might be done in.

(in reply to RCdc)

RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:06:35 PM

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I don't like to write letters. I do it when I have to, but never just to chat. If I want to talk to someone, then I call them.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:15:05 PM

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I prefer long emails or long handwritten letters. I have an IM but very few people get the name with the exception of close friends who live in different areas of the state. Even then, we often exchange very lengthy emails and letters between us. None of us care very much for the use of a telephone

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:25:24 PM

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I collect stamps and so love receiving letters and always reply. Online friendships have moved to postage, and exchange of gifts, and ultimately meeting when travel could be arranged.

(in reply to AAkasha)

RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:36:45 PM

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Email is an excellent way to communicate, backspace is better than scratching through or rewriting. I seriously doubt that the younger generations will ever return to the hand-written letters. There is some sadness in that of course.

I sincerely hope that text message formatted letters don't become more prevalent. I think I'll call that t-bonics. Down with t-bonics!!! How many profiles have you read with words like 'ur' in them? When I read them I immediately hide them so I don't have to trip on them in the future. Okay, I'm done. I have fairly small rants, which I'm sure many will be thankful for.

Dolf

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:48:53 PM

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    I agree with some previous posters , that someone wanting to move instantly to IM's is abit of a turn-off . To me , it does feel as though the one initiating doesn't really care about taking the time to know me as a person first , or they simply have little to say about themselves - or lack the writing skills to say much .   None of which , I find particularly compelling .

     I find I am lured by, and most likely to respond to , well crafted introductory notes . And that once a dialog is established , I delight in the gradual personal disclosures contained in a regular exchange of words .   One can learn much about someone by how they answer inquiries , or describle themselves and their lives , or what questions they choose to ask .    Their moods , their general outlook , compassion , intelligence , confidence , sense of humor ( or lack therof ) , is all revealed over time .
        And no - I don't believe in writing exclusively for months on end - but if there is an easy flow between people for a couple weeks or so , it seems to lead naturally to a desire for more - IM , phone , and hopefully - eventual meeting .
      Good communication in general is so important - especially in the Bdsm arena - I feel if I can't communicate well with someone by simply writing here , it does not bode well for any sort of solid future .

       Writing can be seductive , informative , funny , erotic , reassuring - it rocks !

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 4:54:04 PM

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I hate giving out my screen name to just anyone because when someone sends me an IM, I feel compelled to respond right then and there or appear rude. If I'm deep in concentration or working hard on something, IM's are a total annoyance. Get enough people sending instant messages and I'll never get anything done. At least with email, I can respond on my own time or lets me think more about my reply first.

(in reply to AAkasha)

RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 8:03:30 PM

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quote:

ORIGINAL: AAkasha

It's not an officialy rant, because I am not really *upset*, but a little irritated and wonder if this is a fluke, or a sign of the new generation.
Let me preface this by saying that I am not accusing ANYONE who posts or reads here of this; if anything you are the counter to what I am talking about, because you actually take pleasure in reading and writing thoughts and opinions. But are you experiencing what I am about to describe also?

It seems that people online don't want to write letters. I call them letters, but I mean emails - it seems that emails and the idea of emails has been reduced to a series of a couple of lines, following by a request to go to IM. The IM format is better for the kind of dialogue people want, because it's back and forth and short and quick. Granted, that serves a purpose. But I enjoy reading and writing letters. The kind you sit down and compose, share thoughts and feelings, pontificate a little, ramble. Even a short email is fine - but some thoughts and feelings and ideas in those short lines would be nice.

Very few people seem -- well, verbose. Again, those reading/writing on collarchat are obviously the exception. So I assume that like me, you all like to read a long letter and respond to it. Or, is it just me? Is the preference to keep it short and sweet and get right to IM and phone? Is there any purpose for longer forms of communication?

Akasha

Most of my job entails writing. And in particular writing in a concise and clear manner, and thats translated into my approach towards emails. My owner on the other hand, is definitely more of a letter writer, which I actually enjoy, because I save some of his more private thoughts towards me and re-read them when I need a ray of light on a difficult day.

C~

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 10:24:20 PM

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quote:

ORIGINAL: tornaway

I agree with some previous posters , that someone wanting to move instantly to IM's is abit of a turn-off . To me , it does feel as though the one initiating doesn't really care about taking the time to know me as a person first , or they simply have little to say about themselves - or lack the writing skills to say much . None of which , I find particularly compelling .

I understand what you are saying, but to me moving to IM is a QUICKER way of getting to know someone because you have actual dialogue rather than exchanging monologues.

For Gobsmack, if you don't want to be interupted by the people on your IM list you COULD just turn it off, or if you have Yahoo Messenger you can log in as being "invisible" so that you appear offline to the people on your list. You also have the option to pick and choose which people can see that you are online. You can also block those that you permenantly don't want to her from. Just a thought.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 10:31:50 PM

Usako

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I know how to write a letter and don't mind doing it. But I also don't want to waste time sending countless long e-mails. If someone is local and interested in meeting, it's best to meet ASAP and see if the connection is there in person rather than spend time writing only to find out the spark was only limited to text.

Doesn't mean I'm a "wam bam thank you ma'am" type of person. But after a few e-mails, if they CAN entertain me enough in e-mails then IM makes things quicker pace. If they can handle a real time convo in IMs then it's the phone and then set something up. I've gotten to know too many people on line through tons of chatting only to find out it's not the same face to face. I'll send e-mails but anyone who can't move to IM after it obviously shows we enjoy conversing via e-mails probably isn't serious in meeting anytime soon; then they can stay just in e-mails and not bug me.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 10:50:21 PM

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Shrugs, how much I will write really depends on how much someone seems to empathize and spark my imagination.

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RE: Rant: Do people write letters anymore? - 8/26/2008 11:16:08 PM

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I found out, a few years ago, that most people seem to want a single sentence or two in an email.
They prefer a timely response, it seems, to longer yet well-thought out verse.
Almost like the difference between a TV episode and a full-length movie ... they seem to want the silly, inane, yet now snippet, rather than the more deeply assembled and much longer full story. Sigh. And here I am, ... snippetizing ...

(in reply to Leatherist)

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