Penpal wanted

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I'm looking for a penpal for my 16 year old daughter. She likes to write real physical letters. Her interests include painting, animals and soccer. Anyone out there?

I know exactly how she feels .... i'm no good ... hate soccer and too old.

I wish you luck ! !

I've got a suggestion for you, if she likes to write real physical letters... head on over to the Fountain Pen Network. There is a subgroup of people over there who write letters to each other. Of course, she'll no doubt discover the joys of fountain pens, ink, etc. but that's not such a bad thing. Fountain pens are the "safest" way to write (in terms of physical injuries, repetitive stress, etc.) and the total expense (if you can stick to one fountain pen ) is much less than that for constant refills.

I know there are people over there who are into their animals. Pretty sure there are those who like painting as well (it has its own tie-in with all those lovely coloured inks). I have no idea about soccer. Most of the folks over there are older, but they'd love to "meet" someone who is 16 but into handwriting. She'd become a minor celebrity...

(If you need suggestions for good pens for her - daily writers - and inks, reply to this thread. They are not all that expensive. Although, admittedly, vintage nibs surpass anything else you can get.)

Big THX to theWanderer. I also like to write real physical letters. It has been awhile since I've worked with an actual fountain pen, as opposed to more ballpoint pens than I can possibly imagine having pushed beyond their limits. I'd never heard of he Fountain Pen Network before. This is excellent information! And yes...there is a definite tie-in for me with colored inks and a love of drawing.

In more recent years, I got hooked into the technical drawing pens (Rapidograph and Pilot), but when I reconsider how flexible a fountain pen is in comparison and how easily colors and nibs can be swapped out, well...I wonder how it was possible to forget something so important!

You are so correct when you say that a sixteen year old would definitely become a celebrity of sorts on a Fountain Pen Network. The only more mind-boggling fascination that comes to mind at the moment would be Comptometers!

Thank you so much for turning me on to a site I knew nothing about and reminding me of how nothing can truly compare to the feel of a truly good fountain pen in a one's hand.

If you already understand the joy of a good fountain pen... I don't know what is pricey for you, and I apologise if this is something you can't afford - but over on Peyton Street Pens, Teri (the owner) has something extraordinary right now. You can get a NOS (new old stock) Eversharp Symphony with a flexible nib (not all of the Symphonies are flex nibs, so be careful) or a handmade Ranga Indian ebonite pen "retrofitted" with an Eversharp flex nib - either one for less than $100. True, they are not the super flexible nibs some pens boasted, but they are vintage, 14K gold flex nibs that have never been used. (Noodlers new "flex" nibs are much stiffer - although there is a post about how to grind one of those down so it becomes more flexible.) She probably still has a few, since I ordered mine when they first went up, and just got it the end of last week. I got one of the Rangas (already have one of the Symphonies from the last time she got some) and the aerometric filler is a little weak, but it is a joy to use. Or if she still has any of the Sheaffer Imperial IIs on hand, those are such smooth writers...

I don't know if you've ever tried vintage pens. I used to avoid them, because I figured they were pricey and prone to more trouble than a new pen. But some of those nibs just can't be beat. I've got a new (a few years ago) Pelikan M600 that was set up by John Mottishaw and I paid a few hundred for - it is my best modern writer, although I've got a few almost as nice. Then I tried an old Merlin Perfect (German pen, made for the Dutch market) that cost me $40 - and writing with that was like getting behind the wheel of a brand new Ferrari after never driving anything but beat up old trucks. Which is not to say you'd respond to that exact pen the same way; you might not. The point is that vintage nibs simply cannot be reproduced today at any cost. Although, if you can't afford - or are nervous about - the vintage ones, there are some halfway decent options out there. I've got a Wing Sung 233 that I paid $4 for that writes very nicely (but with the cheap Chinese pens you take your chances, although pay a bit more -$15 for a 233 for example - and get them from HisNibs, and he adjusts them and removes a lot of the guesswork) and the Noodlers pens aren't at all bad, just not up to the vintage ones.

Sorry. I'm a writer. And a fountain pen nut.

All very interesting about the pens, but does anyone have a teenage daughter who would like to trade letters (even in pencil) with mine?

I'm an eighteen-year-old female who enjoys writing of all sorts; I like painting as well, but I am willing to converse about nearly any topic.

Try penpalworld.com she can exchange email or snail mail with others. It is a free site, with a search engine you should be able to find appropriate matches, female, age, and even different countries.