When I first started writing snail mail regularly, I tracked my outgoing mail in my calendar, because I was shooting for one piece a day. I could hold myself accountable and make sure that I wrote to my people in regular rotation.

I will inherit this shirt someday. I will need it.

In 2020, when I sent over 400 pieces (because I was one of the lucky people who merely had to stay home), I had to note who plus what, to prevent telling the same things to the same people - a fate you know I’m destined for if you’ve met the Head Stamper. (Love ya, Dad!)

Teaching note writing classes has shown me why others keep snail mail records: to plan what to write, to check spelling and grammar, to keep a standard or base message when writing to several people at once, or for a recurring event (like a graduation).

Here are a few tips I’ve gathered from fellow snail mailers along the way:

Subscriber Frank shows off an epic summertime postcard from *another* subscriber on Instagram at @postcardist - where you can also get updates on new podcast episodes.

Some write rough drafts in Word or Google Docs. This accomplishes a few things: you can play with the wording before committing pen to paper, check spelling, use the thesaurus tool, and save it for later, if you have phrases or sentences that you might use again. That last point may seem lazy, but consider this: how many times have you avoided writing because you didn’t know what to write? When you land on something you like, tuck it away to plagiarize yourself later.
A calendar - digital or paper - helps you track what you’ve sent, as well as get your postcards in the mail on time for significant events, like birthdays. I met one woman who pre-wrote birthday notes when she was in a writing mood, leaving a little space at the bottom to add something before her calendar reminded her to pop it in the mail.
Spreadsheets are great for both habit tracking and address tracking. When I go on trips, I sometimes create address labels using Mail Merge from my address spreadsheet; this keeps me from rewriting addresses and tells me who I haven’t written to yet.
Are you starting to tell the same things to the same people, too? Snap a picture of your postcard message, and refer back when you write that person again.
Several of our subscribers post their incoming mail on social media. It shows appreciation to your sender, lets them know it arrived, and puts a timestamp on what’s come in. You can also track your incoming mail through USPS Informed Delivery.
What else do you use? Let us know in the comments.

Keeping Records