ACTION PLAN:

• Select a place to keep all the letters you receive: this can be a drawer, a shoebox or a plastic container. Be sure it's a safe place where they won't get destroyed.
• Select a place to store your letter-writing materials: this can be a drawer, a box of some kind or a plastic container.

  TIP: Have something portable so you can carry your materials around with you: keep them in your car or take to appointments where you know you'll be sitting around waiting.

• Collect your materials: round up all your stationery (postcards, cards, writing paper & envelopes), a handful of pens, address book and stamps.

  TIP: Always keep a spare book of stamps...when you run out of one, replace it. This way, you will be sure to not use that as an excuse for not mailing a letter.

• Set aside a time to write regularly: perhaps once a week...you decide how often, but then plan to do it consistently.

  TIP: I used to have to go to a laundromat to do my laundry, so I kept my letter-writing materials with my laundry supplies and whenever I went to do the laundry I knocked out a letter or two...then dropped them in the mail on my way back home.

• Decide how much to write: commit to a certain amount of time (i.e. minimum of 15 minutes) or a certain quantity of pages (i.e. fill one page).