Frequently Asked Questions
Why PoemPostcards?
I've always held a fascination for handwritten mail. I LOVE connecting with friends by sending letters instead of texts, and I treasure anything that a person personally handwrites to me. Postcards are the perfect size, not too lengthy, but enough to make someone smile when they receive it. On top of that, there is something about poetry that is meaningful and yet still full of emotions and experiences. By the law of property superposition that I just made up, PoemPostcards are a no-brainer for a fun gift or meaningful surprise from a stranger.
I get to choose the price? What's the catch?
There's no catch. I would rather lose money and reach a lot more people, than charge a fee and miss out on sending PoemPostcards to a lot of people. I think the beauty in letting the customer decide the price is that they will often pick a price that reflects how much they value the gift and thought that went into it. The reason I'm not doing it all completely for free is because a) it adds accountability to me, and b) I'm a poor college student.
What are you studying at Stanford?
The most honest answer I can give someone is that I'm studying life at Stanford. There are so many incredible people packed into one campus that I'm learning more about myself and people in general every day. I value connections and meaningful experiences above anything else, which is why I'm taking this project seriously. If you must know, I'm planning on majoring in Management Science and Engineering, essentially Stanford's undergraduate program in business, but I have yet to know for sure. Creating an online postcard writing "business" that will hardly break even is more of a testament to my love of writing and making other people happy.
What are your other interests?
Besides creative writing, I love playing soccer and essentially most net sports (tennis, badminton, ping pong, and volleyball, and my random two experiences playing squash). I enjoy music a lot, though I'm definitely a huge grazer when it comes to genres and artists. I don't stick around one particular genre, but I have an affinity for techno music and epic movie score soundtracks. I played the flute for 7 years but have stopped in college due to the overwhelming number of things to do. One of those things is swing dancing, which I've never done before but have had great experiences with here at Stanford. I am absolutely obssessed with boba. Like, obssessed. If you bring me free boba I will send you all the postcards you want.
What's your background like?
Grandparents lived in China, parents born and raised in Taiwan, I was born and raised in Syracuse, New York. I grew up speaking Mandarin with my family but I still consider English my first language. In middle school, I was pushed to exel in math and science like my brother, but it turned out not to be my thing, so I turned to writing instead.
What's your favorite candy?
Sour Patch Watermelons are fantastic, right up there with Swedish Fish.
Do you like handwriting or typing better?
This has always been a matter of context for me. i used to handwrite all of my journals, but when entries started taking 1 hour+ to write, I switched to typing because it is so much faster to type. I will mostly draft on the computer, but always revise on paper for my pieces of writing. As for personal correspondance, however, I love spending the time to write a couple of full pages. It's so much more satisfying to hold a long letter that I just wrote to someone I care, as opposed to some essay for schoolhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltun92DfnPY.
Your poem sucks! You're not a real poet, anyways.
Don't say I didn't warn you. I'm claiming to be someone who loves writing and sending gifts to strangers, not a published poet. There will be poems that I write that are absolutely terrible, but that's part of the writing process for me, and part of being spontaneous. It's especially due to my decision never to edit or revise a poem after I write it. In that way, the purest form of my emotions and thoughts at the time are preserved for you to experience, several days later when it gets delivered. Think of it as mini time-travel. =]