In an era where everything has become digitized, personal connection is often lost. In order to combat this, we should normalize taking our personal thoughts, writing them all down on a piece of paper, and sending them to that special someone. Not sure where to start or how to begin?

Here are the eight steps to successfully write a love letter.

First, choose your subject. Love letters don’t only have to be for someone you love in a romantic way. You could write a love letter to a dear friend or someone else who means a lot to you. You could even write a letter confessing your love to someone! (A bold move that has the potential for high reward… proceed at your own risk.)

Second, find some nice paper to write this letter on. Half the challenge of writing a successful love letter is taking the time to make it look good. Anyone can hit the little button in their email to compose a message. A piece of notebook paper could work, but the better your paper, the more romantic. Maybe a piece of colored construction paper, stationery, or even a blank Hallmark card. For those of us who don’t even know where to start with paper goods, printing out a fancy border from the internet on printer paper is an easy way to up your paper game.

Third, secure an envelope. Envelopes and paper often can be found close together, so it’s good to grab this now. Make sure the envelope is good enough to keep your love letter safe until your beloved receives it.

You may already be thinking, this is too much. But nobody said this was going to be easy! It will, however, be worthwhile.

Fourth, greet the recipient in a cutesy way. This is not the time to use someone’s government name, unless they’re into that. Be dramatic; refer to them as your beloved. Remember, this is not an email. Write from the heart!

Fifth, write the letter. Even if you have crappy handwriting, just try your best. Again, the art of the love letter lies in the fact that your recipient will have a tangible example of all the love you put into creating something for them. This is not official correspondence, so legibility is less important.

Speak from the heart! Topics of interest might include: how grateful you are to have them in your life, how much worse/harder/sadder your life would be without them, qualities you like about them, Valentine’s Day wishes, reminiscing on a positive memory you have with your beloved, saying why you were so moved to communicate with them in such a way.

Or write about things that remind you of them: songs, street corners, foods, smells, and other simple pleasures in life, something about the labor you took to create this so that they know how much you love them, some sort of hyperbole of how much you love them (50 million tons, to the moon and back times 100, and so on).

Sixth, and optional: Seal the letter with a kiss or some sort of mark of your being. Spray some of your perfume on it. Include a little doodle, a flower petal, or maybe a cool sticker.

Seventh, send off your correspondence! Take the envelope from Step 3. The bold will decide to hand their finished love letter to their beloved. If your beloved is far away or you are a little shy, you may need to enlist the help of the U.S. Postal Service in delivering your love letter. You will need their address and a stamp. Thankfully, there are mailboxes around campus and the surrounding neighborhoods for you to drop your stamped letter in. You could even take a trip to one of the mailrooms that service on-campus housing to buy a stamp and mail your letter all at once.

Last but not least, wait for the gushing response from your beloved. Account for delays because of the postal service, or even the initial shock that someone might experience after receiving such a beautiful display of love in a cold, technology-driven world.

Happy writing!