Welcome to the International Geek Girl Pen Pals Club! This website is a safe space for members to hang out, share geeky loves, participate in swaps, activities, read fun stuff, participate in events, and ask for advice.

Geeky folks are not known for being shy about venturing their opinions when it comes to their favorite areas of fandom and expertise. In this club, members may have conversations about a variety of topics, including asking for recommendations for comic titles, the latest casting news for film/tv, con-related events and identity politics in geek culture. With that in mind, please try to approach conversations and interactions in good faith – not everyone has the same familiarity with concepts, titles, characters, etc (and that’s ok). If something isn’t clear, ask for clarification (but on the same token, don’t expect someone to do your homework for you).

Pen Pal Registration Disclaimer:

Once we have put you in contact with a new pen pal we cannot be held responsible for the outcome of any contact of any kind made between you. For those of you who have been left in pen pal limbo, you can check out our Pen Pal forums. The minimum age to participate in IGGPPC is 17. By confirming you have read this disclaimer you are acknowledging that you are old enough to join this service.

We do hope you use common sense and if you decide you feel uncomfortable giving your address out, don’t. We wouldn’t want you to do anything you don’t feel 100% about. Your participation is totally voluntary.

If you are sending gifts with your letter remember to check that there are no international restrictions on posting said item.

House Rules:

IGGPPC welcomes comments, regardless of whether you agree or disagree with posted content, but as IGGPPC aims to create a safe space for people of all stripes to have robust and engaging discussions and occasional debates, there are a few House Rules:
  1. IGGPPC reserves the right to moderate all forum threads and posted content as the staff and club mods see fit. Mods may or may not give warning if your comments are in violation of House Rules. Please provide a brief description of what you’re linking to, especially if it’s an image or video you’re uploading directly. Sensitive topics such as abuse, addiction, trauma, etc, should be appropriately tagged with Content Warnings (CW), and please post a content note for any visuals using flashing lights or strobe effects. For example:
    CW: trauma, addiction
    When posting in our Discord server, you may also use a double bar like this | | to block sensitive content along with the content warning.We also ask that when posting items, please indicate if they’re not safe for work (NSFW) with a basic description (ie “NSFW Deadpool trailer”) and include only the URL, not the preview images. NSFW posts that contain preview images are subject to removal without notice. Please also be generally considerate to one another in any NSFW comment threads as we want this space to be safe and welcoming for all of our members.
  2. Comments (on the blog, forums, or anywhere there is a place for comments) are more likely to be deleted if they constitute a personal attack or threat toward another commenter(s), are entirely unrelated to the channel topic, constitute derailing, or entail more than a “fair use” amount of someone else’s copyrighted work.
    1. If a mod deletes a post, they are doing so in accordance with our community guidelines. It is not personal. If you are unsure why a post was deleted, you can reach out to a staff member.
    2. We strive to be welcoming and inclusive to all. It is the principle the group was founded upon. If we missed the mark, or there are ways we can improve, please let us know privately via email at info@geekgirlpenpals.com or direct message. We can’t guarantee all suggestions will be implemented, but we believe there is always room to grow, and that means considering different perspectives and experiences.
  3. Posts/comments containing phobic content (based on race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, etc) are absolutely not tolerated. Neither is obvious trollage. Or spam. But we really, really don’t like phobic content. Any posts pertaining to illegal activity – ie., asking for advice about pirating, trading illicit substances, etc., – are not allowed. All of the above will be immediately obliterated by our photon torpedoes.
  4. If something makes you uncomfortable or feel unsafe, please let us know. This includes anything that looks dicey or weird and you’re not sure it should be on here, or you feel needs mod attention. We also ask that you reach out privately. EMAIL us at info@geekgirlpenpals.com or DM/TWEET the Staff or Mod team with a link to the post FIRST rather than responding to questionable content yourself or starting a thread discussing it separately. If your issue is with a mod, reach out to a staff member. If an issue is with a community member, reach out to a mod or a staff member as you are comfortable.Please allow 24 hours (minimum) before following up an an inquiry. We are an all-volunteer staff in a variety of time zones, and are not available 24/7 so any notification via DM is very much appreciated, and it gives us a chance to diffuse any potential situations. (It should go without saying that the staff will not be pleased with anyone abusing this particular guideline.)
  5. The internet is an awesome place, but it is also full of strangers! Please be careful when posting personal information about yourself and NEVER post personal information for another person without their consent. This includes full names, addresses, and photos. Make sure to read over our full safety guidelines as well!
    “Cold messaging” (i.e. DMing people without asking) is discouraged. Have a friendly exchange in one of the channels and ask if you can DM someone first. Consent is always key!
  6. These policies apply to both the content and tone of topics/replies. Please keep in mind that even if you may not find a topic worth discussing, that shouldn’t prevent others from talking about it – no one is obligated to join in every conversation or have an opinion on everything. If you aren’t sure if your comment/post will raise the ire of the mods, ask yourself if it follows “Wheaton’s Law.” If it doesn’t, don’t post it. Repeat offenses against community rules may result in group expulsion and banning.

PLEASE NOTE: You MUST be at least 17 to sign up for a pen pal or to participate in IGGPPC. This is due to international safety regulations and not because we don’t love our younger geek pals.

DISCLAIMER Opinions and material posted in this group are strictly those of their authors and do not necessarily represent the opinion, position or official policies of the IGGPPC unless otherwise noted. Authors are solely responsible for the accuracy of any and all material posted.

Safety:

If you believe you are a victim of fraud, have concerns that your pen pal is a phony/catfish, feel threatened, or that your safety/security has been compromised, please email info@geekgirlpenpals.com with all the details. If you feel you are in immediate danger, please call 911 or your local emergency hotline.

We take pen pal safety very seriously. Sure, IGGPPC is a rad, awesome place with an amazing community of people. But it’s also on THE INTERNET. Anyone can get on the Internet and attempt to be a creep… sometimes people are just trollin’, and other times they are actually trying to hurt you, by getting personal sensitive information out of you like your address, credit card information, or even explicit photos.

These people are not cool. So it’s up to us to be vigilant like superheroes, and to use common sense when beginning an exchange with someone on this site, or anywhere!

Do not give anyone on this site your home address unless you have been paired with them by us… it’s always best to have someone double check your pal, so let us do it for you. Another good tip when making initial contact with your new pen pal is to ask them to Skype or Google hangout with you. That way you get some face to face, real time contact with your new pal! We are even available to help you vet your new pen pal – just ask!

If the person you’ve been paired with still seems sketchy, do not give them your address! Just let us know you do not feel comfortable with them and we will address the situation.

Also, be aware of what people are posting and talking about here and report any and all suspicious activity to us immediately! All you have to do is email info@geekgirlpenpals.com and link us to the shadiness and we’ll be on it like a pack of crazed hyenas. That’s how we roll.

So take some basic safety precautions and do not give sensitive information out online, be it explicit photos, home addresses or credit card info.

Safety is awesome! Let’s look out for each other, and be smart!! There are some dangerous people out there, so let’s keep this community safe and full of love.

For further information on safety, please read over our safety guidelines!

Privacy:

Please refer to our Privacy Policy to find out what information we collect and how we use it.

Thanks for reading through to the end, and WELCOME to the International Geek Girl Pen Pals Club!