A couple of months ago, the Fountain Pen Economist Dr Jonathon Deans (Web, Twitter), mentioned in passing how it might be nice if a local discussion group existed for Australian Fountain Pen enthusiasts. More recently on Twitter, he asked the question whether there were any Facebook groups for such people, with my response indicating there were none I was aware of, perhaps with the exception of the one he was about to start — which I said with tongue only half in cheek.

Since then, start it has, with the Fountain Pens Australia group now up and running on Facebook, with Jonathon and fellow fountain pen enthusiast Yagan Kiely (Instagram, Twitter) kicking things off.

Bear in mind that I had not yet taken the plunge into the land of Facebook at the time, having only recently created my profile with the intention of joining the FPA group. A big call, however one I believe will be well worth it. As I write this on a lazy Saturday afternoon, membership numbers have been steadily rising over the course of the day — very pleasing indeed.

What do I hope to get out of being involved in such a group? Much discussion and information sharing around one of my passions — fountain pens. I have seen the power of the internet and social media in disseminating such information through Twitter, Instagram, various pen blogs, and of course avenues such as The Pen Addict podcast.

A Facebook group such as this, with a local focus, is a fantastic opportunity to learn a whole lot more through discussion with like-minded individuals (most of whom are likely to have vastly more experience than myself), yet be sure the content remains highly relevant to the local market. Discussion has already been active in relation to the upcoming Melbourne Pen Show in November.

Although I’ve been writing here for a couple of years now, with a fair portion of content devoted to pens, I do still consider myself a beginner, with much still to learn about fountain pens. I’m fairly sure I’ll be doing more “learning” than “teaching” in such a group, however am very much looking forward to contributing what I can.

So if you are reading this in Australia, are on Facebook (or think it worth joining like myself), and are at all interested in fountain pens, please click this link and set about joining the Fountain Pens Australia group. Be part of what is bound to be a friendly and productive group discussion on a subject myself and many others derive a great amount of joy from.