Questions & Answers about Мы часто им пишем.
Why is the word им used here instead of они?
Им means "to them". It is the Dative case form of они (they). In Russian, when you direct an action to someone, like writing or speaking to them, that person takes the Dative case.
Is there a preposition for "to" in this Russian sentence?
No, there is no separate word for "to" here. The "to" meaning is already built right into the word им because it is in the Dative case.
Why does им come before the verb пишем?
Pronoun objects like им often go before the verb in Russian, whereas in English we put them after (write to them). Saying Мы часто пишем им is also correct, but putting the short pronoun before the verb is very natural in everyday speech.
The dictionary form for "to write" is писать. Why does it change to пишем with a ш here?
The verb писать goes through a consonant change when conjugated in the present tense. The с changes to a ш for all forms. Since the subject is мы (we), we add the -ем ending, giving us пишем.