Instructors rely on asynchronous exchanges to provide learners with authentic input and opportunities to communicate in the TL. While most practitioners recognize the advantages of e-mail exchanges, learner benefits are not an automatic byproduct of participation in an exchange. This paper presents findings from an e-mail exchange carried out between university students in a German language class and native and near-native speakers of German in a methodology seminar at a university in Germany. The content of the e-mails produced by the FL learners was analyzed qualitatively to explore the role of topic initiation, frequency, and dyad dynamics in sustaining an intercultural exchange.