Following a few simple steps will increase the odds that your letter
will be published.
Keep it short. You should keep your
letter under 200 words, arranged in at least two paragraphs.
If your letter is too long, your most important point may be cut.
Newspapers reserve the right to edit the letters they publish. Check
out The Communications
Consortium Center for guidelines per newspaper, such as The
Washington Post or The New York Times.
Be timely. If you see an opportunity
to respond to an article or opinion piece with a letter to the editor,
write and submit your letter as soon as possible. What
matters to the editor(s) this week, may not matter the next.
Focus. The first sentence of your
letter should explain why you are writing. Make it as easy
as possible for the editorial staff to understand the purpose of
your letter. Example: The Star seemed to fall short of
its normally high standards in presenting Senator John Kerry's views
on high gasoline prices in Tuesday's edition. This sentence
tells the editorial staff reading it that you are a regular reader,
that you respectfully take issue with a particular article or opinion
piece, and that you intend to provide them with information.
Make your point. Following your
opening sentence, the next sentence should state your issue/argument,
correction, or additional information.
Example: Senator Kerry is a strong supporter of common sense
solutions to America's dependence on foreign oil and has a great
plan that will work for Kansas.
Relate your letter to the newspaper's readers.
Make it local. Example: Senator Kerry is
a strong supporter of common sense solutions to America's dependence
on foreign oil and has a great plan that will work for Kansas.
Our trucks and tractors are at the heart of our agricultural economy.
Real leadership means caring about how policies affect people and
Senator Kerry understands that Kansans need affordable fuel to do
the job of feeding the nation.
Use simple language. Easy-to-understand
language is best and ensures that your message will not be misunderstood.
Positive language makes positive points.
People like other people who are positive - an important point to
remember when you are writing a letter to the editor. After
all, you are writing to express your opinion and to persuade others
to believe as you do.
Examples of positive words to use in support of John Kerry:
active, building, capable, caring, challenge, choose, commitment,
common sense, compete, concerned, confident, courage, dream, fairness,
family, freedom, heart, help, home, humane, intelligent, lead, leadership,
learn, liberty, light, moral, movement, opportunity, our, passionate,
peace, preserve, principle, pro-(issue, such as children, environment,
etc), prosperity, protect, proud, provide, share, strength, strong,
team, tough, truth, united, us, vision, warmth, we, wisdom, work.
Avoid negative "insult" language.
It is much more difficult to persuade people with a negative argument
using negative language. By trying to make a negative point,
the reader may feel insulted or irritated.
Examples of negative words to avoid: anti-(issue),
betray, collapse, consequences, corrupt, crisis, destroy, endanger,
greed, hypocrisy, impose, incompetent, liar, limit, permissive,
radical, selfish, them, they, traitors, worry.
Use your last (closing sentence) to make a strong statement.
Example: With his commitment to alternative fuels, conservation,
and sensible oil exploration, Senator Kerry has earned my vote in
November.
Here is the sample letter, using the steps we have
described:Dear Editor:The
Star seemed to fall short of its normally high standards in presenting
Senator John Kerry's views on high gasoline prices in Tuesday's
edition.Senator Kerry is a strong supporter
of common sense solutions to America's dependence on foreign oil
and has a great plan that will work for Kansas. Our trucks
and tractors are at the heart of our agricultural economy.
Real leadership means caring about how policies affect people and
Senator Kerry understands that Kansans need affordable fuel to do
the job of feeding the nation.With his
commitment to alternative fuels, conservation and sensible oil exploration,
John Kerry has earned my vote in November. Name Address
Home phone Work phone Email address
Always include your name and contact information.
The easier it is for the editor(s) to contact you, the better your
chances of having your letter published. Make it easy for
them to contact you to confirm that you wrote the letter (and not
someone simply using your name). Newspapers will not publish
your phone numbers or email address - only your name, city and state.
Proofread, check spelling, and proofread again.
If you use a word processor, use the spell check and grammar check
features. Ask a friend to look at the letter. Another
pair of eyes can help you write a letter to the editor that gets
published.
