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Keep it short, most papers want 200 words or fewer, make one point, and reference a specific recent article. Include your full name, address, and phone number so the editor can verify your identity. Anonymous letters are almost never printed, and many papers reject letters sent to multiple outlets at once.
One clear point, tied to something the paper published recently. Open by naming the article and its date: "In your October 8 story on the transit vote..." Then say what you think in two or three sentences, ideally with a local angle the newsroom cannot get from a wire service. Your experience as a nurse, a tenant, a parent at that school: that is the currency. Editors sift hundreds of submissions; the ones that read like a personal stake get picked, the ones that read like a press release do not.
Length limits are real and strictly enforced. Most dailies cap letters around 150 to 300 words, and weeklies are often shorter. If the paper's website lists a word limit, treat it as a hard ceiling: overlong letters get cut or skipped, not read with admiration. Write it, then cut a third.
Verification, not publication. Before printing your letter, the paper confirms you are a real person, usually with a quick call or email. Your street address and phone number stay with the editor; what runs in print is your name and often your town or neighbourhood. This is also why anonymous letters are dead on arrival: a paper that cannot verify the writer cannot stand behind the words.
| Do | Do not |
|---|---|
| Reference a specific recent article by date | Write about a topic the paper has not covered |
| Make one point in 200 words or fewer | Pack in three arguments and a life story |
| Include name, address, and phone for verification | Ask to be published anonymously |
| Send to one paper at a time | Blast the same letter to five outlets (many reject these) |
| Disclose conflicts (you work for the company mentioned) | Pose as a neutral reader when you are not |
Beyond length and anonymity, the common killers are libel risk (accusing a named person of a crime without proof), form-letter campaigns (editors spot identical text from different senders instantly), and personal attacks on private individuals. Criticize public officials and policies freely; that is what the page is for. Attacking a neighbour by name is a different matter, and editors will spike it rather than risk a lawsuit.
Timing matters too. Respond within a day or two of the article while the conversation is live; a letter about last month's story reads stale no matter how good it is. And if your letter is not picked, do not take it personally or resend it daily. Papers print a fraction of what arrives. Revise the point, wait for a fresh news hook, and try again.
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