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Paul Russell: 15 rules for letter writers

Posted: January 01, 2010, 8:05 AM by Paul Russell
Filed under: Paul Russell

A reader recently commented that he has “been impressed for a long time with the quality of the letters that appear on the Post’s pages. That must mean that your job of selecting puts you in the same position as a kid with a free pass in a candy store.”

Nice analogy, but not quite accurate. Numerous letters can be savoured and enjoyed in their raw form, but most require some degree of editing before publication. So here are 15 pointers on how to make your letter irresistible in that candy store we call the letters file.

-- Shorter is always better In this era of decreased attention spans — encouraged by 140-character Tweets and abbreviated text messaging conversations — newspapers have to compete. That is why we insist that letters be short and to the point. While it may seem difficult to express your ground-breaking thoughts in 200 words or less, this limit is for your benefit. The more succinctly the point is made, the better the chance the letter will be read and remembered.

-- Letters aren’t mini-columns Instead of trying to frame a complex argument, the best letters make a single point, convincingly yet briefly. If you can throw in a pithy observation or humorous twist along the way, all the better.

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