Letters to editors

The most widely-read pages in UK newspapers are the letters pages. Unfortunately, the anti-European sentiment that pervades most of our media is often especially strong here. However, newspaper editors will also publish pro-European letters and are usually keen to maintain a balance of views.

To make your voice heard:

1. Write your letter
2. Add your name, address and telephone number
3. E-mail it to your chosen paper

1. Write your letter

Most letters to editors fall into three categories:

• commentary on recent news stories covered in the paper;
• responses to published letters from other writers;
• proactive letters making a new point.

Even if you're writing proactively, it's still best to link the subject of your letter to some recent event or current concern, if you can. Why not use our analysis of recent headlines as a place to start? Or enter the LME Secure Campaign Centre to see which issues are being addressed right now.

Editors receive a large number of letters every day, so yours needs to stand out. As a rule, a good letter to the editor is short and punchy, making just one point in as original a way as possible. Also, don't be afraid to be outspoken - you're putting across your opinion, not writing a balanced article.

Finally, it's usually wise to read through the letters page of the publication in question before you start writing. This gives you an idea of the preferred style, and, more importantly, the preferred length.

• Read more about how to rebut euromyths
• Join the discussion about the latest myths in the Secure Campaign Centre

2. Add your full name, address and telephone number

Virtually all newspapers insist on these details, though they won't publish them. Instead, national papers will usually just print your name and home town ('Joe Public, Manchester') while local papers tend also to include your street ('Joe Bloggs, York Road, Manchester').

If you would rather be published anonymously, you still need to supply your full contact details, but add a note asking the editor not to publish them. Your letter will then be published under your chosen pseudonym or as 'Name and address supplied'. Some newspapers are reluctant to do this, though: check the letters page of your chosen publication for more details.

A few papers will substitute your address with the phrase 'By e-mail' if you send your letter electronically. You still need to include your postal address, however.

It goes without saying that local and regional presses are normally reluctant to publish letters from writers outside their area, unless the topic has some direct relevance to the area.

3. E-mail it to your chosen paper

These days, virtually all newspapers will accept letters by e-mail. However, always paste the text of your letter into the body of an e-mail: don't send it as an attachment. (Editors vary on their attitudes to attachments, but they all accept letters in the body of an e-mail.)

A few national papers will send an automatic e-mail acknowledgment as soon as you submit a letter. Most won't. In any case, the only way you'll know if your work has been published is to keep an eye on the letters pages or the corresponding websites.

Finally, notice also that the Sunday editions of many newspapers are largely independent from the normal daily editions, with different contact addresses, different editors and (substantially) a different readership.