Spend a few minutes scrolling through a reputable news source, like The New York Times, the Washington Post, the Indianapolis Star, the Journal-Gazette, etc. to pick out three (3) to five (5) recent (read: published within the previous two weeks) letters to the editor to review. Questions for Writing and Discussion As you read your chosen letters, annotate and take notes about what you notice. Here are some questions to consider: 1. Identify some basic parts of the structure of letters to the editor: How do they all begin? How do they all end? Which article is each letter responding to? How do you know? 2. What is the letter writer’s opinion or point of view on the article they are responding to? Underline or highlight at least one sentence that captures the letter’s main idea or argument. 3. Most editors encourage writers to make their arguments “forcefully and clearly.” Do the letters you read do that? What words, phrases or lines convey the writers’ opinions or attitudes toward the subject in a clear, concise and strong way? 4. Editors say that readers should be able to judge the “credibility and motivation” of letter writers. What credibility, expertise or personal connections do the letter writers have to the subjects they are writing about? Can you tell what motivated them to write in? 5. Analyze the writers’ use of language and style. What makes this letter interesting to read? What words, phrases and grammatical structures do they use that are particularly affecting? How do they use wit or humor, if at all? In what lines can you hear the writer’s voice coming through the page? 6. Among the hundreds and thousands of letters that are sent to newspapers around the country on a daily basis, what do you think made these letters stand out to the editors? What unique angle or perspective did the writers offer on the articles they commented on? What else did they do well? 7. Which “writer’s moves” from any of the letters you read would you like to try in your own letter to the editor?
