bogie
Member
1) FOCUS on one thing. Pick a small "skirmish" topic, and that's it. If you spread out, you lose focus, and you lose effectiveness. For instance, right now focus on access to self defense (and you don't even have to use the word "gun" if you don't feel like it... see point #5...), instead of the 2nd amendment, constitutional law, the founding fathers, the federalist papers, and 3-4 other pages of rant...
2) KISS - Keep It Simple, and you won't look Stupid. There are a LOT fewer chances to screw the pooch grammatically in three two sentence paragraphs. And put a blank space between them - it makes it easier to read.
3) State your issue in the first sentence. Or at least in the first two. That may be all that gets read.
4) Be NICE. Do not threaten, or remind people that they may not get elected, or that the 2nd amendment is about Bubba rising up to march on Washington with his .30-30... They've heard all that before, and it detracts from point #1 - FOCUS.
5) Infiltrate. If they think that you're a swing voter, or better yet, on their side, they're more likely to pay attention to you.
6) Don't use jargon. Especially jargon that identifies yourself as a gun owner. If you talk about "concealed carry" or "CCW" vs. "carrying a pistol" that just makes it more likely that the letter will get pitched. THE FOLKS KNOW HOW GUN PEOPLE VOTE - they're worried about the rest of the population.
7) Editorials and letters to the editor and opinion pieces from columnists are fine and dandy, but they're not NEWS. They are OPINION. I had a drill sergeant who had something to say about opinions... A "news tip" or a press release disguised as a news tip is 100x more valuable. Especially if it gets into the paper with zero editing - see point 9...
8) KISS Part Deux: Keep It Simple, because people are STUPID. Newspapers, etc., tend to write to an 8th grade level - not because their writers are not capable of more, but because they don't want to confuse their readers. Now is NOT the time to demonstrate your extensive vocabulary or that you know how to use a semicolon; that stuff just won't fly, and will result in...
9) The Editor/Gatekeeper Is NOT Your Friend - If a news item doesn't strike them as news, if they don't like it, or if it is too complex for them to understand in 10-15 seconds (if you're lucky...), it gets canned. These guys are wading through a LOT of stuff. And there are deadlines at play. If they can just cut'n'paste something that doesn't require any editing to fill some space, guess what? They sometimes do it.
10) You gotta hook 'em. The first sentence (our term for it is the "lead," pronounced "leed") is VERY important. Don't waffle around and tell 'em how great a paper they have, or whatever. GET TO THE POINT, and make it interesting.
2) KISS - Keep It Simple, and you won't look Stupid. There are a LOT fewer chances to screw the pooch grammatically in three two sentence paragraphs. And put a blank space between them - it makes it easier to read.
3) State your issue in the first sentence. Or at least in the first two. That may be all that gets read.
4) Be NICE. Do not threaten, or remind people that they may not get elected, or that the 2nd amendment is about Bubba rising up to march on Washington with his .30-30... They've heard all that before, and it detracts from point #1 - FOCUS.
5) Infiltrate. If they think that you're a swing voter, or better yet, on their side, they're more likely to pay attention to you.
6) Don't use jargon. Especially jargon that identifies yourself as a gun owner. If you talk about "concealed carry" or "CCW" vs. "carrying a pistol" that just makes it more likely that the letter will get pitched. THE FOLKS KNOW HOW GUN PEOPLE VOTE - they're worried about the rest of the population.
7) Editorials and letters to the editor and opinion pieces from columnists are fine and dandy, but they're not NEWS. They are OPINION. I had a drill sergeant who had something to say about opinions... A "news tip" or a press release disguised as a news tip is 100x more valuable. Especially if it gets into the paper with zero editing - see point 9...
8) KISS Part Deux: Keep It Simple, because people are STUPID. Newspapers, etc., tend to write to an 8th grade level - not because their writers are not capable of more, but because they don't want to confuse their readers. Now is NOT the time to demonstrate your extensive vocabulary or that you know how to use a semicolon; that stuff just won't fly, and will result in...
9) The Editor/Gatekeeper Is NOT Your Friend - If a news item doesn't strike them as news, if they don't like it, or if it is too complex for them to understand in 10-15 seconds (if you're lucky...), it gets canned. These guys are wading through a LOT of stuff. And there are deadlines at play. If they can just cut'n'paste something that doesn't require any editing to fill some space, guess what? They sometimes do it.
10) You gotta hook 'em. The first sentence (our term for it is the "lead," pronounced "leed") is VERY important. Don't waffle around and tell 'em how great a paper they have, or whatever. GET TO THE POINT, and make it interesting.