General Tips on Effective Writing: 

1. Critical elements: who- what- when- where- and why? *Why* is really important- why does this matter? Why should people care about this?

2. Write in active voice and give a sense of urgency. Passive vs. active.

3. Proofread- proofread- go grab a snack, come back and proofread again before pushing send. 

4. ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi: When referencing Hawaiian names or places, consider using diacritical marks. Not sure how? This Hawaiian dictionary’s got your back.

Things to do…

• Stay current- Respond to content recently published.  Follow typical format used in the target publication.

  • Example: Regarding “Climate Change is Fake,” (example news, Jan. 13)” you forgot…

• Stick to one point- don’t try to address separate issues that will dilute your main point.

• Fact Check- Take the time to check original sources rather than repeating “fact” cited in another media outlet.

• Create immediacy- by indicating how readers will be affected by the issue.

• Action- Point people to more information or how to engage in action whenever practical. This includes your elected representatives — by including their names in the letter and asking for action, you can get their attention.

• Know your audience- Speak in the language and to the literacy level of that publication’s readers.

Things not to do…

• Don’t exaggerate. One overstatement makes every following point suspect.

• Play nice- Don’t insult your opponents and balance out criticisms.

• Avoid jargon or acronyms (spell out any name the first time you use it, followed by the acronym in parentheses).

• ALL CAPS- Never use all capital letters or bold text to emphasize a word. It will rarely be printed that way and leaves a bad impression. You may italicize one or two words, but most papers will print it in plain text regardless — the words must speak for themselves.
  

Publication Options: 

Star Advertiser Letters to the Editor are limited to 150 words or less. So keep it short and on one subject, they have limited space to publish them. Keeping your letter brief will help assure that your important points are not cut out by the newspaper. Read the following tips and when you’re ready, submit a letter to the editor.

• Guide on the basics of writing LTE’s from our partners.

Civil Beat’s Community Voices section “aims to encourage broad discussion on topics of community interest. It’s kind of a cross between Letters to the Editor and op-eds. ”Submissions can be up to 800 words and include a bio and photo of the author. They also allow video commentary and other multimedia formats. Submission content must be exclusive to Civil Beat, and not have appeared in other publications.” Email your letter to news@civilbeat.org.