You Have a Voice

This guide should help you pen a letter to the editor of a local publication in support of reforming land use policies or supporting a specific project. If you have questions or would like help with review or placement, feel free to drop us a line.

But First…

Here are a few helpful things to keep in mind before you sit down to write your letter.

Remember Your Audience

Remember, you aren’t trying to convince your Councilmember(yet) or an angry person on NextDoor. The only people who are going to be convinced by letters to the editor are… wait for it… the editorial board. There are two reasons why you are writing them:

You want them to write more favorably when covering attempts to reform our land development code.
You want to let them know that you enjoyed some recent favorable coverage in their publication.

Anything outside of those two, and you are probably writing to the wrong person.

Respond to Issues, Not Personalities

This one is going to be a tough one. Try not to refer to other people’s letters, it just get gives them more attention and distracts from what you’re really here to do – encourage a positive dialog about how our land development code affects our city’s future. Don’t feed the trolls, just tell them how this issue affects you, or what your vision for Austin is. More homes and a greater sense of fairness are noble pursuits, and as the saying goes – Never wrestle with a pig. You just get dirty and the pig enjoys it.

Use Strategic Timing

If you’re only going to write one letter, it should be after a news article runs. Share your thoughts with the editorial board before they write their opinion. If you are going to write a second letter, write it after the editorial board opinion is released to hopefully influence the viewpoint of any subsequent stories. If someone cites your letter, keep writing! Something you said made it to the top of the pile for them, see if you can do it again.

Less is More

Try to keep your letter around 250 words. This will mean that should the editorial board desire to publish or quote it, it will require minimal editing.

Writing Your Letter

Now you’re ready to get started!

Identify a Clear Problem

Your letter should identify a clear problem, and it should propose a clear solution. For example, Austin doesn’t have enough homes that are affordable to low- and middle-income residents in the urban core. We should make it possible to build more types homes, encourage more creative & adaptive reuse, and incentivise programs like first-time affordable homeownership in the high-opportunity city center.

Be Relatable

Hearts and minds aren’t changed through jargon, technical criteria, or statistics unless they are in support of a compelling narrative. It’s our stories and the stories of our neighbors, families, and friends that are compelling. With that in mind:

Be Personal – your experience and perspective are powerful. Why does this matter to you?
Be Relatable – Why should more people care? Why should they agree with you?
Identify and Inspire Action - What do you wnat them to do once they’re read your letter?

Keep It Simple

There are plenty of policy wonks out there. If you are one – great! Wonk away. If you are struggling with what to write, feel free to borrow from our list of policies and positions.

Editorial Board Contacts

Community Impact

Because the editor depends on where you live in the city, they have a single online submission form.

Contact the Newsroom

Austin for Everyone