For more information, see the          Forest Service Web site for             the Colorado Roadless Rule

 Tips for writing a letter-to-the-editor

• Be concise. A letter-to-the-editor should be 150-200 words long.

• A letter is most effective when you talk about your personal experiences and concerns.

• Make sure you follow up. After your letter has been sent in, call the editor in charge of letters and ask when they're going to print it.

• Reference and respond to a recent article in the paper. Newspapers are more likely to print letters that do this because it shows relevance and timeliness to issues the paper is already covering.

• If you e-mail your letter, do not send it as an attachment.

• Make yourself available. Many papers will not print a letter unless they can verify the author's identity via telephone.

• Check your local paper's opinion section for additional guidelines.

Example:

    DATE

     Dear Editor:

     Re: "Colorado, feds start work on state roadless forest rule," Denver Post, 9/5/2007.

     TEXT OF LETTER HERE

     NAME

     STREET ADDRESS

     CITY, STATE, ZIP

     PHONE

     EMAIL ADDRESS