Tips, Tricks and Terms for Letters to the Editor

Opinions, they're the spice of life.

OK, even if they don't merit "spice-of-life" status, they are important and we all have our fair share of them. Opinions play a role in shaping our decisions, beliefs, behaviors and actions, so why not share yours with Wayland Patch readers?

Wayland Patch is always open to publishing Letters to the Editor, but this particular season in Wayland -- election and Town Meeting season, to be exact -- comes with a couple of special considerations.

First things first, some general Letter to the Editor guidelines:

• There isn't a word limit (we're online, after all), but do keep your readers in mind. Most online articles are best at about 500 words. If you need to go longer than that, consider including sub-heads to break up your text and help your readers jump to what they want to read.
• The editor, , will check your letters for grammar and typos, but will not add things like sub-heads, bullet points, etc. It's your responsibility to make your letter appealing to readers.
• If you supply a headline, Patch will use it unless it is too long or we deem it to be misleading in terms of the content of your letter. If you don't supply a headline, we will write one for you.
• If you have photos, videos or PDFs that support your letter, please feel free to submit those. Again, we will include them with your letter as long as they are relevant.
• As per Patch's formal Terms of Use, we will not publish letters that are "defamatory, abusive, obscene, profane or offensive." That doesn't mean you can't disagree with someone, only that you should do so with respect and civility.
• The Wayland Patch editor has the final say in these matters. So far, every letter submitted has been published or is in the queue to be published. Thank you for following the guidelines.
• If you have opinions bigger than just one letter, .

Now, about election and Town Meeting season. Obviously, this time of year brings out an inordinate amount of opinions, and Patch is happy to be the place where you voice those opinions and discuss them with your neighbors.

We will publish letters related to Town Meeting topics until Sunday, April 8, at 7:30 p.m. Please note, the number of letters received will determine how quickly they can be published, but we will do our best to publish letters in a reasonable amount of time. We will not publish letters at all on Tuesday, April 3, the day of Town Elections.

If the letters come flooding in, we reserve the right to move up the Town Meeting-topic submission cut-off time in order to publish all that have been received by the April 8 deadline.

So get writing, Wayland. Email me or give me a call (508-344-7464) with questions, and let's see what you have to say.