All of the Wellington newspapers accept letters via e-mail.

Here are the addresses of most of the region's papers:

Dominion Post letters@dompost.co.nz
Contact editor@contact.co.nz
Cook Strait News ccn_editorial@wilsonandhorton.co.nz
Capital Times editorial@captimes.co.nz
Hutt New editor@huttnews.co.nz
Upper Hutt Leader editor@uhleader.co.nz
Kapiti Observer editor@kapiti-observer.co.nz
Wairarapa News editor@wainews.co.nz

In writing, these approaches may prove useful:

• Keep letters short and covering one point or related points. Never exceed 200 words.
• If available, use a spell-checker/grammar checker and/or get a friend to read through the letter before you send it. The embarrassment of seeing a mistake printed 100,000 times doesn't bear thinking about.
• It is considered bad form to send the same letter to several publications. If you do decide to do this, ensure that you do not copy multiple newspapers using the same email, otherwise none of them will print your letter.
• Newspapers favour letters which respond to their editorial, articles, features etc. They will not print letters referring to other publications' material.
• The Dominion favours national topics so it is worth giving your letter an appropriate slant if writing to them.
• Also the Cook Strait News (covering the eastern and southern suburbs) might be a worthwhile target for letters on the bypass since it is residents of the eastern suburbs that are supposed to be gaining from its construction. Given this, anti-bypass letters should be met with a pro-bypass stance. This would afford the opportunity for a further letter, thereby extending the debate.