• Tell them who you are, why you love The Lord of the Rings, and why you want to see The Hobbit brought to the big screen. Include personal anecdotes where appropriate-if you grew up being read The Hobbit by your parents and are now reading it to your kids, say so! The clearer picture the studios can get of the potential audience for this film, the more confident they will be about their abilities to successfully market it. But be sure to get to the point within the first sentence!

• Include demographics data - this will move your letter from the 'another fan letter' stack to the 'important information about our audience' stack. Tell them as much about yourself as you're comfortable with. Things you could include: your name, age, gender, household income, whether you're married or single, if you have children, and your profession.

• Keep it brief - no more than one page. The studios will (hopefully) be getting thousands of letters, and they will only have time to skim each of them. That's why it's important to get their attention with personal anecdotes and details, but remain brief.

• Correct all spelling and grammatical errors before you send your letter. It is very important that they see that you have taken the time to make your letter professional, intelligent, and sophisticated. If English is not your first language, please still write a letter, but be sure to say that you are not writing in your native language so that the studio knows why your grammar may not be perfect (and that people from countries other than the USA are interested too).

• Keep your interest limited to the story- the books and their interpretation on film. Gushing about how much you're in love with one of the actors probably won't get the kind of attention you want. Be passionate and positive but not crazy.

• Let your enthusiasm show. If you are a part of a line party or other local Tolkien/LOTR group, be sure to mention that-especially if you went to see the LOTR movies as a group. Remember that for the studios, the bottom line is key. Promising to see the movie a thousand times if it gets made probably isn't realistic, but you could let them know if you plan to see it more than once (i.e., with different groups).

• Get your friends and family to write, especially if they live in a region or country separate from you. Remind the studios that there is a worldwide audience for The Hobbit. If you have kids who have seen the films with you, include letters from them about how much they enjoyed the films. The studios are looking for wide audience appeal.

• When possible, handwrite your letter. Handwritten letters are more personal and attention-getting than something that has been typed. It takes more time to handwrite a letter than to type one out and print it a dozen times. It's more authentic and more intimate. If you still want to type your letter, be sure to sign it by hand and maybe add a handwritten note at the bottom.

Now you know how to write your letter, check out your example letter section in the download area. [Click Here]

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