[ SECRET POST #4513 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #4513 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 19 secrets from Secret Submission Post #646.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

How do I start a fan letter?

[(Anonymous)]

I've found plenty of articles on how to write a fan letter to a famous person, but none of them seem to cover the most basic part: how do you address them in the beginning? These are all the options I can think of and none of them feels right.
-Dear Joe Smith,
-Dear Mr. Smith,
-Dear Mr. Joe Smith,
-Dear Joe,
-To Joe Smith,
-To Mr. Smith,
-To Mr. Joe Smith,
-Mr. Smith,
-Mr. Joe Smith,
-[Nothing, just start the letter]

I know I want to be more friendly than formal, but I don't want to go too far in either direction. I haven't had to think about this in years and now that I do, I'm stumped. Full name feels clunky, last name only feels too formal, first name only feels too familiar. I know "dear" is considered standard even for strangers if the letter isn't formal, but as someone who rarely writes letters, I worry about it being creepy. But I don't want to be aloof either. Weigh in, F!S?

Re: How do I start a fan letter?

[(Anonymous)]

I would, personally, use 'Mr. Smith -' as I feel like that's the appropriate level of formality for someone you don't really know.

Re: How do I start a fan letter?

[(Anonymous)]

+1

Re: How do I start a fan letter?

[(Anonymous)]

I wrote, "Dear Mr. Tolkien".

Christopher Tolkien must get thousands of fan letters and I imagine mine was pretty typical. I know he is technically a professor, but he retired long enough ago that I don't suppose it's a core part of his identity any more. Really, I was just concerned to send him a letter before it was too late...