Sizes of Articles
The eNewsletter has two sizes of articles: short and long.
Short Article
A Short Article is just a few sentences and will fit entirely on the "Front Page" of the eNewsletter A thumbnail image will appear to the left.
An example of a Short Article is below. Please note this is about the longest you can make a Short Article and still fit on the Front Page. Please don't exceed 75 words or 350 characters of text [1]. For articles longer than this you should use the Long Article style.
Long Article
A longer article starts like a Short Article, with a thumbnail image and short introductory paragraph on the Front Page, and then ends in a link "More..."
Front Page
An example of a Long Article on the Front Page is below:
When the reader clicks on "More..." at the end of the front page text, he/she will be able to see a "Back Page" appear in a new window. That Back Page can contain images as well as text. There is no limit to the amount of text or images that appear, although it's advisable to keep it to no more that one page so as not to lose the reader's attention.
Producing the Back Page
The text copy and any images for the Back Page must be supplied by you, as the eNews Team of volunteers doesn't have the staff to write copy or to take photographs.
The Back Page then can be produced by the eNews Team as an HTML (web) page, or it can be produced by you as either an HTML file or as a PDF file.
Produced by you
You can provide any of the alternatives below:
- PDF file: If you can't create a PDF file, you can email us a finished MS Word file, and we can make a PDF file from it.
- A link to your own web page: simply give us a link to the existing web page you want "More..." to take the reader.
Produced by eNews team
If you prefer to have the eNews Team produce the HTML page, you must:
- Email a JPG file for each image you want to include. An image file can also be a GIF or PNG format.
- Email an MS Word file with the text copy. If images are provided, indicate clearly in the copy where each image should be placed. Also, clearly show any subheadings that should appear on the page in order to call the reader's attention to section headings.
- Please note: if you have an MS Word file with photos or images embedded in the page already, they can remain. However, you will need to email those images as separate files.
- Due to time limitations in producing each edition, please check with the eNews team in advance if you intend to submit articles more than two pages in length.
Thumbnails on Front Page
The Front Page has one thumbnail image for each article.
If you have run a previous article, we can re-use the thumbnail from that article. Please let us know when that article ran, as it would be helpful in locating the previous thumbnail.
Thumbnail images are 100 pixels wide. If you have a thumbnail you'd like to use on the Front Page, please email it as well. You can also email a link to an image on the web, and we can download that and use it.
The eNews Team can resize a photo or logo to create a thumbnail if the image you provide is too large. But remember, with a thumbnail size, there isn't much room for finer detail to be very visible.
Emailing Content
Content should be emailed to enewsletter@truro-ma.gov. Please feel free to email with questions as well.
Deadlines
eNews is usually emailed on the 1st of each month. We need all content at least two days before that do make that deadline. If we must format the Back Page, we'll need an extra day for that as well.
Past Edition Examples
Past editions of the eNewsletter provide plenty of examples.
Tips
Style Conventions
Times:
We format times as a.m. and p.m. If on the hour, the minutes can be omitted. For example, 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
[1] MS Word has an option in the Review menu that will provide character and word counts. ↩
You can also copy and paste your text into the box below and it will show you the word count.