GETTING STARTED

Welcome to the world of autograph collecting.  This hobby can be easy, hard and extremely fun.  How successful you are depends a lot on how much effort you put into it!  Some people like to collect others are just looking for one or two successes, either way it is well worth the effort.  Once you have an address of your favourite celebrity you should be ready to send away.

To be successful in getting responses there are several things that you MUST have.  They are in a bulleted list below.

• 2 Envelopes - Same size depending on what you are sending.

• Request Letter - Asking the celebrity for autograph (or just a fan letter telling them whatever you want)

• Item to sign - If you are looking for an autograph it is best to send something for the star to sign.

• Return Postage - Enough stamps to return your envelope or an IRC for them to get postage.

Now please see the following sections for detailed instructions on how to compile these objects into a successful autograph request.

STEP ONE - THE LETTER

The letter will show the celebrity that you are a fan and that you are asking for an autograph.  Keep it short and sweet because they don't have time to read a novel.

When I write a letter, I always place my address at the top, then the date followed by the salutation because a famous person is going to be going through tons of mail and if the letter gets separated from your envelope, they will not know where to reply to.

The first paragraph, like I said should be about them.  Why do you like them?  What is your favourite movie? This is how you show them that you just aren't an autograph hound looking for a quick signature.

The next paragraph should be the request for the autograph.  Politely ask them to sign what you have enclosed.  I NEVER ask them to enclose something themselves because I think it could be viewed as greedy and rude.  I have only done that once and it was when I knew that they sent their own pictures.

The last paragraph should be VERY short.  A simple closing thank you for reading is all that is required.

View a sample letter HERE (please don't copy it)

STEP 2 - THE ENVELOPES

The next step in sending an autograph request is the envelopes.  You will need to send your package in an envelope but enclose another for your item to come back in.  What I usually do is use two of the same kinds of envelopes.  One has the celebrities address on the front and the other has your address on it.  You should fold it in half because trying to stuff an envelope into another that is the same size can result in problems, believe me. 

Try to keep the envelopes in scale with what you are sending.  Don't use torch to light a cigarette.  Hahaha wow...I am funny.  See below for items to send.

STEP 3 - THE 'ITEM'

The first thing I will tell you about sending stuff to get signed and the most important - DO NO SEND ANYTHING THAT YOU WOULD BE HEARTBROKEN TO NEVER SEE AGAIN.  Postal workers are not the most careful, or the brightest crayons in the box so always factor in the loss of your envelope.

I would recommend sending pictures because they are the easiest to come upon and you can choose exactly what is getting signed.  Sending index cards is the next best choice but some stars do not like to put their signature on a plain white background for security reasons.  What can I say, there are a lot of nuts in the world.

Other choices are DVD Inserts, CD inserts, and posters.  Depending on the size or weight of what you are sending the cost could go up and remember it not worth losing your CD insert over some dumb postal workers.

STEP FOUR - RETURN POSTAGE

The trickiest part of requesting an autograph is knowing how much postage to include without loosing money.  You CAN NOT put USA Postage on an envelope to come back from the UK.  I tried it the first time and I realized what I had done when I got home but it was too late:)

The International Reply Coupon (IRC) is the safe alternative to that problem.  It is valid for the minimum overseas postage in any country.  So whatever it would cost for the smallest envelope to come home from any country is its value and it's different in every country because of the rates.  It is a good idea to send 2 for a manila envelope or to send three if you don't mind the expense.  You can get these things at any local post office and they will run you about $3.75CAD each.  If you have any questions about IRC's please CONTACT me because I have experience with them and would be happy to help you out.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Now that you have your letter, envelopes, item to sign etc.  and it is ready to go, it's time to package it all up.

Remember to fold your return envelope and place it in the outer envelope with your IRC's, your letter and your photo/index card.  Always remember to put your return address on the outside of the outer envelope as well because if there is an address problem it will be able to come back RTS (Return to sender).

Now that you know how to send a successful autograph request, you must now complete the hardest part - the wait.  It can take anywhere from 1 week (See Donald Trump) to 2 years (a Mark Hamill horror story).  It will be well worth the wait, please do not get discouraged and hang tight while you are waiting for your prize.

Please see the links section for information about terminology, celebrity addresses and many other hobby related findings.

HAVE FUN

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