Collecting Autographs Thru the Mail (TTM)

...I started to collect autographs through the mail. My first ever autograph was from the presenters of kids tv show Blue Peter. Back then it was Sarah Greene, Simon Groom and Peter Duncan.

I sent them a letter saying how much I loved the show and they sent me a signed photo of the team of presenters. From then on I was hooked.
I learned that to get a better response you have to send a SAE - This is a Stamped Addresses Envelope ( an envelope with your name and address on). You have A much better chance of a quick reply that way.

Believe it or not this is a very important consideration when starting an autograph collection.
For your first Autograph request you should write to someone you really like and admire. A real Idol but also someone who will be relatively easy to get back a reply.
My first few TTM requests after Blue Peter were UK Kids tv stars and soap stars. TV companies have pretty good systems for Fanmail and will get their stars to sign as many photo cards as possible. This way when they receive autograph requests they can send them straight out by return.

Choose someone that you know about. Someone you can write an interesting letter to that the recipient will read with interest and take time to reply to you.
Choose your favourite sportsperson and congratulate them for their latest achievement, championship or medal. Choose your favourite FIlm star and tell them which is your favourite movie and why. You may admire a particular star because they are from your home town or they support the same sports team as you or maybe a storyline touched you because you identified with it.

Autograph hunting isn't restricted to Media or entertainment idols. Politicians or business people may be your idols and they are all willing to send you a signed photo too.

When you write your letter take time over it. Plan it out first. Write a draft with all the points that you want to include. Try and keep it to 1 page so it is a quick and easy read for the star you are writing to as they often only have a small amount of time to read and reply to fan-mail.
There have been some great debates in the Autograph collecting community over whether the letter should be hand written or not. I say that if your handwriting is neat and can be read by other people then it is certainly a benefit to hand-write the letter. It will be seen as more personal to the star. He/She will see that you are sincere because you took the time to write to them. I type my letters, only because my handwriting is awful. It starts off good but by the time I get to the end it looks like spider scrawl and goes off at a slant.

As for the paper to use. There is no right or wrong answer to that. Use what you are comfortable with.

So How do we start?

In your first paragraph tell a little about yourself. Only 2 or 3 sentences will do. Your name age (If you are under 20) and what you do.
In the next paragraph what you like about them. For example "I have been a big fan of yours since that film you did. My favourite film is that other one you did. I love it because it was very funny"
Try and personalise your letter so they know you are sincere and aren't just following a formula. If the star can relate to you through your letter they are much more likely to reply. You may even get a personal response if it touches them in a way (And if they have time)
The last paragraph should be your request.
I usually write something along the lines of "I would be most grateful if you could please send me a signed photo"

I always end my letters thanking the celebrity and if I have typed the letter I also add a written note with my name and signature at the end.

This is really your own personal choice.
When I started collecting autographs thru the mail I used to just send my letter and SAE and accept the photos that I received. However if you send a photo with your request this increases your chances of receiving a personalised photo - This is an autograph written especially to you.
After I saw Will Young in concert a couple of years ago I sent him a few photos that I had taken. They all came back signed personally to me and I was over the moon.



This is a photo I took of Max Beesley when he captained England in a Charity football match


And this is a Magazine centerfold that I sent to former radio 1 DJ Jason King


If you Choose to send your own item to be signed you have lots of options.
I quite often send pictures or pages from magazines. Publications such and OK! and Hello are great for this because they have lots of great hi res glossy shots to choose from. Of course if you are writing to Sports stars there are many magazines dedicated to every sport that will have great pictures to choose from.

Some people get images from the internet and have them printed out to send. Be careful if you do this because you don't want to get yourself into trouble by using copyrighted images and also you need to be careful of resolution. It needs to be a clear print that shows your idol in a good light that has plenty of space for a signature. Sometimes stars get a bit carried away and like to write a lot...
Like this screen shot I took from a TV show to send to Radio presenter Sara Cox


Or this one from Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac where she had to write on the backside of the photo


There are lots of online stores where you can buy great images of many celebrities and sports stars. I would recommend this if you want to send a glossy 10x8 shot to hang in a frame.

Depending on the type of celebrity you want to write to, You may find you have to do a bit of researching on the internet to find the right address.
However the best place to start is
Fanmail.biz

They have a huge resource of celebrity addresses across the globe plus feedback from fans who have written to these addresses. You can find out if an address is good or not or even get an idea of how long the turn around for your reply will be.

So you've written your letter. You've got your chosen photo to send to be signed.
You need a SAE which is a Stamped Addressed Envelope. Make sure You use the right size Envelope. I usually send small 6x4 photos so I use the C5 envelope. If you are sending a 10x8 photo then send an A4 size envelope.

I also put a piece of card in to stop the photos getting bent. I keep Washing powder boxes for this job and just cut off the side and place in the envelope. I write on the card "Please return" and they always do.

My best advice for posting would be to get it weighed at the Post Office before sealing it up so that you put the exact postage on both the outgoing envelope and the SAE. This way it won't be returned to you unopened.

All you have to do now is pop it in the Post box and sit back and wait for your reply.

I suggest keeping a note of who you have written to, the date you sent it and the address so that you can keep track of how your collecting is going.