How to Work With Local Obituary Sections at Newspapers Like the Times Daily
Most people don't think about obituaries until they need one. I learned that the hard way in 2019 when my uncle passed away suddenly and I was on the phone with the newspaper trying to get his death notice published before the Saturday edition. The deadline had passed by twenty minutes. They still ran it, but it was at the back of the section, and some of the details I'd spent hours agonizing over got compressed to fit a tight word limit. That experience taught me more than any guide ever could. Here is what I figured out after going through it twice, and then helping a few other family members navigate the same process over the next couple of years.
Times Daily Obits Honoring Local Legacies Remembering Community Pillars
The Times Daily runs its obituary section with a specific philosophy. They do not just list names and dates. Their local obituaries tend to emphasize community contributions, family structure, and the sort of neighborhood-level impact that makes these notices feel different from the generic death announcements you see in wire services. Understanding this upfront changes how you write the submission. Spend your word count on what matters, not on boilerplate phrases that appear in every single piece. I submitted an obituary for my aunt last year and learned quickly that the editorial staff actually reads these before they go to print. They will cut content. They will reorder paragraphs. They prefer a complete narrative over a resume-style list of accomplishments. My draft was originally 450 words with twelve bullet points of organizational memberships. They trimmed it to 280 and converted three of those bullets into prose. The final piece read better than my original version, which I did not expect but accepted.
Getting Your Submission Right
Start with the facts. Full name, age, city of residence, date of death, and cause of death if the family wants that included. Most newspapers will publish the cause automatically unless you specify otherwise, so if there is a reason to omit it, say so clearly in your submission. I have seen families write "cancer" and then spend three days wishing they had just left it vague, because the wording in the paper became the only public record of something they wanted to keep private. Next comes the biographical content. Write in complete sentences. Avoid the passive voice where possible because it sounds detached, and detachment reads poorly in a notice meant to honor someone. Keep the tone consistent with how the person actually lived. If they were loud, funny, and unapologetically themselves, the obituary should reflect that rather than being smoothed into something that sounds like it came from a corporate handbook. I made a mistake with my uncle's notice. I had written it formally because I was stressed and didn't know what else to do. When the typesetter showed me the draft, it sounded like an obituary for a stranger. I rewrote it in a single evening, incorporating a story about how he always fixed neighbors' lawnmowers without being asked. That paragraph ended up being the most quoted line in the entire piece, and several people told me afterward that it was the part that made them feel like they actually knew him.
Get the Full Details
Understanding Deadlines and Fees
Deadlines vary by publication, but the pattern is predictable. Evening papers typically run same-day notices with a cutoff around noon. Weekend editions have earlier deadlines, often the prior Thursday or Friday. The Times Daily follows this model, so if you are targeting a Saturday publication, submit by Wednesday afternoon to allow for editing and layout. Pricing is another area where families get caught off guard. Most local papers charge by the line or by the inch, not by the word. A 300-word obituary can easily run four to six inches depending on column width and font size, which translates to a bill significantly higher than the flat-rate ads you see for classifieds. The Times Daily charges approximately $18 per inch for standard obituaries and $45 to $75 per inch for optional photo inserts. These numbers shift with inflation, so verify current rates directly with the publication before you commit to length. I once budgeted for a two-inch notice and ended up at four inches because I included both a headshot and a full-family group photo. The additional photo fee was not included in my original estimate, and it added roughly $120 to the total. Nothing wrong with including photos, but build the cost into your planning upfront.
What to Include and What to Leave Out
Include surviving family members in a standard format. I usually recommend listing spouse, children, grandchildren, and then siblings if relevant. Omit adult children who are already deceased unless the family specifically wants that included, because reopening that wound in print is unnecessary for most readers and a source of friction for some relatives. I discovered this by reading a notice that listed three deceased adult children alongside five surviving ones, and the tonal whiplash was jarring. Survived by phrasing is the industry standard. Avoid "preceded in death by" unless it is required by family tradition or religion. It adds words without adding warmth. Service information belongs at the end. Date, time, location, and whether the service is public or private. If there is a requested donation in lieu of flowers, name the organization and provide a web link or mailing address. The Times Daily typically includes the URL if you supply it, which reduces confusion for readers who want to contribute but cannot mail checks.
Leave out the medical details beyond cause of death unless the family wants transparency. You do not need to describe the hospital, the attending physician, or the duration of illness. Those details belong in personal messages, not in a public notice. I learned this from an editor who told me straight that 60 percent of obituaries contain medical information the reader does not need and that removing it usually improves the piece.
Photos and Formatting
Send high-resolution images in JPEG or PNG format. The minimum I have found to work reliably is 300 DPI at a width of at least 1500 pixels. Small images submitted via email get pixelated during the print process, and there is no fixing that after the fact. I once sent a phone photo that was only 72 DPI and the resulting print looked like a smear. The newspaper gave me 24 hours to resubmit, which was stressful enough while grieving, so getting the image right the first time saves you from a panic call. Headshots work best for standard obituaries. Group photos are fine for celebrant-style pieces, but they take up more space and cost more. If the person was known for a particular activity or role, a contextual photo related to that works well. A retired teacher in a classroom setting tells more than a formal portrait does, and I have seen this pattern hold true across dozens of submissions I have reviewed.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
The most frequent error I see is inconsistent naming. Using "Bob" in one sentence and "Robert" in the next creates confusion about whether two different people are being referenced. Pick one primary name and stick with it. Nicknames belong in the opening line if they are what the person was known by socially, but the legal name should appear first. Another common issue is misspelled names of surviving family members. I cannot stress this enough. Verify every spelling against official documents or by asking the family directly. A misspelled grandchild's name in a printed obituary will circulate for weeks, and correcting it requires a separate errata notice that draws attention to the original mistake. Timing is a third pitfall. Submitting after the deadline means your notice runs in the next available edition, which could be two to four days later. If the family wants the obituary to align with the funeral service, coordinate both dates before you write. I have seen notices run on a Tuesday when the service was Friday, leaving readers confused about when to attend.
Working With the Editorial Staff
The Times Daily editors are generally responsive, but they operate under tight constraints. Do not expect line-by-line approval before publication. They reserve the right to edit for space, tone, and accuracy. This is standard practice across the industry, not something personal. The best approach is to submit a clean draft and trust the process, intervening only if something factual is wrong. I found that building a relationship with the features editor paid off. When my second submission came through, I mentioned specific preferences based on the previous experience, and the editor remembered them. Small courtesy like providing a direct phone number and an email address in your initial contact goes a long way. Editors appreciate families who make it easy to do their job accurately and quickly.
When Obituaries Fall Short
Not every obituary captures the person it describes. Some drafts are too thin because the family does not know what to include. Others are too long because they attempt to document an entire life in 400 words. There is no formula that solves both problems perfectly, but the pattern I have noticed is that shorter, well-structured pieces tend to resonate more than sprawling ones. Readers skim. A clear opening, a concise middle section on life and community involvement, and a practical closing with service details covers the essential ground. Sometimes the newspaper declines to run certain content. Political endorsements, controversial affiliations, or overly aggressive language can trigger edits or rejection. This happened to a family I advised last year when they included a paragraph criticizing a former employer. The editor removed it and explained why. The family was frustrated but ultimately understood, and the published piece was stronger without that section.
A Practical Checklist
Before you submit, confirm the following: Full legal name and any widely used nicknames are both mentioned. Date of death and age are correct. Surviving family list is complete and spellings are verified. Service details include date, time, and location. Donation information includes the organization name and contact method. Photo is high resolution and properly formatted. Word count falls within the publication's limit or the cost estimate accounts for overage. Contact information for follow-up questions is included. I use this checklist for every submission now, and it cuts the revision cycle down to zero in most cases. The first time I went through it without the list, I missed a spelling error in a granddaughter's name and had to issue a correction notice. That is not worth the risk.
Where to Submit
The Times Daily accepts obituary submissions through their website, by email, or by phone. The online portal is the fastest route and typically confirms receipt within an hour. Email submissions require a bit more back-and-forth but work fine if you are not in a hurry. Phone submissions are available for urgent cases but are prone to transcription errors, so I recommend following up with a written copy regardless. The portal link is usually found under the News section, then Local, then Obituaries. If you cannot locate it, call the main editorial line and ask for the obituary desk. They will direct you to the correct submission page or accept the text directly if that is easier. The whole process takes about twenty to thirty minutes if you have the information prepared. The writing itself takes longer, maybe an hour for a standard piece. The hardest part is never the mechanics. It is deciding what to leave out, and that is something you figure out by doing it once and realizing you got through it.
