On May 31, 2001, an audition notice was posted in Backstage and the response was overwhelming. Approximately 250 to 300 submissions were received in a one-week period for the parts of Emily Dickinson and Thomas Higginson. Auditions took place over a two-day period in New York City. Videotaped readings and live panel interviews took place at the auditions. Only 22 were accepted, of whom 15 were women and seven were men.

Producer and director, Alex Lugones reviewed the audition tapes with screenplay writer, Ward James Riley to ensure they were in agreement. They narrowed the selection to three women and two men who were asked to read challenging passages from the script. The talented actors attending the callbacks made the decision process very difficult, as they were all qualified.

Callbacks are used as a way of observing talent but just as important is the chemistry between the actors. In MY LETTER TO THE WORLD, chemistry is extremely salient because of the length of time the two characters are on the screen together. Associate Producer, Joseph Tomasini who attended the auditions recalls the performances demonstrated by Siobhain Meyer and Edward Clark, "I saw all the auditions. When these two people came up for their audition… they were the characters. They were so good they gave me chills."

The script contains carefully crafted dialogue, which accurately depicts New England Victorian vernacular. Siobhain and Ed already had a handle on dialect and vocal control. This allowed them to focus their rehearsals more on action and reaction. The actors rehearsed together for 5 days over a 5-week period during 2 to 3 hour sessions. Once they were "off-book," they found deeper nuances in their characters.

One of the most difficult challenges is to minimize the staginess that the audience interprets from unfamiliar Victorian dialogue. This is why rehearsals were short and few. Over rehearsing tends to produce a technically precise, yet stagy performance on camera.

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