CHAPTER I

L E T T ER S

1.1 Friendly Letters, Social Notes, Business Letters

In school or out of school, at the age of seven to seventy, you practice the art
of writing letters --- whether you write to a pen pal in the Philippine, a friend on
vacation, a relative in the hospital, a mail order clerk in Chicago, or a businessman in
your own home town. Generally speaking, the letters you write may be divided into
three classes: (1) the friendly letter, (2) the social note, and (3) the business letter.

Four Tips on Writing Letters

No Matter what kind of letter you write, you should remember to do these
things:
1. Make your letter clear
Remember that when your letter is read, you will not be there to explain what
you mean. In order not to leave out important details in a business letter, plan what
you are going to say and how you are going to say it. Furthermore, if you will think
about what you are going to say before you write a friendly letter, then you can avoid
many careless errors that often interfere with clarity.
2. Write an attractive letter
Take pride in the appearance of your letter. A letter represents you. If you send
a neat and clearly written letter, the receiver will respect you as a considerate person.
On the other hand, if you mail a messy letter, then your reader’s opinion will drop
accordingly. Especially is this true in the business world. Many times a businessman
receives letters from people whom he has never met and never will meet. The writer is
judged entirely by his letter. If a businessman receives a messy, illegible letter, he
naturally assumes that the writer either doesn’t know any better or doesn’t care
enough to take the time to make the letter readable and attractive.
3. Use correct English punctuation, and spelling
A letter filled with errors in writing will not only lead the reader to believe that
you are uneducated but will also mar the clear expression of your ideas. Run-on
sentences, mistakes in usage like “he done” or “for Joe and I,” and misspelled words
like “dosen’t” or “truble” will never make a good impression upon your reader.
4. Be yourself
Above all else, be natural. Don’t make your letters sound like an English
teacher or a clever friend of yours. Moreover, don’t be a slavish imitator of models of
letters in textbooks. Originality is always better than imitation. There are few better
ways of reflecting your personality than a letter written by you, in your own style,
saying what you want to say.

1.2 Form (Layout) of a letter

_____________________________________________________________________
Letter Head
(Sender’s Address)

Reference Number

Receiver’s name Date

and Address

Salutation

Subject of the Letter

Body of the letter:

- Introduction
- Purpose
- Ending

Complimentary Close

Signature and
Sender’s name
Position in the company

CC.
Encl.

Secretary initials
_____________________________________________________________________
Attention:
1. Letter Head = Sender’s Address
2. Inside Address:
- Sender’s Address
- Receiver’s Address
3. Reference Number
4. Date
5. Salutation: Dear…..
6. Subject of the Letter
7. Body of the Letter :
- Introduction
- purpose/content
- Ending
8. Complementary Close :
- Yours Sincerely
- Yours Faithfully
- Yours
- Love
9. Signature
10. cc : Carbon Copy
11. Encl. : Enclosure
12. Secretary initial
CHAPTER II
PERSONAL LETTER

2.1 Friendly Letter

The friendly letter is informal, casual and personal. It is the kind of letter you
write to your family and friends. Although there are no rigid, inflexible rules for
writing friendly letters, you should learn to follow a few accepted practice.
1. Choose stationary and ink that are appropriate for friendly
letters
Use letter stationary, preferably white or lightly tinted. Writing on paper that is
gaudy or that reeks with perfume is considered poor taste. Do not write a letter of any
kind on lined paper. Instead of using a pencil, you should always write in ink, which is
much easier to read and is more attractive on the page. Use blue, black, or blue-black
ink. If you like green, purple, or red ink, use it for writing to only your closest friends;
never use it for writing to a new acquaintance or someone else that you do not know
very well.
It is all right to type friendly letters, but be sure to sign your name in ink. If
you type your letter, do not strike over letters or make messy erasures on your paper.
Whether you type or use longhand, always be neat.
2. Observe standard practices regarding the arrangement of the
pages of a friendly letter.
You should arrange your letters so that your reader can easily follow your train
of thought. Pay special attention to the margins, page, order, and spacing.
Margins
Be sure to have even margins on both sides of the page. Don’t run lines or
afterthoughts up and down the margins. If you must add something you forgot to
include, use a postscript (P.S.). Also remember that margins at the top and bottom of
the page are just as important as those at the sides.
Page Order
If you use folded stationary and if your letter is more than two pages long, use
the page order of a book. Write the second page on the back of the first page. If your
letter is only two pages long, however, write your second page on the third page of
your stationary. Before you mail the letter, check to see that each page is in the proper
order.

Spacing
Always have at least two lines of your last paragraph on the last page of your
letter. Never finish your last paragraph on one page and then put the closing and
signature on the next.
3. Learn the proper form for the five parts of a friendly letter
The parts of the friendly letter are the heading, solution, body, closing, and
signature. The form below shows where these parts are placed upon the page.
_____________________________________________________________________
Sender’s Address
Date………………
…………………..…

Salutation………..

…………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………….……

…………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………Body....
…………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………

………….closing…………

……..Signature……………
_____________________________________________________________________
Attention:
1) Sender’s Address and the date
The first line of the sender’s address is your street address, number of your
rural route, or your post office box number. The second line has the name of your
town, followed by the postal zone number if there is one, and the name of your state.
A comma is placed after the zone number, between the town and the state. The third
line gives the month, day, and year that the letter is written: a comma comes after the
day of the month.
For example: 4801 Live Oak Street Jalan Padi 2 Blok A No.11
Dallas 4, Texas Perum. Pusri Sako Kenten, Palembang
March 6, 2019 March 10, 2019

The rules for the sender’s address and the date are, of course, flexible
depending upon the person to whom you are writing. For instance, if you are writing
to your father, who is away for a few days on business, then certainly you would not
need to give him your home address, and “Tuesday morning” or “Friday night” might
enough for the date. You give your complete address and the exact date when you are
not sure that the receiver knows this information. If you prefer, you may put your
address and the date at the end of the letter --- in the lower left-hand corner of the
page.
Since, in the mind of some readers, abbreviations give the impression of
careless haste, it is better not to use abbreviations. If you do use them, however, be
consistent by abbreviating the word Street as well as the name of the state.

2) Salutation
Your salutation greets the reader. The usual form is the word Dear followed by
the name of the person to whom you are writing. A comma comes after the salutation.
Examples:
- Dear George,
- Dear Augustha,
- Dear Sis,
- Dear Mr. Nelson,

3) The Body
The body is the letter itself. Be sure to divide your letter into paragraphs,
making clear indentions of the first line. If you type your letter, you have to double
space below the salutation, between paragraphs, and before the closing.
4) The Closing and Signature
Among the many appropriate closings for a friendly letter are: Sincerely yours,
Sincerely, Love, With love, Affectionately. Do not use formal phrases such as Very
truly yours or Respectfully yours, which are found in business letters. Notice that only
the first word of the closing is capitalized. Whether you type your letter or write it in
longhand, always sign your name below the closing. Write legibly, and do not trail off
into the space reserved for the right margin.
4. Address the envelope correctly
Place your own name and address in the upper left-hand corner of the
envelope. Do not give yourself a title such as Miss or Mr. You do, however, always
use a title like Mr., Mrs., Miss, Dr, before the name of the person to whom you are
writing. (Notice that Miss, which is not an abbreviation, is never followed by a
period.) Place his or her name and address on the lower half of the envelope, about
midway between the ends. Do not use such abbreviations as St., Ave., Rd., on the
envelope, and do not abbreviate the name of the state. You may write the name of the
state on a separate line.
_____________________________________________________________________
Lynn Melton
4143 South Redford Street
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Miss Helen Earnests
8 Hillsville Circle
Knoxville 19
Tennessee
_____________________________________________________________________
5. Make the content of your friendly letters lively and interesting.
The most important things for you to remember when writing friendly letters
are to be yourself and to say what you mean. Certainly this book cannot tell you what
to say in your letters. After all, a friendly letter is like a conversation, and your letters
should be filled with lovely, original comments that reflect your interests and
personality. There are, however, several “do s” and “don’t s” that you should keep in
mind as you write friendly letters.
1. Write about those things that will interest your reader.
Just as a good speaker considers his audience, a good letter writer remembers
the interests of the person to whom he is writing. Your friend Bill may enjoy hearing
about your recent hunting trip; whereas your Aunt Martha may be more interested in
canning strawberries. If you are writing to your grandmother, she will probably want
to know the news about your family and the progress you’re making at school. When
you are corresponding with friends of your own age, write about what you and they
usually talk about when you are together. In short, make the content of your letter
appropriate to the receiver.
2. Be specific
Generalizations are always dull. A sentence like “School is about the same” is
never so interesting as one with specific details, such as “At school, Miss McMahan is
still harping about our errors in spelling, and Jerry Cates keeps on making up different
excuses for dragging in late to math class every morning.” Telling in detail about a
definite incident at home is always more interesting than a lazy comment like “The
family is fine.”
3. Don’t gossip
Talking about mutual friends is always interesting and appropriate. Do not,
however, make sarcastic remarks or repeat malicious gossip. Instead, look at your
friends’ good characteristics as you speak of what they say, where they go, and what
they do.
4. Don’t ask too many questions
Don’t start your letter with a series of questions like “How goes it with you?
Are you still going out with Larry? Has your father started teaching you to drive yet?
Are you and he still arguing about money? What have you been doing lately? Why
don’t you write to me more often?” (The answer to the last question is rather
obvious.) The person to whom you write wants a letter from you, not a nosy
questionnaire.
5. Write a strong last paragraph
When you plan a composition, you often save the most important point until
the last; and when you write a letter, you should make the last paragraph especially
interesting. Don’t suddenly stop with I’ve got to go eat now, No more news, or I’ll see
you in my dreams. Instead, you might suggest that your friend plan to visit in your
home or that you may have other interesting news to report in your next letter, after
the ball game on Friday or the dance on Saturday. Or you might make reference to
something you would like to hear about when your friend answers your letter.

The Social Note

The social note is a short letter usually written for one of the following
purposes : 1) to extend an informal invitation; 2) to accept or decline an informal
invitation; 3) to thank someone for a gift or for entertaining you. The form of the
social note is very much like that of a friendly letter. The address and the date are
either in the top right-hand corner or the lower left-hand corner of the page. The
salutation is simply Dear..., and the closing is usually Sincerely yours or Sincerely.
The social note may be written on regular note paper, on correspondence cards, or on
personal note paper.

2.2 The Informal Invitation

Although the form and the content of an invitation are very similar to those of
a friendly letter, you do have to be careful to include the following information: 1)
your full address; 2) the date, time, and place; 3) any necessary explanation regarding
the kind of affair is to be.

_____________________________________________________________________
2132 Elkton Place
Greenwich, Connecticut
June 20, 2019

Dear Joyce,
Dad, Mom, and I are getting ready for a trip to Garden City to visit my Uncle
Howard. We plan to arrive there in time to go to Coney Island on July 2.
Since you live right on our route, it would be very convenient for us to pick
you up and take you with us. Are you interested? We could really have a lot of fun!
If you can go, have yourself and your suitcase ready shortly before noon on
July 2. You can tell your mother that you’ll be back home before dark on July 3.

Yours sincerely
Mary
_____________________________________________________________________

2.3 Replying to the informal invitation

Any time that you receive a written invitation, good manners require that your
acceptance or refusal be written. No matter what your decision may be, you should
always show that you are glad you were invited. If you accept, show your pleasure. If
you decline, then refuse graciously, with regret and with courtesy. In every letter that
you write, politeness is important, and especially so when you accept or decline an
invitation.
When you refuse an invitation, you should give a good reason for not
accepting. Do not be offensively vague with sentences such as Sorry I can’t make it
because I’ll be busy.

_____________________________________________________________________

20 Main Street
Rye, New York
June 23, 2019

Dear Mary,
It will be wonderful to go with you to Coney Island! As I count the days, I can
hardly wait for the time to get here. I’ll be ready when you arrive the morning of
July 2.

Affectionately,
Joyce
_____________________________________________________________________
A Note of Acceptance
____________________________________________________________________

20 Main Street
Rye, New York
June 23, 2019

Dear Mary,
I’m very sorry that I have to turn down your invitation. I’d give anything if I
could go with you to Coney Island, but Dad needs me at the store. Since nearly all of
his clerks are on vacation, I have to stay around to help out.
I hope that you and your family have a grand trip.

Sincerely,
Joyce
_____________________________________________________________________
A Note of Refusal

Exercises:
1. Write an informal invitation to your grandparents asking them to spend a week
end with you and your family during the spring vacation. You may suggest a
convenient bus or train that they might take.
2. Write a note accepting an invitation to a party in your honor --- for example, a
going away party or a birthday party.
3. Write a letter refusing an invitation to Thanksgiving dinner with a friend who
lives in a neighboring town. Express your regret courteously, and give a
definite reason for being unable to accept. Be sure to express your appreciation
of the invitation.
2.4 The Thank-You Note
Never fail to acknowledge a gift. When someone thoughtfully remembers you
with a present, let him know that you appreciate it. Write a thank-you note within a
week after you receive the present, and be sure to mention what it is. If you say
merely: Thanks for the gift,” the sender may think that you have forgotten what he
sent or that you have no use for the gift. After you have been entertained at
somebody’s home, you should write a prompt thank-you letter; this note, often called
a “bread-and-butter” letter, is addressed to your hostess. You should thank her for her
hospitality and say what a good time you had. Show your appreciation of her
kindness; in your letter. You might mention some of the things that you liked
especially well during your visit.

____________________________________________________________________

321 Rose Street

Perl Mason Illinois
December 30, 2019

Dear Fred,
Thanks a million for the belt; I really do like its unusual design and the large,
sturdy buckle. Did you and Dad by any chance get together? The belt exactly matches
the boots he got me for Christmas.
I’m about ready for school to start again. Aren’t you? It’ll be fun to show off
my new belt to all my friends.

Sincerely,
Tom
_____________________________________________________________________
A Thank-You Note

_____________________________________________________________________

3865 Fairview Road

New Orleans, USA
September 7, 2019

Dear Mrs. White,

It was great to spend a whole week in the country with you and Don. I surely did have
fun. Riding white horse, helping Mr. White in the field, driving over to marshal,
seeing work miracles with your “Dutch oven” --- everything was a real treat for me.
Thank you for having me in your home.

Sincerely,
Steve
_____________________________________________________________________
A Bread-and-Butter Note
Exercises:
1. Write a thank-you note to a friend who has sent you a birthday gift. Be sure to
mention the gift by name.
2. Write a bread-and-butter note to a hostess who has entertained you over the
week end. While you were visiting a friend, your hostess (your friend’s
mother) invited several people in for a party so that you would enjoy your visit
more than usual. She also cooked your favorite dishes and provided you with
tickets for a show on Saturday afternoon. Tell her in your bread-and-butter
note that you had a good time, and show her that you appreciate her
hospitality.