informal letters by eguriase s. m. okaka

WRITING: MORE ON INFORM LETTERS

BY Eguriase S. M. Okaka Remember that informal letters are letters you write to your friends, your parents, your brothers and sisters, aunties and uncles, cousins and nephews, or generally to any relation or friend. Informal letters are friendly in style and you are expected to use every day conversational English. You do not use formal language at all. Features of an informal letter • Writer’s address and date: This is usually written at the top right side of the letter. You can use the straight form of the indented / slanting form. • Greetings / salutation: It is written at the left side just below the date, e.g. Dear or My dear plus the first name of the receiver. Example Dear Pat, or My dear Pat; dear mum, Dear Dad, Dear Uncle John, etc. take note of the capital letters. • Introduction: This is usually used for exchange of pleasantries. This is because of the close relationship with the receiver. • The body of the letter is subdivided into paragraphs. The main purpose of writing is stated in the second paragraph and the main theme and subthemes are developed in subsequent paragraphs. • Conclusion: As in other type of compositions, the conclusion should be snappy and you try to create a lasting impression. • Language: The language is informal. It is the kind of language you use in your everyday conversation. For example, a) Contracted forms or shorten forms of words can be used. Examples couldn’t for could not and I’ll for I will b) Slang can also be used but do not overuse it. For example, you have some expressions that are commonly used in your school or home. You can use them especially when writing to young people like you who are conversant with such slangs. c) Exclamation marks (!) can also be used e.g. What a pit! d) Tone: Your tone depends on whom you are writing to and what you are writing about. If you are writing to your parents or uncles / aunties, for example, you must use words and expressions that show you are respectful. Your letters should always reflect a warm and close relationship with the receiver. e) Expression: you should have a mixture of long and short sentences. • Ideals: Like in all other types of compositions, your ideas be presented logically and your paragraphs should be developed fully and properly linked. Remember that informal letters require more details than formal letters. Feel free to give details not exactly related to the topic you are writing about. You score a high mark under content only when you have given adequate detail about your topic. For instance, you can provide brief information about your state of health, your family, your friend, or brothers and sisters, greetings and good wishes. The type of detail above should be written in the introductory paragraph. • Closure: The closure, as in other types of compositions, should be snappy. You should also try to create a final impression. You are advised to use yours sincerely, because it is the only style accepted for both WASSCE and NECO examinations. After writing this, you write your first name, that is, the name of the writer. Example: Yours sincerely, Eguriase. Note: That the Y of Yours is written with capital letter and does not have any apostrophe, and the s of sincerely is usually written with a small letter; there must be a comma after sincerely and a full stop after your name. Remember you relate on a first name basis because of the close relationship. Below is the format of informal letter. Here we are looking at two examples the straight or block style and the indented or slanting style of presentation. Both styles are applicable and usable depending on your taste. Formats of informal letters Queen’s College, P. M. B. 2005, Yaba, Lagos. 20th September, 2014. Dear Maria, ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yours sincerely, Charlie Federal Government Girl’s College, Sagamu, Ogun State, 30th September, 2014. Dear Tokunbo, ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yours sincerely, Kate. Note: The proper noun, Queen College, September, Ogun, etc. all start with capital letters, P. M. B. (which means Private Mail Bag) is usually written in capital letters with or without the dots. Exercise Discuss with your classmates, what you have learned about the features of an informal letter. Jot down some points after your discussion. • Write the format of an Informal letter. You can use the straight form or the slanting form. Compare your work your classmate’s. • Read the following question on an informal letter and write a good outline on it. Use the well-written sample below as a guide. Show your work to your teacher and be ready to take part in a class discussion on it. Methodist Girl’s High School, Onitsha, Anambra State. 12th November, 2015. My dear Mum, How are you and Juddy? How are you getting on at your workplace after your long leave? I know you must have a lot of work on your table. Do take it easy. I’m writing to thank you for making my holiday an interesting and wonderful one and also to tell you my experiences on my way back to school. Mum, I can’t thank you enough for making our holiday a great one. You did everything the way Dad used to do when he was alive. He must surely be happy, right there in heaven, knowing that you are still taking good care of us in his absence. We had lots of food and drinks and we visited many places of interest. Our visit to the popular, most recent recreation center in Lagos – the Ozone (E-Center) at Sabo, Yaba, Yaba is an outing I can’t ever forget. At school shortly before the holiday, I kept on imagining when I would be there, considering our financial situation, and little did I know you could stretch your finances to that extent just to make us feel happy. The E-Center with the eatery section and the cinema where we watched very interesting movies is a place to be. Thanks Mum, for this! However, my experience on my way back to school was a big contrast to my wonderful experiences during the holiday. The journey which started well, nearly ended on a sad note. I thank God for His mercy and protection. Our vehicle developed a problem at Ore, a place notorious for its bad road with dangerous potholes. We had to wait for a long time for the driver and his mechanic to put it in order. After this, we had to contend with the usual serious traffic jam at Ore. This lasted for hours and by the time the road was free for us to continue on our journey, we had spent about four hours on the same spot. We later got to Onitsha at about 10 p.m. just as the driver was about to stop at our school bus-stop for us to disembark, a reckless driver of one of the Danfo buses from Benin to Onitsha ran into our bus from the rear. Our bus jerked dangerously forward, and then stopped abruptly. The driver and many passengers were injured. Fortunately, I didn’t sustain any injury. I know the hand of God was there to protect me from harm. We finally disembarked and the injured were taken to the nearby hospital. I took a taxi that took me straight to school safely. I thank you once again, Mum, for your care and love. May God continue to be with you. Greet Juddy for me. Tell him to continue to study hard and that I’m proud of him. Remain blessed. Yours sincerely, Cathy.