Organising your writing
The people you write to will understand well-organised emails much more easily.
Writer purpose
When you write an email, you need to make clear why you are writing. You can do this by using the phrase 'I am writing to (+ verb)' at the start of your email. Here are some examples:
| I am writing to | ask for further details about ... inform you that my new address is … complain about your customer service. say thank you very much for all your hard work. apply for the job as Teacher of Maths at your school. |
Paragraphs
- Emails are easier to read if the writer uses paragraphs.
- A paragraph in an email is often two or three sentences long.
- Each paragraph starts on a new line.
- When you start writing about a new topic, you can start a new paragraph.
Look at this example email to a friend.
| Paragraph 1 Greeting |
Hello Dmitri, How is life? I haven't seen you for a long time. How are your children? |
| Paragraph 2 Reason for writing |
I'm writing with some good news – my wife is having a baby next month. We think it's going to be a girl, and we're very excited. But I also wanted to ask you something! |
| Paragraph 3 Request |
You told me you have lots of baby clothes. Do you think I could borrow some for my baby? I've looked in the shops, and new baby clothes are so expensive … Could you let me know if this is OK? |
| Paragraph 4 Other news |
By the way, I've also started a new job. It's going really well! |
| Paragraph 5 'look forward to' and ending |
Anyway, I look forward to hearing from you soon. Give my best wishes to your wife and family. Regards, George |
Language level
Intermediate: B1
Comments
thanks for organizators
It's really helpful.
Hello,
In task 4, I see " we're getting married next February", is it the continuous present tense?. So could I write " we're going to marry next Feb" or " we will be married next Feb? Which correct? Could you please explain it to me?
Thanks so much.
Hi Nancy,
The present continuous is often used to speak about arrange events in the future. Saying it this way implies that the wedding date has already been set, the place and reception already planned, etc.
'to marry' exists as a verb, but we don't use it as often and it's usually used transitively, for example, 'I married her when I was very young'. 'we will be married' is also possible, but when we use 'married' as an adjective, it tends to describe a state rather than a process. Instead of 'we're going to marry' or 'we will be married', most people would say 'we are getting married' to talk about the event. If the important thing was the fact that you will be a married couple in February, then 'we will be married' would be more appropriate.
If you follow the link above, you can see several example sentences which can help figure out how these words are used. If you have any more questions, please let us know.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
First of all, I would like to say "Thank you and your organization very much".
I try to answer your task as i can but I enjoy it.
Such a useful website! Many thanks for your brilliant work!
When writing an email, if I want to add my resume or any other attachment to the email where should I mention it at the end of the email before the ending phrase or in between the mail??
Hi, Harini,
May be suitable to mention it before the ending phrase of email.
Hello HariniJ96,
I think that the most common thing nowadays is to mention it inside the body of your email. Usually there is a sentence or paragraph where you talk about your work experience, so I would include it there.
With 'snail mail' (i.e. letters sent on paper), it is standard practice to put the words 'Enclosure: CV' or something similar, but that is not usually done in emails as far as I know.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello,
My name is Debasish Mohanty, and i am from india. i am glad that i found this website and get to learn this , it gives me confidence to write effective email . Through out my education i never got a chance to learn how a proper email should be written.
Thanks a lot to your team for coming up with a course like this.
I look forward to learn more easy and effective learning like this.
with best wishes,
Debasish Mohanty
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