INFORMAL EMAIL

Opening paragraph
The opening paragraph is the place to react to your friend's or relative's email. In order to do
so, you can use a number of different expressions. Here we have some examples:
- It's nice / great / good to hear from you.
- It's nice / great / good to read your email.
- I'm glad to hear your news.
- I'm excited about... (your news.)
- It's great to hear that...
- I'm sorry to hear that...
- I'm really sorry to read your news.
- Thanks a lot for writing!
- It was good to receive your email.
- Thank you very much for your email.

And many more. Also, it's a good idea to ask your friend or relative how they are feeling, which
you can do like this:
- Hope you are doing well.
- How's it going?
- How are you (doing)?
- How are things (going)?

You can also add some information that you think is relevant or necessary, but don't expand
this paragraph very much, because the important information must go in the main paragraphs.

Main paragraphs
For the main paragraphs, there aren't any fixed expressions which you must use, as it depends
mostly on what you have to write about. However, you should try to make use of connectors
and appropriate punctuation. So let's take a look at common useful connectors and the
punctuation we use them with:
● ... and... : to connect two similar things or ideas.
I love reading and listening to music.
My favourite meal is fish and chips.
● ..., but... : to connect two contrasting ideas.
I love watching Tv, but I don't have a favourite show.
I am reading a book, but I don't remember the title.
● . However, ... : to connect contrasting ideas.
Last month, I went to the cinema. However, I didn't enjoy the movie.
I am a very big fan of this author. However, I haven't
read his last novel.
● Moreover, ... : to add more information about something.
● ... because... : to justify an opinion or idea.
My mum is the perfect cook because she knows a lot of recipes and has plenty of experience.
Moreover, she experiments with different ingredients all the time.
● . Because of that, ... : to justify an opinion, fact or idea.
My mum likes to cook using new ingredients all the time.
Because of that, she creates original dishes every month.
● . As for.../ Regarding...: to switch to a new topic. For instance, you can use this connector to
start the second main paragraph.
As for/Regarding why I like this cookery show, I think it's because it's a great way to see new
recipes.
● Time linkers: then, after that, yesterday, this morning, last summer, etc.
Last night, I watched a very good action film.
With many connectors, we typically use a comma (,) after it when we start a sentence (e.g.:
However, Last night, Moreover, etc.).

Closing paragraph
As we mentioned earlier, a closing paragraph in this Writing part 3 is used to start saying
goodbye to the addressee and to ask for a response to your email. So we can use the following
expressions:
● Well, it's time to say goodbye.
● Anyway, I have to go now.
● Well, it's time to go.
● Anyway, gotta go.
● I really hope to hear from you soon.
● I'm looking forward to hearing from you.
● I hope you write back soon.
● Make sure you write back soon.
Also, if you still have to write more words, you can add a question for a subsequent email. This
question should be related to the topic of your piece of writing.

Saying goodbye
There are many ways in English to close an informal email. The most frequently used ones are
the following:
● Best wishes,
● Best,
● Sincerely,
● Take care,
● All my love,
● Love,
● Lots of love,
● See you soon,
● Regards,
Notice how there is a comma (,) after each of the phrases. Also, after writing any of these
sentences, make sure you write your name on adifferent line. And write your name without a
full stop!
NARRATIVE

Beginning a story
When you start a story, if the first sentence isn’t given to you, you can use phrases like
these:
- It all began…
- When I first…
- At the beginning…
- It was a hot/cold summer/winter day.

Time phrases
In order to define the order of the events in the story, we must use time expressions
or time phrases. So let’s see a few:
- Then
- After that
- Not long afterwards
- As soon as
- While
- Meanwhile
- As
- Some time later
- A little later
- ____ minutes later
- a moment later
- Later (that morning/afternoon/day/night…)
- Just then
It is essential to use these expressions properly. Otherwise, it won’t be clear exactly how the
story develops.

Creating suspense
When writing a story, the aim is not to inform or to give information; the real purpose
is to entertain the reader, just like when you read a novel you expect to be
entertained. And a cool way to entertain is to create suspense, which we can do by
using some of the following expressions:
- Suddenly
- All of a sudden
- Without warning
- Just at that moment
- Unexpectedly
- Out of the blue
- Out of nowhere
- Right away
- Straight away

Direct speech
In every story there are characters and they usually interact with each other, so it is
always good if you know how to use direct speech, that is, reproduce the words the
characters actually say or think. The tricky bit about this is the punctuation and the
verbs to choose, because it’s good to use some verbs other than “say”. Let’s take a
look at some examples:
- “I’m coming with you,” she said.
- She said, “I’m coming with you.”
- “Do you like it?” he asked.
- “Don’t do it!” he screamed.

Finishing your story

This paragraph, the resolution, should be separated from the rest, and it’s a good idea to start
it with one of the following expressions:
- In the end
- Finally
- When it was all over
- Eventually
- After everything had happened
- Luckily

Verb tenses
The main three past tenses you should really try to use are the following:
- Past simple (-ed/irregular form)
- Past continuous
- Past perfect
If you take a look at the example of Writing above, you’ll see how I used these tenses in
combination, when possible:
 Past simple and continuous:
It was midnight and I was trying to sleep.
 Past perfect and simple: I had completely forgotten it was my birthday.
 Past simple:
This time I picked up the phone quickly and shouted, “Hello?!”.
FORMAL LETTER
How to start a formal letter
1) Dear Sir or Madam,
If you do not know the name of the person you are writing to, use this. It is always advisable to
try to find out a name.
2) Dear Mr Jenkins,
If you know the name, use the title (Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms, Dr, etc.) and the surname only. If you
are writing to a woman and do not know if she uses Mrs or Miss, you can use Ms, which is for
married and single women.
Beginning Your Letter
First, provide a reason for writing. If you are beginning correspondence with someone about
something or asking for information, begin by providing a reason for writing:
 I am writing to inform you about ...
 I am writing to ask/inquire about ...
 I am writing to ask about information for small businesses.
 I am writing to inform you that we have not yet received payment for ...
Frequently, formal letters are written to express thanks. This is especially true when writing in
response to an inquiry of some kind or when writing to express appreciation for a job
interview, a reference, or other professional assistance you have received. 
Here are some useful phrases of gratitude:
 Thank you for your letter of (date) inquiring about ...
 We would like to thank you for your letter of (date) asking for / requesting
information about ...
 In response to your letter of (date), we would like to thank you for your interest in ...
Examples:
 I would like to thank you for your letter of January 22nd requesting information about
our new line of lawnmowers.
 In response to your letter of October 23, 1997, we would like to thank you for your
interest in our new line of products.
Use the following phrases when asking for assistance:
 I would be grateful if you could + verb
 Would you mind + verb + ing
 Would it be too much to ask that ...
Examples:
 I would be grateful if you could send me a brochure.
 Would you mind telephoning me during the next week?
 Would it be too much to ask that our payment be postponed for two weeks?
The following phrases are used to offer help:
 I would be happy to + verb
 We would be pleased to + verb
Examples:
 I would be happy to answer any questions you have.
 We would be pleased to assist you in finding a new location.
Enclosing Documents
In some formal letters, you will need to include documents or other information. Use the
following phrases to draw attention to any enclosed documents you might have included.
 Enclosed please find + noun
 Enclosed you will find ... + noun
 We enclose ... + noun
Examples:
 Enclosed you will find a copy of our brochure.
  Enclosed please find a copy of our brochure.
 We enclose a brochure.
Note: if you are writing a formal email, use the phase: Attached please find / Attached you will
find.
Closing Remarks
Always finish a formal letter with some call to action or reference to a future outcome you
desire. Some of the options include:
A referral to a future meeting:
 I look forward to meeting / seeing you
 I look forward to meeting you next week.
An offer of further help
 Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions regarding this matter.
 If you need any further assistance please contact me.
A Formal Sign Off
Sign the letter with one of the following phrases:
1) Yours faithfully
If you do not know the name of the person, end the letter this way.
2) Yours sincerely
If you know the name of the person, end the letter this way.
Make sure to sign your letter by hand followed by your typed name.