Writing

Informal Emails
What Is an Informal Email?
• Informal emails are personal emails that are
written to let your friends or family know about
what is going on in your life and to convey your
regards. An informal email is usually written to a
family member, a close acquaintance, or a
friend. The language used in an informal email is
casual and personal.
What is informal language?
• Informal English is used when we're writing to friends, or relatives.
You can:
Use a very relaxed tone.
Use contractions and idioms.
Use simple structure.
Use the personal pronouns I, My, Me, we.
 Contractions
• Here are some of the most common contractions in the English language.
• 
• Informal Formal Form
• can't cannot
• don't do not
• shouldn't should not
• couldn't could not
• won't will not
• isn't is not
• aren't are not
• didn't did not
• hasn't has not
• haven't have not
• he's/she's he is/she is
• they're they are
• it's it is
• it'll it will
• it'd it would
 Avoid Slang language
• Colloquialism/Slang

Example Sentence
• dude friend (usually male) Dude, what is happening to you?
• buck American dollar How many bucks do you have left?
• zonked tired, exhausted Working 16 hours a day for five days
straight left me zonked.
• chill out relax You should chill out after working 16 hours a day for five days
straight.
• sweetgood, awesome Sweet, thank you for the birthday present!
Use at least one idiom
• Here are examples of idioms commonly found in informal conversations:
• get the cold shoulder to be treated in an unfriendly way
• Please don't give me the cold shoulder. Talk to me.
• spill the beans to reveal a secret
• Come on. Spill the beans about what's really going on with Lucy.
• go Dutch to pay for one's own food or drink
• I don't have enough money, so you guys will have to go Dutch for tonight's dinner.
• a piece of cake easy, effortless
• She's a smart girl, so most school subjects are a piece of cake for her.
• break the ice to start a conversation
• Since we're all new here, let's break the ice!
Can you provide more idioms??? Try 
Tips for writing an informal email:
• Personalize
• Create interest
• Do not list
• Do not state the obvious
• Use at least one idiom
• Read the question carefully
• Fulfill the 3 bullet points
• Writing: Exercise 5 (Email writing)
• INFORMAL Emails
• These are usually to your friends or family, usually asking you to detail
a recent event you took part in and they didn’t.
• You must be familiar with the format of an informal letter:
• 1. salutation (Dear/Dearest..)
• 2. introduction
• 3. body (maybe two paragraphs)
• 4. conclusion
• 5. signature (With Love/Yours Truly..)
The salutation and signature are simple. What about the others? Let’s take
a look.
• Introduction:
• 
• Start with a warm, friendly opening. Ditch the boring ‘How are you doing?‘. Go for these:
• It was good to hear from you
• Sorry for not replying sooner. I have been very busy.
• 
• I’m so sorry for taking so long to reply. I have been revising for my
exams.
• 
• Congratulations on your award! It’s been a hectic week over here. So sorry I couldn’t write to you earlier. (This is a
good opening, because it tells the examiner that you know this person well).
•  A transitional sentence: Tell them why you’re writing the letter. This will be specified in
the question paper itself. Keep it very short. In the example above, you could say:
•  I’ve been dying to tell you about this circus that came to town last Friday!!
More samples on Introductions