WRITING 1
You should spend about 25 minutes on this task.
Write between 100 – 120 words.
You are designing a poster for a healthy lifestyle campaign. You find a suitable picture on a photographer’s blog. Write an e-mail to the photographer, Mr Bloom. In your e-mail:
- introduce yourself;
- give details of your project;
- ask for permission to use the photo;
- explain how you are planning to use it;
- offer to send a copy of the poster.
Remember you have to write between 100 – 120 words.
Before you do anything, read the question(s) carefully and find out the following:
- who you are writing to
- why you are writing ( e.g. to ask for information, to complain etc.)
- what you are writing about
When you have worked out what the purpose of your letter is, you should be able to work out what kind of style you will need to use.
SALUTATION OR GREETING
- Dear Mrs. Jones,
- 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 refers to married and single women.
PARAGRAPHING
- Work out a paragraph plan before you start.
- Each paragraph should have a specific purpose. All the information provided in the questions should be included and used as the paragraph purpose.
THE BODY OF THE LETTER
The next stage is to decide what will be in each paragraph. Usually the answer will have four or more paragraphs:
- A very short opening paragraph – usually just a sentence – the purpose of the letter: to make an enquiry, complain, request something etc.
- The paragraph or paragraphs – the topic for this is usually provided in the original question(s), so make your plan based on the exact topic of the letter.
- The last paragraph is usually short and should briefly summarize your purpose and suggest how you might want to proceed further. – To send you permission to use the photo, to forbid to use it etc.
ENDING A LETTER
- Yours faithfully,
If you do not know the name of the person, end the letter this way. - Yours sincerely,
If you know the name of the person, end the letter this way. - Your signature, Sign your name. Do not use a comma or a full stop.
USEFUL EXPRESSIONS:
REQUESTING
- I am writing for information about...
- I would like to learn/find out/know more about...
- I would like to ask if/whether...
- I would be grateful if you could...
ASKING FOR PARTICULAR ACTIONS
- I would like to ask you for...
- I would suggest that you/your company...
- I think that I can ask for...
- In the light of the above, I would like to ask you for...
CLOSING
- I look forward to your reply
- I look forward to hearing from you
- I look forward to seeing you
- We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future
- I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter