1. OVERVIEW
Knowing how to write a letter is a
fundamental skill you'll use in business,
school, and personal relationships to
communicate information, goodwill, or just
affection. Here's a basic guide on how to put
your thoughts to paper in the correct format.

2. Decide how formal your letter needs to be.
How you write the letter will depend on your
relationship with the recipient. Consider
these guidelines:
If you're writing to a government official,
prospective employer, dignitary, academic official
or anyone else with whom you hope to have a
professional relationship, the letter should be
formal.
If you're writing to your current employer, a co-
worker you don't see socially, a distant or elderly
relative, or someone you don't know very well,
the letter should probably be semi formal.

3. How you write the letter will depend on your
relationship with the recipient. Consider these
guidelines:
If you're writing to a government official, prospective
employer, dignitary, academic official or anyone else
with whom you hope to have a professional
relationship, the letter should be formal.
If you're writing to your current employer, a co-
worker you don't see socially, a distant or elderly
relative, or someone you don't know very well,
the letter should probably be semi formal.

4. Use letterhead, or write your address at
the top of the letter (formal only). If
you're writing a business letter and
company letterhead is available, make use
of it. Or, if you simply want your letter to
look more professional, you can design a
letterhead on a word processing program.
Otherwise, simply write or type your full
home address at the top of the letter,
justified to the left. Write your street
address on the first line, and your city,
state and ZIP code on the second line.

5. Write the date (all letters). If you've written your
address first, make a two hard returns or leave a
few spaces, then write the date. Otherwise, start
with the date first, justified to the left.
Write out the full date. "9 September 2012" (British) or
"September 9, 2012" (American) are both preferable to
"Sept. 9, 2012" or "9/9/12."
If you're sending a semiformal or informal letter via
email, there's no need to add the date — the email
will be time stamped.