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Example of a Great Essay | Explanations, Tips & Tricks

Published on February 9, 2015 by Shane Bryson . Revised on July 23, 2023 by Shona McCombes.

This example guides you through the structure of an essay. It shows how to build an effective introduction , focused paragraphs , clear transitions between ideas, and a strong conclusion .

Each paragraph addresses a single central point, introduced by a topic sentence , and each point is directly related to the thesis statement .

As you read, hover over the highlighted parts to learn what they do and why they work.

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Table of contents

Other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about writing an essay, an appeal to the senses: the development of the braille system in nineteenth-century france.

The invention of Braille was a major turning point in the history of disability. The writing system of raised dots used by visually impaired people was developed by Louis Braille in nineteenth-century France. In a society that did not value disabled people in general, blindness was particularly stigmatized, and lack of access to reading and writing was a significant barrier to social participation. The idea of tactile reading was not entirely new, but existing methods based on sighted systems were difficult to learn and use. As the first writing system designed for blind people’s needs, Braille was a groundbreaking new accessibility tool. It not only provided practical benefits, but also helped change the cultural status of blindness. This essay begins by discussing the situation of blind people in nineteenth-century Europe. It then describes the invention of Braille and the gradual process of its acceptance within blind education. Subsequently, it explores the wide-ranging effects of this invention on blind people’s social and cultural lives.

Lack of access to reading and writing put blind people at a serious disadvantage in nineteenth-century society. Text was one of the primary methods through which people engaged with culture, communicated with others, and accessed information; without a well-developed reading system that did not rely on sight, blind people were excluded from social participation (Weygand, 2009). While disabled people in general suffered from discrimination, blindness was widely viewed as the worst disability, and it was commonly believed that blind people were incapable of pursuing a profession or improving themselves through culture (Weygand, 2009). This demonstrates the importance of reading and writing to social status at the time: without access to text, it was considered impossible to fully participate in society. Blind people were excluded from the sighted world, but also entirely dependent on sighted people for information and education.

In France, debates about how to deal with disability led to the adoption of different strategies over time. While people with temporary difficulties were able to access public welfare, the most common response to people with long-term disabilities, such as hearing or vision loss, was to group them together in institutions (Tombs, 1996). At first, a joint institute for the blind and deaf was created, and although the partnership was motivated more by financial considerations than by the well-being of the residents, the institute aimed to help people develop skills valuable to society (Weygand, 2009). Eventually blind institutions were separated from deaf institutions, and the focus shifted towards education of the blind, as was the case for the Royal Institute for Blind Youth, which Louis Braille attended (Jimenez et al, 2009). The growing acknowledgement of the uniqueness of different disabilities led to more targeted education strategies, fostering an environment in which the benefits of a specifically blind education could be more widely recognized.

Several different systems of tactile reading can be seen as forerunners to the method Louis Braille developed, but these systems were all developed based on the sighted system. The Royal Institute for Blind Youth in Paris taught the students to read embossed roman letters, a method created by the school’s founder, Valentin Hauy (Jimenez et al., 2009). Reading this way proved to be a rather arduous task, as the letters were difficult to distinguish by touch. The embossed letter method was based on the reading system of sighted people, with minimal adaptation for those with vision loss. As a result, this method did not gain significant success among blind students.

Louis Braille was bound to be influenced by his school’s founder, but the most influential pre-Braille tactile reading system was Charles Barbier’s night writing. A soldier in Napoleon’s army, Barbier developed a system in 1819 that used 12 dots with a five line musical staff (Kersten, 1997). His intention was to develop a system that would allow the military to communicate at night without the need for light (Herron, 2009). The code developed by Barbier was phonetic (Jimenez et al., 2009); in other words, the code was designed for sighted people and was based on the sounds of words, not on an actual alphabet. Barbier discovered that variants of raised dots within a square were the easiest method of reading by touch (Jimenez et al., 2009). This system proved effective for the transmission of short messages between military personnel, but the symbols were too large for the fingertip, greatly reducing the speed at which a message could be read (Herron, 2009). For this reason, it was unsuitable for daily use and was not widely adopted in the blind community.

Nevertheless, Barbier’s military dot system was more efficient than Hauy’s embossed letters, and it provided the framework within which Louis Braille developed his method. Barbier’s system, with its dashes and dots, could form over 4000 combinations (Jimenez et al., 2009). Compared to the 26 letters of the Latin alphabet, this was an absurdly high number. Braille kept the raised dot form, but developed a more manageable system that would reflect the sighted alphabet. He replaced Barbier’s dashes and dots with just six dots in a rectangular configuration (Jimenez et al., 2009). The result was that the blind population in France had a tactile reading system using dots (like Barbier’s) that was based on the structure of the sighted alphabet (like Hauy’s); crucially, this system was the first developed specifically for the purposes of the blind.

While the Braille system gained immediate popularity with the blind students at the Institute in Paris, it had to gain acceptance among the sighted before its adoption throughout France. This support was necessary because sighted teachers and leaders had ultimate control over the propagation of Braille resources. Many of the teachers at the Royal Institute for Blind Youth resisted learning Braille’s system because they found the tactile method of reading difficult to learn (Bullock & Galst, 2009). This resistance was symptomatic of the prevalent attitude that the blind population had to adapt to the sighted world rather than develop their own tools and methods. Over time, however, with the increasing impetus to make social contribution possible for all, teachers began to appreciate the usefulness of Braille’s system (Bullock & Galst, 2009), realizing that access to reading could help improve the productivity and integration of people with vision loss. It took approximately 30 years, but the French government eventually approved the Braille system, and it was established throughout the country (Bullock & Galst, 2009).

Although Blind people remained marginalized throughout the nineteenth century, the Braille system granted them growing opportunities for social participation. Most obviously, Braille allowed people with vision loss to read the same alphabet used by sighted people (Bullock & Galst, 2009), allowing them to participate in certain cultural experiences previously unavailable to them. Written works, such as books and poetry, had previously been inaccessible to the blind population without the aid of a reader, limiting their autonomy. As books began to be distributed in Braille, this barrier was reduced, enabling people with vision loss to access information autonomously. The closing of the gap between the abilities of blind and the sighted contributed to a gradual shift in blind people’s status, lessening the cultural perception of the blind as essentially different and facilitating greater social integration.

The Braille system also had important cultural effects beyond the sphere of written culture. Its invention later led to the development of a music notation system for the blind, although Louis Braille did not develop this system himself (Jimenez, et al., 2009). This development helped remove a cultural obstacle that had been introduced by the popularization of written musical notation in the early 1500s. While music had previously been an arena in which the blind could participate on equal footing, the transition from memory-based performance to notation-based performance meant that blind musicians were no longer able to compete with sighted musicians (Kersten, 1997). As a result, a tactile musical notation system became necessary for professional equality between blind and sighted musicians (Kersten, 1997).

Braille paved the way for dramatic cultural changes in the way blind people were treated and the opportunities available to them. Louis Braille’s innovation was to reimagine existing reading systems from a blind perspective, and the success of this invention required sighted teachers to adapt to their students’ reality instead of the other way around. In this sense, Braille helped drive broader social changes in the status of blindness. New accessibility tools provide practical advantages to those who need them, but they can also change the perspectives and attitudes of those who do not.

Bullock, J. D., & Galst, J. M. (2009). The Story of Louis Braille. Archives of Ophthalmology , 127(11), 1532. https://​doi.org/10.1001/​archophthalmol.2009.286.

Herron, M. (2009, May 6). Blind visionary. Retrieved from https://​eandt.theiet.org/​content/​articles/2009/05/​blind-visionary/.

Jiménez, J., Olea, J., Torres, J., Alonso, I., Harder, D., & Fischer, K. (2009). Biography of Louis Braille and Invention of the Braille Alphabet. Survey of Ophthalmology , 54(1), 142–149. https://​doi.org/10.1016/​j.survophthal.2008.10.006.

Kersten, F.G. (1997). The history and development of Braille music methodology. The Bulletin of Historical Research in Music Education , 18(2). Retrieved from https://​www.jstor.org/​stable/40214926.

Mellor, C.M. (2006). Louis Braille: A touch of genius . Boston: National Braille Press.

Tombs, R. (1996). France: 1814-1914 . London: Pearson Education Ltd.

Weygand, Z. (2009). The blind in French society from the Middle Ages to the century of Louis Braille . Stanford: Stanford University Press.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

• Ad hominem fallacy
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An essay is a focused piece of writing that explains, argues, describes, or narrates.

In high school, you may have to write many different types of essays to develop your writing skills.

Academic essays at college level are usually argumentative : you develop a clear thesis about your topic and make a case for your position using evidence, analysis and interpretation.

The structure of an essay is divided into an introduction that presents your topic and thesis statement , a body containing your in-depth analysis and arguments, and a conclusion wrapping up your ideas.

The structure of the body is flexible, but you should always spend some time thinking about how you can organize your essay to best serve your ideas.

Your essay introduction should include three main things, in this order:

• An opening hook to catch the reader’s attention.
• Relevant background information that the reader needs to know.
• A thesis statement that presents your main point or argument.

The length of each part depends on the length and complexity of your essay .

A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . Everything else you write should relate to this key idea.

A topic sentence is a sentence that expresses the main point of a paragraph . Everything else in the paragraph should relate to the topic sentence.

At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays , research papers , and other academic texts (except exams and in-class exercises).

Add a citation whenever you quote , paraphrase , or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text.

The exact format of your citations depends on which citation style you are instructed to use. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago .

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If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Bryson, S. (2023, July 23). Example of a Great Essay | Explanations, Tips & Tricks. Scribbr. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-essay/example-essay-structure/

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Shane finished his master's degree in English literature in 2013 and has been working as a writing tutor and editor since 2009. He began proofreading and editing essays with Scribbr in early summer, 2014.

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Are you a learner at B2 English level (upper intermediate) ? This section offers writing practice to help you write clear, detailed text on a wide range of topics related to your interests. Texts include essays, reports, reviews, messages and emails.

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Ultimate Guide to Writing Your College Essay

Tips for writing an effective college essay.

College admissions essays are an important part of your college application and gives you the chance to show colleges and universities your character and experiences. This guide will give you tips to write an effective college essay.

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How to write a letter

HOW TO WRITE A LETTER:  A GUIDE FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS

In this age of digital communication, writing letters is becoming something of a lost art. Emails and text messages can be sent instantly and for a fraction of the cost good old-fashioned snail mail can offer.

So, why bother teaching letter-writing at all? Well, though electronic ‘letters’ are often freer in formatting and language than physical letters, we can also apply letter-writing rules to electronic media. However, physical letters do offer some distinct benefits of their own too.

A WELL-WRITTEN LETTER CAN CHANGE THE WORLD.

Whilst we pride ourselves here on how to write a great essay, information report, or another text type that is primarily used in an educational setting, the ability to craft a powerful letter or email has literally changed people’s lives, altered the course of history and been the difference between life and death in some cases.

It can be the one opportunity to remove all the noise and confusion on any subject area and honestly tell someone how you feel straight from the heart.  Pen to paper.  

For whatever reason, a thousand emails, tweets, and likes will never have the same impact as a well-crafted handwritten letter.  Its very creation and existence show your reader how passionate and genuine about what it contains.

Letters fall under the transactional writing category; if you want to know more about transactional texts, be sure to check out our in-depth guide here.

COMPLETE LETTER WRITING UNIT FOR STUDENTS

Over 100 PAGES of engaging RESOURCES , various letter SAMPLES , LESSON PLANS and INTERACTIVE DIGITAL RESOURCES to teach your students how to write amazing LETTERS and EMAILS .

Teach this life skill with confidence through this excellent ALL-IN-ONE RESOURCE . No preparation is required.

3 REASONS TO TEACH LETTER WRITING

1. the personal touch: .

Those of us who grew up in an age before the internet got going will remember the excitement of waiting for and receiving a letter. Many of us will have had childhood pen pals we never met or received love letters from our teenage sweethearts. Maybe some treasured letters are still securely stored in a bedside drawer.

There is something extremely personal and intimate about the letter that email cannot capture. Letters are physical, and their increasing rarity makes them seem even more intimate today.

In this day and age, receiving a personally written letter is something a unicorn in communication terms. Students who know how to produce a well-crafted letter can use it to their advantage. For example, any business hiring manager will undoubtedly be numbed by the constant torrent of emails flooding their inbox.

That mailed resume accompanied by a handwritten letter that waits for them on their desk in the morning will surely stand out and secure an attentive read. The letter, in its various forms, is guaranteed to stand out and make an impact in an age where the vast majority of communication is digital.

3. Handwriting

Just as letter writing has declined in popularity, so too has the emphasis on well-developed handwriting skills. You can, if you wish, take the opportunity here to have the students work on their handwriting skills.

While students may protest that they can accomplish the task much quicker by word-processing, another benefit of handwriting a letter is that the speed becomes almost meditative. This allows students to focus carefully on their grammar and punctuation without always resorting to the crutch of spell-checkers and grammar correction software.

FORMAL AND INFORMAL LETTER WRITING:  WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

The table below outlines whether your letter should be written formally or informally, with some suggested prompts .  Whilst there are many similarities, a formal letter should always be considered as a document with a real purpose and ramifications.

FORMAL LETTER FEATURES

USED FOR PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION THESE DOCUMENTS FOLLOW A PRESCRIBED FORMAT. THEY ARE WRITTEN IN A PASSIVE VOICE FOR A SPECIFIC PURPOSE AND IN MANY CASES ARE LEGALLY BINDING. SOME EXAMPLES ARE.

INVITATION Make someone feel special about an upcoming event.

APPLICATION Write a professional letter of application for a job or group you wish to join.

REFEREE / REFERENCE Vouch for another’s skills, personality or credibility.

ACCEPTANCE & REJECTION Approve or deny an applicant in a professional manner.

MAKE AN OFFER Make a formal and binding offer in writing.

EXIT / RESIGNATION Formally leave or step down in a professional and dignified manner.

INFORMAL LETTER FEATURES

USED FOR PERSONAL COMMUNICATION THESE LETTERS HAVE NO PRESCRIBED FORMAT AND ARE WRITTEN IN AN ACTIVE VOICE.

THANK YOU Let someone know you appreciate their efforts.

CONGRATULATIONS Acknowledge someone’s achievements in life.

GRIEVANCE / LOSS Acknowledge someones personal loss or suffering and let them know you care.

FRIENDSHIP & LOVE Tell someone how special they are to you and why?

LETTER TO THE EDITOR / MAYOR ETC. Let someone know how their actions and adversely affect you and others.

LETTER TO SELF Give your older or younger self some words of advice and wisdom.

INFORMATIONAL UPDATE Write a letter back home telling them what you have been up to.

HOW TO WRITE FORMAL LETTERS

The writing process begins with planning.

As with all genres of writing, the process of formal letter writing should start with planning. This should involve sketching a brief outline from which to work rather than a comprehensive detailing of minutiae. The plan should include:

• Note addresses, names etc. – who are you writing to?
• Record the purpose of the letter – what do you want to say?
• List points to be made (each will form a paragraph) – how will you say it?
• State action point – what do you want the reader to do?

Formal letters can be written for a wide range of purposes and may come in various shapes, including a letter of complaint, a cover letter accompanying a job application, a letter of invitation, a reference letter, or a proposal letter – to name a few. Though each will adhere to its own rules of formatting and tone when writing formal letters, students should avoid using slang or contractions.

Language should be straightforward and polite. Encourage students to avoid bursts of purple prose in favor of direct, functional language. Usually, a formal letter will be written to achieve a particular end and should be written with that end foremost in mind. Students should avoid meanderings and stay firmly focused on the task at hand.

TIPS FOR WRITING GREAT FORMAL LETTERS

• The writer’s address should be in the top right-hand corner.
• The date should be written below the writer’s address
• The recipient’s name and address are below that on the left-hand side
• Use the correct opening (Dear Sir / Madam, Dear Mrs Ferguson, etc.)
• Use Standard English
• The opening sentence should explain the purpose of the letter
• Each paragraph should make a single specific point
• Use an appropriate formal tone and register in the wording of the letter
• Avoid contractions, slang, and abbreviations
• The concluding ‘action point’ paragraph states what you want the recipient to do
• The formal ending, such as Yours Sincerely or Yours Faithfully

A Note on Salutations

If the student knows the intended recipient’s name, start with Dear Mr. / Mrs Surname and end with Yours Sincerely. If they don’t know the recipient’s name, start with Dear Sir / Madam and end with Yours Faithfully.

Use of Rhetorical Devices

As mentioned, formal letter writing focuses on attempting to convince someone to take some course of action or other. To do this, it is helpful to employ some rhetorical devices to make the writing more persuasive . Some useful techniques to encourage your students to employ include:

Direct Address: Using the pronoun ‘you’ in a formal letter makes the reader feel that you are speaking directly to them. This helps to engage the reader and encourage them to continue reading the letter.

Emotive Language: Where students are trying to convince the reader to take a course of action, the use of emotive language can often be a powerful tool. Students can use either positive or negative colored words to create the desired response in the reader.

Facts and Figures: Another way to persuade and convince is to employ facts and figures to support the points made in the letter.

FORMAL LETTER STUDENT EXAMPLES

How to write an informal letter

Common features of informal letters:.

There are far fewer rules to follow when writing an informal letter, but there are still some practical guidelines to follow that will prove helpful for students engaged in writing informally.

As with any piece of writing, it is important to consider who the audience is and the reason for writing in the first place. In particular, this will help decide the tone and the language register. The more intimate the relationship, the more informal the language can be.

Though the letter will be informal, it will still have a purpose. Information should still be organized into paragraphs, as would be done with a formal, more ‘official’ letter. Students sometimes struggle with this aspect, as they often conflate ‘informal’ with ‘disorganized.’ Making them plan their informal letter before writing can help ensure it is sufficiently organized.

HOW TO START AN INFORMAL LETTER

Informal letters will start with a greeting appropriate to how close the relationship is. For acquaintances, this may be ‘Dear Tom,’ (using the first name instead of the surname) to a very informal ‘Hi Jane,’. Don’t forget the comma after the name!

After the greeting, a general opening sentence should follow. Usually, this will be something like a ‘How are you?’ or a ‘How have you been?’. If the recipient is married or has kids, you may wish to ask how their spouse or children are.

Next, students should state the reason for writing. The language should be open and friendly in tone and, in contrast to the formal letter, colloquial language, idiomatic expressions, and contractions are perfectly okay and even desirable.

Just as the opening salutation to an informal letter is much more relaxed, so too will the closing salutation. There are many possibilities for the students to choose here, and their decision will depend on who they are writing to and their personal preferences. Some examples of possible closings include ‘Love’, ‘Best regards’, ‘All the best’, and ‘Thanks’.

INFORMAL LETTER STUDENT EXAMPLES

Teaching Resources

Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.

PRACTICE LETTER WRITING WITH THESE ACTIVITIES FOR STUDENTS

The most effective way for students to internalize all the features of letter writing, formal or informal, is to gain experience by writing various letters for differing purposes. The following activities offer some suggestions for students to get practising today:

1. FICTION AS A SPRINGBOARD

Have students write as if they were a character from a piece of fiction you have been reading in class. Choosing a dramatic point in the plot , ask students to imagine they are one of the characters writing a letter to another character in the story. This writer may be either formal or informal, depending on the scenario presented. This will give students realistic letter-writing practice while also getting them to engage closely with the text and respond imaginatively to its themes.

2. THE AGONY AUNT

Either offer a range of possible life predicaments or cut out the questions from the ‘agony aunt’ page of a local newspaper. Students must write back offering advice in response to the predicaments expressed in the question or predicament. The response should be written in full letter format. This activity also lends itself to several variations. The response may be written to a close friend, for example, or written from the perspective of a professional agony aunt employing a more formal tone and presentation.

3. A LETTER OF COMPLAINT

Have students think of their favorite candy bar or clothing item. Encourage them to imagine they have bought this product lately and found it to be substandard. Students must write a formal letter of complaint to the manufacturer outlining their complaint and recommending a course of action to satisfactorily resolve that complaint. They must use all the features of a formal letter as outlined above.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR HANDWRITTEN LETTERS LOOK OLD AND AUTHENTIC.

• Write in pencil or a calligraphy pen,
• screw them up tightly and carefully unfold and flatten.
• Lightly dab coffee stains over the paper to make it look aged.
• Carefully singe or burn the edges of your paper.
• Add some sepia-filtered photos for effect.

SIGNING-OFF

As students become more confident in their understanding of letter-writing formats, encourage them to exchange letters with each other for peer assessment. You may wish to provide them with a checklist of features to look for while reading over their partner’s work.

Letter-writing can also be a great way to partner up with schools overseas; often, children studying English as a second language will be delighted to receive letters from (and write to) students in English-speaking countries. And though email increasingly encroaches on the traditional territory of the letter, many of the skills garnered in the practice of letter writing are transferable to the modern manifestation. There is ample opportunity here to link letter-writing learning with approaches to writing emails too.

Letter-writing can provide a focus for a wide range of learning objectives while also teaching students valuable practical skills that will serve them well beyond their school years, both in their personal and work lives. And who knows, perhaps in years to come, one of the letters your student writes in your class may become a treasured keepsake in someone’s bedside drawer.

LETTER WRITING GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS (TEMPLATES)

WRITING CHECKLIST & RUBRIC BUNDLE FOR ALL TEXT TYPES

HOW TO WRITE A FORMAL LETTER TUTORIAL VIDEO

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How to Write a Letter With Examples and Tips

Sarah Oakley

Table of Contents

How do you write a letter, how to format a letter in 6 steps, letter format examples, how prowritingaid can help you with writing letters.

Letter writing is still a popular form of communication in a world where we expect instant responses thanks to email and phone calls.

USPS reports they process and deliver an average of 421.4 million mail pieces every day. Millions of those are letters being sent all over the world, not just to the US.

Letter writing is a great way to make your voice heard, make things happen, and show how much you care about something. Writing a letter carries more weight than an email or phone call because it takes more effort, and there are bigger costs involved.

In this article, we’ll talk about how to write a letter to clearly convey your points, and we’ll show you some examples you can use for inspiration.

To write a letter , you need to decide if you’re going to handwrite or type. Handwritten letters show you took the time to express your thoughts on paper. However, typing can save you some time, and you can still hand sign it after it’s printed.

The next part of writing a successful letter is thinking about what you would like your letter to achieve. You could write a love letter, hoping to get a date. It could be a cover letter to accompany your résumé, which needs to secure you an interview. Think about the result you hope to achieve before you plan what you want your letter to say.

You’ll need to decide if your letter will be formal or informal. Depending on the recipient and the reason for the letter, the formality is important, as it can affect how the message is received. If you are writing a personal letter to someone you know, opt for informal. However, if it’s for a job application or for an official, the reader would expect you to use formal letter writing.

Another thing to consider when writing a letter is your tone, which is how your letter sounds to the person reading it. If you’re writing a complaint, you want the reader to know you’re frustrated, but you don’t want to sound rude.

When you’re ready to write your letter, set some time aside for it. Before you write your letter, make a plan for what you’re going to say. Get your writing tools together as well as some envelopes and stamps, then you can start.

A letter is a piece of writing that is easy to identify by the written format. Letters follow a similar format to allow the reader to find and skim the important information.

The formatting details in the next six steps will tell you how to write a letter that gets your point across.

How to Head a Letter

Letterheads start with the sender’s address aligned to the left, right, or in the middle. If you write formal letters, you will need to include this as the receiver may need to respond in writing. For informal letters to those you know, forgo your address if you want to.

If you write lots of letters, consider getting some letterheads printed. Having a stack of paper with your details already printed can save you a lot of time. Alternatively, you can get a custom stamp printed and an ink block.

Which Side Do You Write the Date on a Letter?

Under the sender’s address , you’ll need to add the date you’re writing the letter. Write the date on the same side of the page as your address.

For personal letters where you haven’t included the sender’s address, you still need to add the date. The date gives context to your letter, so you don’t want to leave it out.

If you’re writing a formal letter, write the date out in full with the month first, then the day, then the year. For example, a letter written on 2023-03-15, you would write March 15, 2023. In the US, you need to add a comma between the day and the year.

Be confident about grammar

Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.

Where to Include the Recipient’s Address on a Letter

The recipient’s address needs to be aligned to the left-hand side on the line below the date.

When writing a formal letter, start the recipient’s address with their name on one line, followed by their job title on the next line. Then write the company name and address below that.

For personal letters, you don’t need to include your recipient’s address.

How to Write an Introduction in a Letter

The introduction in your letter is the greeting and the first paragraph. Leave a line space under the address and start with the greeting.

There are many possible greetings you could start your introduction with, such as “Dear [recipient’s name].” For a formal letter, write their entire name. Alternatively, you can write “Mr.” or “Ms.” followed by their initials and surname. If it’s an informal letter, just write their first name.

If you don’t know the name of the person you’re writing to, you can use “Dear Sir or Madam.” To get the right address for your letter when writing to a company, you can call and request the name of the person you need to write to.

After the salutation, write your introductory paragraph. Always include the subject in your first sentence, and follow up with your reason for writing. For example, in a complaint letter about a faulty product, you would mention the product and any purchase reference in the first sentence, then explain you would like to complain about the quality of the product.

In a personal or informal letter, still include the subject and reason for writing in your first paragraph. This lets the reader know what to expect in the letter and sets the tone.

What to Write in a Letter

The body of your letter is where you’ll add the main points you want to address. All the points should be in an easy-to-follow order so your reader doesn’t lose the overall message of your letter.

Each paragraph should start with an opening sentence, followed by your evidence or additional information. Then you’ll want to close with a concluding sentence that connects to the next paragraph.

The length of your letter can differ depending on what you are writing about. Don’t write too much to make your letter look longer, as you’ll risk losing the reader’s attention. However, you don’t want to leave anything essential out of your letter, either.

If you’re struggling to order your points or know what to say, try using a template to guide you. Just remember, each letter is unique, so don’t rely on a template to write 100% of your letter. You don’t want your letter to sound generic or copied from the internet.

Ways to Sign a Letter

The last part of letter writing is the signature or sign-off. How you sign your letter will depend on the formality of the letter and if you know the recipient.

For formal letters, use “Yours sincerely” when you know the recipient, and “Yours faithfully” when you don’t. If you are writing to an official, such as a politician you will never meet, you can use “Yours truly.”

Sign-offs are not set in stone, though some people might tell you they are. It’s best to use what feels right for your letter based on the formality and tone you’ve used so far.

In an informal or personal letter, you can sign off with something a lot friendlier. You could use “With all my love” or “Your devoted friend.”

If you are typing your letter, you can handwrite your signature under the sign-off to show you have checked it and are confirming the words above are all your own.

For formal letters, include your full name in capital letters under your signature to be clear about who is signing the letter.

If you’re still not sure about how to write a letter, we have some examples to help you get started.

Here is an example of the indented paragraph format:

123 High Street

London, OH 12345

November 23, 2022

Martin Jones

Marketing Director

Advertising Company

456 West Street

London, OH 23456

Dear Mr. M Jones,

I recently saw your television advertisement for the new beauty salon on 7th Street, and I thought you did a great job. I would like to inquire about your rates for a 30-second advertisement for my beauty salon.

Please send me the costs for filming and producing an advertisement for television. I believe this will benefit my business and bring in new clients.

If there is any further information you require for the quotation, please get in touch with me at the above address.

Yours faithfully,

If you’re using the indented paragraph format, indent the initial line. You should then format subsequent paragraphs with indented first lines. The indented paragraph format is a common format used for both business and personal letters. 

Here is an example of the block letter format:

1 New Street

Manhattan, NY 12345

January 3, 2023

Managing Director

Example Company

123 Old Road

Brooklyn, NY 67891

Dear Mr. J Bloggs,

I’m writing to you today to discuss the price increase in my energy bill dated December 30th, 2022. I don’t recall being notified of this increase.

As you did not notify me of the increase, I did not budget for it. I cannot afford the extra amount and would appreciate it if you revert my charge back to the previous amount.

I look forward to hearing from you.

In this format, align everything to the left, including the addresses and the date. You do not need to indent your first line, but you should leave spaces between paragraphs. You’ll see the block letter format used by businesses as a formal letter format.

Here is an example of a simplified style letter format:

Janet Jones

Retail Company HQ

456 New Acre Drive

Denver, CO 12345

March 30, 2022

Store Manager

Retail Company

Colorado Springs, CO 34567

STOCK LEVELS OF BANANAS AND ORANGES

The stock levels of bananas and oranges in your store are getting low. I would recommend you place an order for these items soon to ensure you continue to provide these to your customers.

Please let me know if you cannot place an order for these products before April 5th, 2022.

I look forward to seeing you again on my next store visit. 

Yours sincerely,

The fundamental difference between this format and the others is that it includes a subject line instead of a greeting.

Once you’ve written your first draft of a letter, you’ll want to edit it to ensure it reads correctly and doesn’t have any grammatical errors. That’s where ProWritingAid can help you.

Start by reading your letter aloud, as this will help you spot any glaring errors. Then you can run it through ProWritingAid to see if there’s anything you’ve missed. The Realtime checker picks up on spelling and grammar errors and passive voice. It also shows places where you can improve readability, which is important for your reader to understand what you’re saying.

You can use the Style and Grammar Reports for a more in-depth analysis of your letter. If you are writing business letters, select the specific document type from the drop-down menu in the Realtime sidebar before you run your reports. This will ensure your results focus on the specific requirements for your letter type.

Even if you’re not typing out your letter, write a first draft and edit it before you write the version you’ll be posting. For tips on editing, you can check out some of the other articles on the ProWritingAid blog.

We hope this article has helped you learn how to write a letter that achieves the results you want.

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How to Write an Open Letter: A Comprehensive Guide

Did you know that the first ever open letter in history was created in 1640? A group of English nobles wrote to King Charles I to voice their opinion against the absolutist rule of the king and his dislike of the critics. Of course, at that time, this act was seen as something amazing. The letter was quickly distributed across England and ultimately led to the English Civil War.

Some would say that not much has changed since then, and the methods of raising public awareness are still the same. You can write an open letter on any topic that worries you as long as you find your target audience.

What Is an Open Letter?

First, let’s start with the theoretical foundation so we are on the same page. Open letter can be a powerful instrument in spreading awareness about something that worries you. They can mobilize people to take action or to call for social justice, peace, and human rights. Basically, an open letter is intended for either a wide audience or for one person.  

Apart from personal use, open letters can be published in periodicals, journals, or even online on official websites. There are many famous open letter examples in history that you might have already known about, but we will explore them later. 

In this guide, we will present all the features and nuances of open letters. This type of correspondence might be difficult to write, so it’s always better to hire a writer on EssayHub! We will also take a closer look at open letter examples, such as the case of Elisabeth Deluca.

Reasons and Goals for Writing an Open Letter

No matter what the reason, the main goal of open letters is to make a difference in the world. Usually, they are addressed to government officials, corporate executives, the general public, or even celebrities. Let’s take a look at what are the purposes of creating an open letter:

• To raise awareness about an important issue that is often ignored;
• To call for action on a specific issue, like climate change.
• To demonstrate a strong opinion or point of view, like criticism.
• To expose or call out a powerful person, to they can take accountability for their actions.
• To inspire others to take action on an important issue, for example, to vote or to donate.

It’s pretty obvious all of these purposes are of paramount importance to the general public. You can use open letters to amplify the voices of those who often remain unheard.

Writing an Open Letter: Pros and Cons

Before we explore how to write an open letter, it’s crucial to know what its features and strong and weak points are. Writing an open letter is not an easy task, so you have a lot to consider. You need to consider the pros and cons before deciding whether to write one.

• they can reach a wide audience;
• they can start an active discussion on a certain topic;
• they can be a way to share your story;
• they can be a way to connect with other individuals with the same shared values.

At the same time, there are some nuances to crafting an open letter, as for any other type of paper. You can ask for help from a write my college essay for me services online in case you are overwhelmed!

• they are time-consuming to write;
• they put you in the spotlight;
• they might not get the reaction that you hoped for.

How to Write an Open Letter: a Guide

In most cases, open letter format is pretty straightforward. You need to explain the reason for writing your paper, the main issue at hand, and the solution to this issue. But first, let’s discuss the target audience for your letter.

How to Choose a Target Audience for Open Letters

You need to thoroughly think about who will be reading your letter. Here are some questions that you can ask:

• Who will be interested in the issue you are writing about?
• Who has the power to make a difference on this issue?
• Who is most likely to be convinced by your message?

Also, it’s critical to use the full titles of officials and government representatives in your letter.

Correct Open Letter Format

Right now, there is no one-size-fits-all format for this type of correspondence. Every issue and reason for writing an open letter is unique. This is why you probably have to adjust your writing process a lot. On the other hand, there are some general guidelines on how to format an open letter.

Start with a strong introduction. You need to capture the attention of the readers immediately, so the first letter should be captivating and intriguing. You want your readers to feel your pain and fight for your cause.

Explain your purpose. After grabbing the attention of your readers, explain why you wrote this letter at this time. What is the main issue that you are thinking about, and what do you propose to do about it?

Give evidence to support your claims. Of course, using strong words and phrases is important. But it’s always better to go with structured evidence instead of emotional claims. Your evidence can include statistics, research studies, or even personal stories.  

End with a call to action. This is the place where you tell your readers what you want them to do once again. Maybe it’s signing a petition, donating to a charity, or contacting elected officials.

Step 1. Defining and Presenting the Issue

Here, you need to convince the audience that your problem is significant and it has a negative impact on people around you. When presenting the issue, it is important to be specific and to provide evidence to support your claims. You can use statistics, research studies, or personal stories to add to the overall impact of the issue. Here is what you can explore:

• What is the purpose of an open letter?
• What is the problem?
• Who is affected by it?
• Why is it important to the general public?

Also, remember to be respectful to all people who are connected to your cause. Try to avoid personal attacks, even when you disagree with something. This will show that you can remain professional in spite of the circumstances. 

Step 2. Explaining your Motivation and Connection to the Cause

The second step in this process is to create a connection between you, your cause, and your readers. It’s always a good idea to present your personal connection to the issue and why you are passionate about it. For example, sharing your personal story is a powerful way to establish a relationship with the audience. They always like to know the face behind a letter!

When thinking about how to write an open letter, consider your own feelings in this case. What would you like to read if you were a government official? What would make you care about the presented issue? What would make you build trust and credibility with the writer? For this, try to get back to your target audience and adjust your letter to them.

Step 3. Presenting the Solution to the Problem

Now that you already hooked the reader with your issue, it’s time to present your solution. It’s your choice whether to write about specific actions or just to raise awareness about your cause. Still, you need to include a call to action and say what you want your reader to do after reading an open letter. For this part, you shouldn’t be too authoritative but rather encouraging.

Here are some examples of sentences that encourage people to take action:

• I urge you to take the following actions…
• I ask you to support policies…
• I encourage you to start an active discussion about…
• Together, we can change our future…

As you can see, it’s not about telling people what to do.

Famous Open Letter Examples in History

Open letter to Elisabeth DeLuca, Subway owner

In 2022, a group of workers at DeLuca's Coffee Roasters wrote an open letter to the company's founder and CEO, Elisabeth DeLuca. Elisabeth DeLuca is an entrepreneur and the owner of several companies, including Subway and DeLuca’s Coffee Roasters. 

She has been featured in many magazines and newspapers, where she has been praised for her success in the coffee industry. However, in 2022, something changed when more than 100 people accused her of abusive behavior and toxic working conditions. The letter said that DeLuca regularly screamed at her workers. 

People also said that she created a climate of fear and abuse in the workplace. The purpose of the open letter was to raise awareness of the alleged abuse at DeLuca's Coffee Roasters and to pressure DeLuca to change her behavior. As a result of a reaction from the community, DeLuca resigned as CEO.

‍ Open letter to President Biden on the climate crisis

‍ This is an excellent example of scientists taking a stand. In 2023, more than 1,000 researchers and climate experts urged President Biden to take more action on climate change. They expressed their opinion about a climate catastrophe and proposed their plan of action for the future.

‍ Correspondence between Einstein and Freud

In 1932, Albert Einstein wrote a letter ‘Why War?’ to Sigmund Freud. This was not a typical modern format of an open letter but rather a dialogue about the psychological roots of armed conflict.

So there you have it, everything you need to know about open letters. As you can see, this task can be challenging. You need to put your thoughts on paper in such a way that your readers feel inspired to take action. It’s always a good idea to hire a writer on EssayHub to get help with the writing part. Expert writers will make your text more persuasive without losing meaning!

Using an open letter as a tool for change might not be as glamorous as you think. On the other hand, this is a powerful platform for raising awareness, voicing your concerns, and educating the general public.

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How to Write a Letter or an Essay in English | Useful Tips

How to write a letter or how to write an essay in English? Useful tips for writing letters, essays in English.

Table of Contents

How to Write a Letter

How to write a cover letter.

How to Write Informal Letters

How to end a letter in english.

Useful Words and Phrases for Writing Formal Letters

Writing a letter or an email.

How to Write a Great Essay Quickly

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Student Opinion

To Whom Would You Write an Open Letter?

A politician or a celebrity? A leader of a company? A school administrator? Your mom? Use our questions below to brainstorm ideas for our contest.

By Katherine Schulten and Natalie Proulx

What’s bothering you? Who could do something about it? What could you say that would persuade that person to care or to make change?

And what if we all read your letter? How could you make us care, too?

These are some of the questions we’re asking you to ponder for our new Open Letter Contest . An open letter is a published letter of protest or appeal usually addressed to an individual, group or institution but intended for the general public. Think of the many “Dear Taylor Swift” open letters you can find online and on social media: Sure, they’re written to Ms. Swift, but they’re really a way for the writer to share opinions and feelings on feminism, or ticket sales, or the music industry, or … the list goes on.

We’re inviting you to do this, too. Write your own open letter, to anyone you like on any issue you care about, as long as it is also appropriate and meaningful for a general New York Times audience.

To whom should you write? What should you say?

Take a look at a few examples that have been published in The Times over the years. (In The Times, open letters often appear in the Opinion section since they are persuasive essays written in the form of letters, as you’ll see.)

For instance, sometimes an open letter is intended to call someone out publicly, like this one written to Mark Zuckerberg , the chief executive of Facebook (now Meta), by the screenwriter Aaron Sorkin in 2019. Here is how it begins:

Mark, In 2010, I wrote “The Social Network” and I know you wish I hadn’t. You protested that the film was inaccurate and that Hollywood didn’t understand that some people build things just for the sake of building them. (We do understand that — we do it every day.) I didn’t push back on your public accusation that the movie was a lie because I’d had my say in the theaters, but you and I both know that the screenplay was vetted to within an inch of its life by a team of studio lawyers with one client and one goal: Don’t get sued by Mark Zuckerberg. It was hard not to feel the irony while I was reading excerpts from your recent speech at Georgetown University, in which you defended — on free speech grounds — Facebook’s practice of posting demonstrably false ads from political candidates. I admire your deep belief in free speech. I get a lot of use out of the First Amendment. Most important, it’s a bedrock of our democracy and it needs to be kept strong. But this can’t possibly be the outcome you and I want, to have crazy lies pumped into the water supply that corrupt the most important decisions we make together. Lies that have a very real and incredibly dangerous effect on our elections and our lives and our children’s lives.

But an open letter doesn’t have to be written by someone famous to someone famous. In An Open Letter to the Woman Who Told My Family to Go Back to China (student version; here is the original ), the journalist Michael Luo addresses an anonymous woman on the street. It begins:

Dear Madam: Maybe I should have let it go. Turned the other cheek. We had just gotten out of church, and I was with my family and some friends on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. We were going to lunch, trying to see if there was room in the Korean restaurant down the street. You were in a rush. It was raining. Our stroller and a gaggle of Asians were in your way. But I was, honestly, stunned when you yelled at us from down the block, “Go back to China!”

Open letters can also honor and thank someone, and call attention to the continued importance of their work. In 2017, at the end of Barack Obama’s tenure as president, the rapper T.I. wrote him an open letter :

You entered humbly into our worlds from the streets of the South Side of Chicago and galvanized a generation. You resonated from the barbershops to the airwaves to the streets of every hood across America. Many of US did not know your name, nor did we truly understand the impact you would have on the world in the years, months and days that followed. As I reflect, I am filled with gratitude, outrage, grief, anger, humility and appreciation, both for the things you helped bring to light and the many things we still have yet to realize.

Or they can inspire and motivate, as the columnist Timothy Egan’s letter “ Dear Graduate ,” from 2009, does. Here’s an excerpt:

Eat a hot dog. With lots of mustard. The kind you can get for two dollars from street vendors just outside the ballpark, a trick I picked up from Ash Green, gentleman editor at Alfred A. Knopf. He passed this wisdom on before the recession. While we’re on the subject: Learn to cook, something they don’t teach at fancy-pants colleges. Millions for quantum physics and deconstructing Dostoevsky, nothing on how to make enchiladas for 20 people. At times, your life will have moments, days, even weeks of despair. Trust me: there is no bout of blues that a rich Bolognese sauce, filling every cubic inch of kitchen air, cannot cure. And that brings me to: Take risks. I don’t mean ski the double diamond runs, ask for a card in blackjack with 15 showing and the dealer holding a king, or hit a high note in a karaoke bar, while sober. That goes without saying.

Students, read the open letters above, and then tell us: To whom would you most like to write an open letter?

Here are some questions that can help you brainstorm which audience you might want to address:

Is there someone famous who has made you mad, or has intrigued or impressed you? Or someone to whom you’d like to offer your expertise, advice or opinion? Like a politician, an athlete, a leader of a corporation, an artist or an entertainer?

Is there a powerful person or institution that you’d like to call out publicly? Someone who you believe needs to be held accountable in some way? What have they done that you think others need to know about?

Is there a person or group you would like to inspire or motivate to take action? What is it that you want them to consider, reflect on or do?

Is there someone closer to home, like a parent, a friend, a teacher or a neighbor, you’d like to address? What would you say to this person that would be meaningful, important and appropriate for a general audience to hear?

Is there a person or group you would like to address because you want to honor or thank them or to reflect on their contribution to society, as T.I. did in his letter to Mr. Obama? What has this person or institution done, and what effect has it had on you and others? Why do you think it’s worth acknowledging publicly?

If no one person or group comes to mind, perhaps a cause or issue inspires you.

For a decade we ran an editorial contest , and the students who participated in it wrote passionately about all kinds of things: artificial intelligence , fast fashion , race , transgender rights , college admissions , parental incarceration , fan fiction , snow days , memes , being messy and so much more . You can still write about the issues and ideas that fire you up — but this time around you’ll be writing a letter to a person who has the power to bring change or understanding to that issue. Here are some questions that might help you brainstorm:

What causes or issues do you care about? Why are they important to you? What experiences do you have with them?

What would you like to see change? Why? How would that change be meaningful to you or to the communities you care about?

What do you wish more people understood? What is something you know a great deal about that you think others would benefit from understanding better?

Once you have a sense of your issue, ask yourself:

Who can make a change, big or small, local or global, to address this issue?

In the comments, tell us to whom you’d like to write an open letter, the reason you’re writing and why you think that issue is important not only for the recipient but also for a wider audience.

Then, if you’re so inspired, you can turn your comment into an open letter and submit it to our contest . Find out more about how to write your letter in our related guide .

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.

Find more Student Opinion questions here. Teachers, check out this guide to learn how you can incorporate these prompts into your classroom.

Katherine Schulten has been a Learning Network editor since 2006. Before that, she spent 19 years in New York City public schools as an English teacher, school-newspaper adviser and literacy coach. More about Katherine Schulten

Natalie Proulx joined The Learning Network as a staff editor in 2017 after working as an English language arts teacher and curriculum writer. More about Natalie Proulx

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If you need help with “ write my UK essay ” for an English literature class, it can seem difficult, but with the right approach, it can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience. Whether you’re analyzing a novel, a play, or a collection of poems, the key is to understand the work deeply and convey your insights in a clear and compelling way. In this post, we’ll explore some practical tips and strategies to help you write a solid English literature essay.

Read and Understand the Work Thoroughly

The first and most crucial step is to read the literary work carefully and attentively, even if you’re considering using best essay writing services . Don’t just skim through it; take your time and immerse yourself in the text. Pay attention to the characters, plot, themes, symbols, and literary devices used by the author. Make notes, highlight passages, and jot down your initial thoughts and reactions.

Develop a Clear Thesis Statement

Every good essay needs a strong thesis statement. This is the central argument or claim that you’ll be making about the literary work. Your thesis should be specific, debatable, and supported by evidence from the text. Avoid making broad, vague statements; instead, strive for a focused and well-defined thesis that will guide your analysis.

Organize Your Ideas

Once you have a clear thesis statement, it’s time to organize your ideas. Create an outline that will serve as a roadmap for your essay. Decide on the main points you want to make and the evidence you’ll use to support them. Group related ideas together and arrange them in a logical order.

Introduce the Work and Your Thesis

Your introduction should grab the reader’s attention and provide some context about the literary work you’re analyzing. Give a brief summary of the plot or main themes, but avoid retelling the entire story. Then, clearly state your thesis statement and let the reader know what to expect from your essay.

Use Textual Evidence to Support Your Claims

In a literature essay, your arguments should be backed up by evidence from the text. Cite specific passages, quotes, or examples that illustrate your points. Don’t just summarize the plot; analyze and interpret the evidence to show how it supports your thesis.

Tip: When quoting from the text, be sure to properly introduce and integrate the quotes into your own writing.

Analyze Literary Devices and Techniques

Great literature is often rich in literary devices and techniques, such as symbolism, imagery, metaphor, and foreshadowing. Explore how the author uses these devices to convey deeper meanings and enhance the overall reading experience. Analyzing these elements can add depth and sophistication to your essay.

Consider Different Perspectives and Interpretations

While developing your analysis, it’s important to consider alternative perspectives and interpretations. Acknowledge counterarguments or differing viewpoints, and then explain why your interpretation is more compelling or valid. This shows that you’ve thought critically about the work and strengthened your own argument.

For example:

Some critics argue that the protagonist’s actions are driven by selfishness, but a closer examination of the text suggests that her motivations are more complex and rooted in a desire for personal growth.

Provide a Clear and Compelling Conclusion

Your conclusion should do more than simply restate your thesis; it should synthesize your main points and leave the reader with a lasting impression. Reflect on the broader implications or significance of your analysis, and consider how it contributes to a deeper understanding of the literary work or the human experience.

Key Takeaways:

• Clearly restate your thesis
• Summarize your main points
• Explore the broader implications of your analysis
• Leave the reader with a thought-provoking or insightful final statement

Edit and Proofread Carefully

Once you’ve finished your first draft, take a step back and review your essay with a critical eye. Check for clarity, coherence, and logical flow. Ensure that your arguments are well-supported and that your writing is free of grammatical errors, typos, and other technical issues.

Seek Feedback and Revise

Finally, don’t be afraid to seek feedback from others. Share your essay with a trusted friend, classmate, or instructor, and be open to constructive criticism. Use this feedback to refine and improve your essay before submitting it.

Writing a good English literature essay requires careful planning, deep analysis, and effective communication. By following these tips and strategies, you’ll be well on your way to producing a compelling and insightful essay that showcases your understanding of the literary work and your ability to engage with it critically.

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By Freedom Forum

Extra, Extra! Read all about it! You, too, have the power to make your voice heard using the freedom of the press – even if you’re not a journalist.

It’s not breaking news that the First Amendment protects journalists and their ability to report without the government approving it first or punishing them for what they report (with some very narrow exceptions ). But freedom of the press isn’t just reserved for journalists or those who work in “the press.”

For example: writing a letter to the editor.

The decline in circulation and number of printed newspapers and magazines in recent decades means such ways of making your voice heard by literally having your words printed for anyone to read aren’t as widespread. But writing a letter to the editor or asking a news outlet to carry a guest commentary you’ve written is still worthwhile. Many people write comments online. But having a letter or commentary published gives your voice a bigger and possibly more influential platform in a deep sea of voices shouting and arguing in comments sections.

In fact, if you were to write a letter, you’d be using three First Amendment freedoms: speech (which includes writing), petition (if your letter is a call for the government to consider a "redress of grievances"), and the press (since you’re publishing in a news outlet).

But remember: Just because you want to write a letter to the editor of a local newspaper or online news outlet doesn’t mean that outlet must publish it. You have a First Amendment right to say and write what you’d like without being punished by the government . But not every newspaper, magazine or online news outlet publishes letters to the editor or similar guest editorials or commentary – nor are they required to.

News outlets have a First Amendment right to use their editorial discretion in choosing what to publish or not – including letters from the public.

Here's an example from The New York Times   highlighting how to submit a letter, submission requirements, the selection process, and more. Look for information regarding letters to the editor for the outlet you want to submit your letter to; this will likely be found on their letters to the editor page in print or online. Here's another example from  The Seattle Times .

Learn how to write a letter to the editor with these tips

If you want to know how to write a letter to the editor, consider these questions in the traditional "Five Ws and One H" way that journalists approach reporting:

• WHO are you trying to reach with your letter or commentary? That will help determine …
• WHAT is the best way to say what you’re trying to say? Is it a short letter responding to something you’ve previously read? Is it a longer guest commentary objecting to a proposed government policy? That will help determine …
• WHERE to submit your letter or commentary. Some news outlets only run letters from people who live in the local area where the newspaper publishes. Is this an issue that a national audience would benefit from learning about? If so, consider an outlet with a broader reach. That will help determine …
• WHEN you need to submit your letter or commentary, depending on the outlet’s frequency of publishing. Even if the newspaper publishes daily, sometimes they only print submitted letters once a week or once a month. That will help determine …
• WHY you’re writing in the first place. It’s a good question to ask yourself: Is this the best or only method to get your point across to the audience you’re trying to reach? That will help determine …
• HOW you craft your letter or commentary and the points and arguments you want to make.

RELATED: Browse hundreds of newspapers every day with Today's Front Pages

After asking yourself those questions, here are tips on writing an effective letter to the editor or guest commentary that a news outlet may want to publish.

Remember these tips as L.E.T.T.E.R.: Length, Engage, Topic, Tone, Enlighten, Relate.

• LENGTH: Keep the letter short and to the point. Also, base the length of your letter on the length of letters the outlet typically runs. If most are about 300 words, stick to that. If you keep your letter brief and in line with what they want, editors are more likely to read and consider it.
• ENGAGE: Use language that engages people conversationally. For example: “I’m writing about a topic that’s near and dear to me and probably a lot of people: the cost of living in our city.”
• TOPIC: Keep it to one. Including too many topics might be overwhelming and cause an editor to overlook your letter.
• TONE: Be respectful, even if you’re critiquing the news outlet or a government official. If you use language that comes off as angry, aggressive or accusatory, you’re more likely to be turned down. Importantly, just because it’s your opinion doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check your facts. You could be accused of libel or defamation if you purposely say untrue things about someone.
• ENLIGHTEN: The editor to whom you’re writing and the audience you’re trying to reach may not be aware of the topic at hand. Help educate people in a way that’s not negative. Avoid phrases like “Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should know …”
• RELATE: Many people are affected personally by the issues for which they advocate and write letters or commentary. Be sure to say how you’ve been affected – and how your experience highlights the experiences of other people in the community, region or country.

An example of one famous letter to the editor – and everyone

Now that you know how to write a letter to the editor, take inspiration from a famous letter by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

King’s widely read “ Letter from Birmingham Jail ” was published in 1963 after he had been arrested and jailed while exercising another First Amendment-protected activity: protesting for social change.

He wrote from jail an open letter to white clergymen, responding to their call for social justice causes to be fought in courts and not through protests and sit-ins. King used what would become one of his most-quoted lines, seen today on many inspirational signs and bumper stickers: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

The letter was originally supposed to be printed by The New York Times , but it was dropped . It was later picked up in parts by the New York Post and several magazines.

Since he didn’t have a writing pad in jail, King began by writing in the margins of what he had in his cell: a newspaper.

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Microsoft 365 Life Hacks > Writing > How to write a resignation letter

How to write a resignation letter

You’ve spent the morning feverishly refreshing your inbox, eagerly anticipating the sound of a new email making its way to you. Today, your patience is rewarded when you receive an email from the company you interviewed with, and it’s filled with good news. Congratulations, you’ve landed the role you’ve been interviewing for! Before you jump straight into your freshly minted position, it’s important to leave your current job on good terms. To ensure a smooth transition into your new role, learn how to create a well-written resignation letter.

What is a resignation letter?

A resignation letter formally communicates your intent to leave your current position. Typically, resignation letters are submitted to your supervisor and HR department, and they convey essential details such as:

• A statement of intent to leave
• A reason for your departure
• Gratitude for the position
• Final day of employment

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Submitting a formal resignation doesn’t reflect badly on your current employer or colleagues; it is a professional step that’s part of the process of transitioning into a new position. It effectively communicates that you will be leaving, allowing employers to make necessary arrangements, initiate the recruitment process for your replacement, and properly send you off. Effectively communicating your departure can help you maintain a good relationship with your employer even after you leave. Furthermore, it’s important for record keeping. A resignation letter clearly establishes your final day, so both your current employer and new employer are aligned with your respective start and end dates.

What to include in a resignation letter

It’s important to include certain information in your resignation letter. A good format to follow for your template is the following:

• Supervisor’s name
• Company name
• City, state, zip code
• Formal resignation notice
• Closing salutation

Best practices for writing an effective resignation letter

Provide sufficient notice.

It’s considered common courtesy to notify your employers at least two weeks before your intended departure date. However, before you draft your letter, review your company’s resignation policy. Some companies may require a 30-day notice or have other resignation stipulations outlined within your contract.

Keep information about your departure brief

When writing your resignation letter, be deliberate in choosing what information to include regarding your reason for leaving. You can keep it concise and factual, such as mentioning that you’re moving, going back to school, or pursuing another opportunity. While you don’t need to divulge everything, providing a clear reason for your departure can help you leave on good terms.

Offer a transition plan

Leaving a position can be challenging for employers as they adjust to your departure. You can help your manager by offering a transition plan, which may involve delegating your tasks to other employers or providing training. Ensure that your files and projects are compiled, easily accessible, and comprehensible so others can complete your work when you leave.

Avoid negative comments or complaints

Even if dissatisfaction with your manager is your reason for leaving, it’s advisable to limit negative comments. Negative comments can be poorly received and may affect your future job prospects. It’s best to leave your work relationship on a positive note, especially if your manager may be contacted as a reference.

A resignation letter plays a crucial role in the job transition process. It should effectively communicate your departure while expressing gratitude for your employers and maintaining a positive relationship while you transition into a new role. For more assistance with crafting work-related documents, learn how to write a resume to recommendation letter .

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Is a robot writing your kids’ essays? We asked educators to weigh in on the growing role of AI in classrooms.

R emember writing essays in high school? Chances are you had to look up stuff in an encyclopedia — an actual one, not Wikipedia — or else connect to AOL via a modem bigger than your parents’ Taurus station wagon.

Now, of course, there’s artificial intelligence. According to new research from Pew, about 1 in 5 US teens who’ve heard of ChatGPT have used it for schoolwork. Kids in upper grades are more apt to have used the chatbot: About a quarter of 11th- and 12th-graders who know about ChatGPT have tried it.

For the uninitiated, ChatGPT arrived on the scene in late 2022, and educators continue to grapple with the ethics surrounding its growing popularity. Essentially, it generates free, human-like responses based on commands. (I’m sure this sentence will look antiquated in about six months, like when people described the internet as the “information superhighway.”)

I used ChatGPT to plug in this prompt: “Write an essay on ‘The Scarlet Letter.’” Within moments, ChatGPT created an essay as thorough as anything I’d labored over in AP English.

Is this cheating? Is it just part of our strange new world? I talked to several educators about what they’re seeing in classrooms and how they’re monitoring it. Before you berate your child over how you wrote essays with a No. 2 pencil, here are some things to consider.

Adapting to new technology isn’t immoral. “We have to recalibrate our sense of what’s acceptable. There was a time when every teacher said: ‘Oh, it’s cheating to use Wikipedia.’ And guess what? We got used to it, we decided it’s reputable enough, and we cite Wikipedia all the time,” says Noah Giansiracusa, an associate math professor at Bentley University who hosts the podcast “ AI in Academia: Navigating the Future .”

“There’s a calibration period where a technology is new and untested. It’s good to be cautious and to treat it with trepidation. Then, over time, the norms kind of adapt,” he says — just like new-fangled graphing calculators or the internet in days of yore.

“I think the current conversation around AI should not be centered on an issue with plagiarism. It should be centered on how AI will alter methods for learning and expressing oneself. ‘Catching’ students who use fully AI-generated products ... implies a ‘gotcha’ atmosphere,” says Jim Nagle, a history teacher at Bedford High School. “Since AI is already a huge part of our day-to-day lives, it’s no surprise our students are making it a part of their academic tool kit. Teachers and students should be at the forefront of discussions about responsible and ethical use.”

Teachers and parents could use AI to think about education at a higher level. Really, learning is about more than regurgitating information — or it should be, anyway. But regurgitation is what AI does best.

“If our system is just for students to write a bunch of essays and then grade the results? Something’s missing. We need to really talk about their purpose and what they’re getting out of this, and maybe think about different forms of assignments and grading,” Giansiracusa says.

After all, while AI aggregates and organizes ideas, the quality of its responses depends on the users’ prompts. Instead of recoiling from it, use it as a conversation-starter.

“What parents and teachers can do is to start the conversation with kids: ‘What are we trying to learn here? Is it even something that ChatGPT could answer? Why did your assignment not convince you that you need to do this thinking on your own when a tool can do it for you?’” says Houman Harouni , a lecturer on education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Harouni urges parents to read an essay written by ChatGPT alongside their student. Was it good? What could be done better? Did it feel like a short cut?

“What they’re going to remember is that you had that conversation with them; that someone thought, at some point in their lives, that taking a shortcut is not the best way ... especially if you do it with the tool right in front of you, because you have something real to talk about,” he says.

Harouni hopes teachers think about its implications, too. Consider math: So much grunt work has been eliminated by calculators and computers. Yet kids are still tested as in days of old, when perhaps they could expand their learning to be assessed in ways that are more personal and human-centric, leaving the rote stuff to AI.

“We could take this moment of confusion and loss of certainty seriously, at least in some small pockets, and start thinking about what a different kind of school would look like. Five years from now, we might have the beginnings of some very interesting exploration. Five years from now, you and I might be talking about schools wherein teaching and learning is happening in a very self-directed way, in a way that’s more based on … igniting the kid’s interest and seeing where they go and supporting them to go deeper and to go wider,” Harouni says.

Teachers have the chance to offer assignments with more intentionality.

“Really think about the purpose of the assignments. Don’t just think of the outcome and the deliverable: ‘I need a student to produce a document.’ Why are we getting students to write? Why are we doing all these things in the first place? If teachers are more mindful, and maybe parents can also be more mindful, I think it pushes us away from this dangerous trap of thinking about in terms of ‘cheating,’ which, to me, is a really slippery path,” Giansiracusa says.

AI can boost confidence and reduce procrastination. Sometimes, a robot can do something better than a human, such as writing a dreaded resume and cover letter. And that’s OK; it’s useful, even.

“Often, students avoid applying to internships because they’re just overwhelmed at the thought of writing a cover letter, or they’re afraid their resume isn’t good enough. I think that tools like this can help them feel more confident. They may be more likely to do it sooner and have more organized and better applications,” says Kristin Casasanto, director of post-graduate planning at Olin College of Engineering.

Casasanto says that AI is also useful for de-stressing during interview prep.

“Students can use generative AI to plug in a job description and say, ‘Come up with a list of interview questions based on the job description,’ which will give them an idea of what may be asked, and they can even then say, ‘Here’s my resume. Give me answers to these questions based on my skills and experience.’ They’re going to really build their confidence around that,” Casasanto says.

Plus, when students use AI for basics, it frees up more time to meet with career counselors about substantive issues.

“It will help us as far as scalability. … Career services staff can then utilize our personal time in much more meaningful ways with students,” Casasanto says.

We need to remember: These kids grew up during a pandemic. We can’t expect kids to resist technology when they’ve been forced to learn in new ways since COVID hit.

“Now we’re seeing pandemic-era high school students come into college. They’ve been channeled through Google Classroom their whole career,” says Katherine Jewell, a history professor at Fitchburg State University.

“They need to have technology management and information literacy built into the curriculum,” Jewell says.

Jewell recently graded a paper on the history of college sports. It was obvious which papers were written by AI: They didn’t address the question. In her syllabus, Jewell defines plagiarism as “any attempt by a student to represent the work of another, including computers, as their own.”

This means that AI qualifies, but she also has an open mind, given students’ circumstances.

“My students want to do the right thing, for the most part. They don’t want to get away with stuff. I understand why they turned to these tools; I really do. I try to reassure them that I’m here to help them learn systems. I’m focusing much more on the learning process. I incentivize them to improve, and I acknowledge: ‘You don’t know how to do this the first time out of the gate,’” Jewell says. “I try to incentivize them so that they’re improving their confidence in their abilities, so they don’t feel the need to turn to these tools.”

Understand the forces that make kids resort to AI in the first place . Clubs, sports, homework: Kids are busy and under pressure. Why not do what’s easy?

“Kids are so overscheduled in their day-to-day lives. I think there’s so much enormous pressure on these kids, whether it’s self-inflicted, parent-inflicted, or school-culture inflicted. It’s on them to maximize their schedule. They’ve learned that AI can be a way to take an assignment that would take five hours and cut it down to one,” says a teacher at a competitive high school outside Boston who asked to remain anonymous.

Recently, this teacher says, “I got papers back that were just so robotic and so cold. I had to tell [students]: ‘I understand that you tried to use a tool to help you. I’m not going to penalize you, but what I am going to penalize you for is that you didn’t actually answer the prompt.”

Afterward, more students felt safe to come forward to say they’d used AI. This teacher hopes that age restrictions become implemented for these programs, similar to apps such as Snapchat. Educationally and developmentally, they say, high-schoolers are still finding their voice — a voice that could be easily thwarted by a robot.

“Part of high school writing is to figure out who you are, and what is your voice as a writer. And I think, developmentally, that takes all of high school to figure out,” they say.

And AI can’t replicate voice and personality — for now, at least.

Our Trump reporting upsets some readers, but there aren’t two sides to facts: Letter from the Editor

• Updated: Apr. 03, 2024, 11:22 a.m. |
• Published: Mar. 30, 2024, 8:16 a.m.

Some readers complain that we have different standards involving Donald Trump and Joe Biden. (AP Photo, File) AP

• Chris Quinn, Editor, cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer

A more-than-occasional arrival in the email these days is a question expressed two ways, one with dripping condescension and the other with courtesy:

Why don’t our opinion platforms treat Donald Trump and other politicians exactly the same way. Some phrase it differently, asking why we demean the former president’s supporters in describing his behavior as monstrous, insurrectionist and authoritarian.

I feel for those who write. They believe in Trump and want their local news source to recognize what they see in him.

The angry writers denounce me for ignoring what they call the Biden family crime syndicate and criminality far beyond that of Trump. They quote news sources of no credibility as proof the mainstream media ignores evidence that Biden, not Trump, is the criminal dictator.

The courteous writers don’t go down that road. They politely ask how we can discount the passions and beliefs of the many people who believe in Trump.

Chris Quinn's recent Letters from the Editor

• Let’s hang it up on polling. In election after election, they get it wrong: Letter from the Editor
• Most of us readily acknowledge when our slip is showing. Why can’t Ohio politicians? Letter from the Editor
• I made a presentation Wednesday while wearing two different shoes. Read on to see how common that is.

This is a tough column to write, because I don’t want to demean or insult those who write me in good faith. I’ve started it a half dozen times since November but turned to other topics each time because this needle is hard to thread. No matter how I present it, I’ll offend some thoughtful, decent people.

The north star here is truth. We tell the truth, even when it offends some of the people who pay us for information.

The truth is that Donald Trump undermined faith in our elections in his false bid to retain the presidency. He sparked an insurrection intended to overthrow our government and keep himself in power. No president in our history has done worse.

This is not subjective. We all saw it. Plenty of leaders today try to convince the masses we did not see what we saw, but our eyes don’t deceive. (If leaders began a yearslong campaign today to convince us that the Baltimore bridge did not collapse Tuesday morning, would you ever believe them?) Trust your eyes. Trump on Jan. 6 launched the most serious threat to our system of government since the Civil War. You know that. You saw it.

The facts involving Trump are crystal clear, and as news people, we cannot pretend otherwise, as unpopular as that might be with a segment of our readers. There aren’t two sides to facts. People who say the earth is flat don’t get space on our platforms. If that offends them, so be it.

As for those who equate Trump and Joe Biden, that’s false equivalency. Biden has done nothing remotely close to the egregious, anti-American acts of Trump. We can debate the success and mindset of our current president, as we have about most presidents in our lifetimes, but Biden was never a threat to our democracy. Trump is. He is unique among all American presidents for his efforts to keep power at any cost.

Personally, I find it hard to understand how Americans who take pride in our system of government support Trump. All those soldiers who died in World War II were fighting against the kind of regime Trump wants to create on our soil. How do they not see it?

The March 25 edition of the New Yorker magazine offers some insight. It includes a detailed review of a new book about Adolf Hitler, focused on the year 1932. It’s called “Takeover: Hitler’s Final Rise to Power” and is by historian Timothy W. Ryback. It explains how German leaders – including some in the media -- thought they could use Hitler as a means to get power for themselves and were willing to look past his obvious deficiencies to get where they wanted. In tolerating and using Hitler as a means to an end, they helped create the monstrous dictator responsible for millions of deaths.

How are those German leaders different from people in Congress saying the election was stolen or that Jan. 6 was not an insurrection aimed at destroying our government? They know the truth, but they deny it. They see Trump as a means to an end – power for themselves and their “team” – even if it means repeatedly telling lies.

Sadly, many believe the lies. They trust people in authority, without questioning the obvious discrepancies or relying on their own eyes. These are the people who take offense to the truths we tell about Trump. No one in our newsroom gets up in the morning wanting to make a segment of readers feel bad. No one seeks to demean anyone. We understand what a privilege it is to be welcomed into the lives of the millions of people who visit our platforms each month for news, sports and entertainment. But our duty is to the truth.

Our nation does seem to be slipping down the same slide that Germany did in the 1930s. Maybe the collapse of government in the hands of a madman is inevitable, given how the media landscape has been corrupted by partisans, as it was in 1930s Germany.

I hope not.

In our newsroom, we’ll do our part. Much as it offends some who read us, we will continue to tell the truth about Trump.

I’m at [email protected]

Thanks for reading.

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