The complete idiot guide part 37 potx

Chapter Personal Writing: In Your Write Mind In This Chapter • Write friendly letters • Send social notes • Learn how to write effective letters of opinion • Tune into writing technol

Chapter 2 5 : Business Writing: Write Angles 3 W

The Least You Need to Know

• A resume is a persuasive summary of your qualifications for employment; it is always accompanied by a cover letter

• Tailor your resume and cover letter to the specific job you want

• Follow up every job contact with a thank you note

• How easy a message is to write (and deliver) depends on how well you know the situation and the message you have to deliver

Chapter

Personal Writing:

In Your Write Mind

In This Chapter

• Write friendly letters

• Send social notes

• Learn how to write effective letters of opinion

• Tune into writing technology

As often as we use the telephone to reach out and touch someone, there

are times when only a letter will do Friendly letters share personal feelings and information among friends and family, while social notes relay or refuse

an invitation They also express our gratitude, congratulations, or

condo-lences There are also letters of opinion, sent to newspapers, businesses, and

the media

In this chapter, you learn how to write other important and useful types of letters Sometimes these concern your personal life; at other times, they are more business-centered

3 4 6 Part 6 : In Your Write Mind

Friendly Letters: My Baby, She Wrote Me a Letter

Letters are a testimony to the enduring attempts of human beings to bridge the com-munication gap between themselves and others Letters pack an astonishingly big wallop for their size In some cases, they even become the stuff of history

cor-Quoth the Maven _

We could make a case that

some e-mail correspondence is a

contemporary form of the friendly

letter It follows a different format,

however, as described in detail

later in this chapter

respondence, it still matches the letter format you learned in Chapter 25

Because friendly letters express your own ideas, you generally have a far wider choice of content with them than you do with a business letter Nonethe-less, an effective friendly letter must still be clearly organized and carefully thought out

Signed, Sealed, Delivered: I'm Yours

An astonishing number of people would rather get a root canal, pay their tax bill, or jump from a moving train than write a friendly letter If you're one of these, the fol-lowing 10 tips should make your task easier:

1 Don't apologize for not having written or for running out of ideas You're not

on trial here

2 Reread any recent letters you received from the person to whom you are writ-ing This helps you answer the person's questions and include items of interest

to the reader

3 To make your ideas come alive, use vivid sensory impressions, descriptions that appeal to sight, hearing, smell, and so on

4 Include figures of speech, such as similes and metaphors Tap into what you learned in Part 5 of this book

5 Add dialogue to make your writing more specific and interesting, too

6 Identify all unfamiliar people and places you mention Never assume that your reader knows the complete cast of characters in your life, especially newcomers like your daughter's boyfriend (the one with the ring in his navel and hole in his head)

7 Check your grammar and usage carefully

Chapter 2 6 : Personal Writing: In Your Write Hind I k l

8 Reread for errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and logic

9 Make your letter easy to read Write legibly or type

10 Try to end your letter on a positive note Avoid lame endings like, "Well, that's all I have to say" or "It's late so I'll end this letter." A strong ending leaves your readers thinking good thoughts—and thinking well of you

Model Letter

Personal letters are written for several

impor-tant and intriguing reasons These include an

urge to record an experience, the desire to

respond to a situation, the craving to maintain

contact, a wish to offer congratulations or

comfort, and the longing to be creative Elinore

Rupert Stewart, a pioneer trekking west at the

turn of the century, wrote for all these

rea-sons Today, letters such as hers offer us a

fas-cinating record of the westward expansion

September 28, 1909

Dear Mrs Coney,

Your second card just reached me and I am plumb glad because, although I answered

your other, I was wishing I could write to you, for I have had the most charming

adven-ture

I was awakened by a pebble striking my cheek Something prowling on the bluff above

us had dislodged it and it struck me It was four o'clock, so I arose and spitted my rabbit The logs had left such a big bed of coals, but some ends were still burning in such a

manner that the heat would go both under and over my rabbit So I put plenty of bacon

grease over him and hung him up to roast Then I went back to bed I didn't want to

start early because the air is too keen for comfort early in the morning

Q Quoth the Maven

What happens when you get

a gift you detest (I mean it's a

real stinker)? It still deserves a

thank you note Don't lie and gush about the gift Instead, be polite and more general in your thanks After all, a gift is just that—

a gift rather than an obligation

—Elinore Rupert Stewart

3 1 , 8 Part 6: In Your Write Hind

B G B Revisited

In the previous chapter, you learned the importance of thanking interviewers for their time Thank you notes are equally important in a nonbusiness setting In addition to acknowledging someone's thoughtmlness and generosity, a thank you note can prevent misunderstandings, such as a misrouted gift, that can set off a family feud

When you write a thank you note, try to

• Mention the specific gift or act of kindness

• Explain why the gift or action was appreciated

• Write promptly

dBmk/^ y Quoth the Maven

^ V f Letters of condolence are

1 always handwritten

Here's a model:

Dear Aunt Mabel:

Thank you for the lovely afghan The colors exactly match the decor of my den: lime green, bright purple, and day-glow orange It was very thoughtful of you to make me a gift that is functional as well as beautiful: You know how I always get cold at night

watching "Wheel of Fortune" reruns Now I can snuggle up in my afghan and dream of being Vanna White and turning those big letters myself You know I will treasure the afghan for years and think of you with great affection

Fondly,

Dilly

I feel Your Pain: Letters of Condolence

No, you don't, and don't even try But a letter of condolence is much more appreciated than a phone call because it's tangible proof that the person cared enough to write Many people keep meaningful letters of condolence and reread them in times of pain Letters of condolence must be written with tact and sincerity Although it's always best to write promptly after the person's loss, a letter of condolence is the rare situa-tion where "better late than never" holds true If you put off writing the note because you couldn't think of appropriate words of comfort, it's not too late to do it now Here are some ideas to get you started:

Chapter 2 6 : Personal Writing: In Your Write Mind 3 W

1 Keep the letter sincere Write from the heart

2 Don't rehash the tragedy and the gory details

3 Show your reader that you care and you have been affected by the loss, but never try to show that your loss is greater than the other person's loss It isn't

4 Offer friendship or love, whatever the relationship

5 If you're offering help, offer help: "May I come over next month and take down your storm windows?" not "I'm here for you."

6 If you knew the person well, try to include specific details about the deceased person's admirable traits Tell a brief story about the time the person picked you

up from the airport at midnight, for example

Abraham Lincoln wrote the following letter of condolence:

Executive Mansion, Washington

November 21, 1864

Mrs Bixby

Boston, Massachusetts

Dear Madam:

I have been shown in the files of the War Department a statement of the

Adjutant-General of Massachusetts that you are the mother of five sons who have died gloriously

on the field of battle I feel how weak and fruitless must be any words of mine which

should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming But I cannot

refrain from tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the

Republic they died to save I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of

freedom

Yours very sincerely and respectfully,

Abraham Lincoln

3 5 0 Part 6 : In Your Write Hind

Letters of Opinion

How about those Mets? Everybody's got an opinion, and few of us are shy about expressing it That's where letters of opinion come in By stating your point of view

in writing, letters of opinion give legitimacy to your feelings

Letters of opinion are like telephone books: They have a wide variety of uses Here are some of the most common ones:

• Praise or criticize a company

• Register your viewpoint on a social issue

• Comment on public policy

• Respond to an editorial or article

• Evaluate a project

All letters of opinion state your opinions clearly and provide reasons to support them Here's how it works with a letter of complaint

Complain, Complain, Complain

The toaster incinerated your lovely sesame-seed bagel; the hair dryer has more hot air than your local senator You're mad as hell and you're not going to take it anymore What to do? Why not write a letter of complaint? "Ah, they never work," you scoff Here's how to lodge a consumer complaint and accomplish more than just venting your spleen

1 Gather up all the paperwork related to the product or service in question—which you saved, like the careful consumer you are, rather than throwing it away with the box Here's the proof you need to make your case:

• Sales receipt

• Work order

Quoth the Maven

you don't have the

com-pany's phone number or address

because aliens stole your

paper-work, check out your library's

ref-erence desk They should be

able to help you locate toll-free

customer service numbers or the

address of the company's

corpo-rate offices

Canceled check or charge slip Warranty booklet

Chapter 2 6 : Personal Writing: In Your Write 351

2 Contact the company by letter The letter approach allows you time to frame your complaint more carefully and completely

3 Follow these guidelines as you write:

• Address the letter to the company president or the consumer complaint department

Explain your problem with the product or service

Include the model number, serial number, and any receipts

State what you want Be specific

but reasonable If the toaster

broke after a month, a

reason-able replacement is another

toaster or a refund, not a

side-by-side refrigerator/freezer or a

week in Barbados

Be sure to include your return

address and a daytime telephone

number

! ^ ^ J / Quoth the Maven

Many consumer agencies are now on the Net For example, you can reach the New York office of the Better Business Bureau at www.newyork.bbb.org You may have to pay a small fee when you contact the Better Business Bureau by phone, but the service is free through e-mail

• Keep the letter brief

4 Give the company sufficient time to

respond to your complaint

5 If you haven't received satisfaction after what you judge to be a reasonable length of time, you can take the following steps:

• Assume the letter was misplaced and write again

• Contact your local consumer affairs office or regulatory agencies

The next page shows a model letter of complaint

3 5 2 Part 6: In Your Write Mid

Days of Wine and Roses

1221 GrapeLeaf Terrace

The Valley, California, 17226

Dear Product Manager:

On May 17, 2003,1 purchased a Whine and Cheese corkscrew, model number 4157Z, from Wal-Mart, for $29.99 When I inserted the corkscrew into the cork of a Merlot that evening, the handle broke off I have enclosed the receipt and all parts of the

corkscrew in this package

Because the Whine and Cheese corkscrew is highly recommended as a Best Buy in

Bottom's Up magazine, I can only conclude that the corkscrew I purchased is defective

Please replace my corkscrew with the same model or another of comparable value that you recommend

Thank you for your attention to this matter

Sincerely,

(Jw/u>ott&(Jw/Lcl<yrvrw>i

Charlotte Chardonney

My 2< Worth

A letter of opinion can state a positive viewpoint as well as a negative one For example, you might write to a park to praise its rangers or a school district to applaud its teach-ers Or your letter of opinion might state a dissenting viewpoint—a different way of looking at the same issue You might write to a newspaper, magazine, or television sta-tion about its editorial viewpoint Whatever your purpose or audience, here are some suggestions to consider as you write

1 For letters of praise

• State exactly who or what you are praising

• Give the dates of the exemplary service

• Identify outstanding employees by name and title

• Include your name, address, and telephone number