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101 Best Guide “How To Write An Informal Letter?”

“More than kisses, letters mingle souls”
-John Donne

We can still relate so much to that quote by the great metaphysical poet about the value of letters to us. Since the first letter was believed to have been sent in around 500 BC, we have been continuously following the practice formally and informally. In this one, we will learn about ‘how to write an informal letter’ and its fundaments.

Informal letter

An informal letter can be regarded as a literary exchange between close correspondents or acquaintances and is more personal/friendly by nature.

Informal letters do not need someone to adhere to any specific pattern, the practice seems more free and creative.

Because the participants of informal letters are friends and families oftentimes, the art of this writing is more personal and emotional depending on the needs.

One of the major objectives of the informal letter is to strengthen the personal ties between the participants. Likewise, the purpose also remains casual most of the time, such as to know their how-about or to gather some general information.

The contents can be grave at times but they stay strictly personal between the sender and recipient.

How to write an informal letter

Though informal letters do not need to abide by any strict fashion when they are composed, they certainly do need to think of some basic structures. The tone and language may go unassuming or unceremonious but the parts have to be distinctly featured so as to avoid any confusion and to bring clarity to it.

Format of an informal letter

As is already mentioned, informal letters are more personal and the strict tone formulation is not generally required but the letter must meet its purpose, whatsoever. You can well take these considerations before writing an effective informal letter-

Address:

Traditionally, we mention the address of the sender at the left corner of our page but there is no wrong in keeping it at the right-hand side at the top of the page.
One thing that must be seriously considered is the accuracy of the sender’s address so he/she could expect the duly reply of his/her queries without any chances of getting lost. The address must be accurate, clear, and correct.

Date:

Be it either side, the date is placed exactly below the address of the sender. Mentioning of date could hold a great deal of responsibility for referential purposes in the future as your receiver may gain a sense of responsiveness accordingly.

Salutation:

Salutation or greeting comes below the address and depends on your personal level of ties with your reader that how you usually address them. As it is an informal letter, different types of personal and private greetings can be made but it is always better if you start your letter on a courteous note.

For instance, If you are writing to your parents then you can start as ‘ Dear mom ‘ or ‘Dear dad’. Similarly, you can address your friend or cousin with the same salutation. e.g Dear Steve or Dear Ganesh etc.

However, if the person you are writing to deserves some level of respect then you can address them as Dear Mr. Joshua or Dear Mrs. Johnson et cetera.

Intro:

This is the beginning of your letter and will work as the preface. It initiates your main syllabus and roughly states the content of your main paragraph.

Hence, it is one of the major parts of any letter writing, be it formal or informal. You are advised to start your introductory letter part by asking about their well-being in a more courteous manner to gain their sincerity.

Body/Paragraph:

It is the main part of any letter as it contains your entire contents. Precisely, when talking about informal letters, we look upon the moderate tone of our language. However, the language and word-setting must be adjusted according to the relationship between sender and receiver.

This is to say that if you are writing to your contemporaries then the casual choice of words will do good but if you are writing to some respectful people or elderly then the language choice has to be respectful.

Conclusion:

Now as you reach the conclusion of your letter, you will be comprehending the intention of your entire letter with a sincere note of regard to the reader. In simple words, it is actually a summarization of your letter with a sense of consistency from your side about your conversation.

Signature:

As we do not follow any strict format to sign the conclusion of informal letters, one can come up with the desired set of phrases or group of words as per the necessity and comfort of their relationship. e.g Your loving friend, loving son, Forever yours, etc.

Other Examples:

Best Wishes
Kind Regards
Best Regards
Lots of Love
Love

Sample of informal letter 1: ( Requesting A Favor )

Ward no 32, Amarawati Marg
Anamnagar, Kathmandu Metropolitan City
Nepal
August 17, 2021

Dear Rakesh,

Hi Rakesh, how have you been doing as of late? It has been really long since I last read from you or I have written to you. Now, with the strong belief of having everything fine at your end, I am writing this letter to you, my brother. What are you up to these days and how are things with uncle and aunty ?. I hope everyone is doing great at the moment.

Let me get straight to the purpose of this letter this time, Rakesh. I am writing to you on behalf of Sapana, you know our cousin, who is leaving Mahendranagar for Kathmandu next month, probably. So, she was requesting me to ask you for your favor to stay there in your place after when she will reach Kathmandu, for few days until she will manage with her college and hostel. She is expecting your positive response in this matter, however, your decision will be the last one.

Please write back to me ASAP.

Your brother

Pintu

Sample of informal letter 2: ( Wedding invitation )

Mahadevsthan 7, Chandragiri
Kathmandu, 44600
Nepal
July 7, 2021

Dear Mrs. Acharya

Hello Mrs. Acharya. How is it with you at the moment? Talking about mine, I’m doing good and I hope to be even better with you, there. How is Mr. Acharya? I hope, he is great as always.

Well, I am writing this letter to give an information about my sister’s wedding which is soon going to happen next month. Hence, I would like to heartily welcome you on her big day, in fact, I kindly insist you be present there on that day. Though. the final date of reception has not been finalized yet but once it will be finalized, I will mention you.

I hope you and Mr. Acharya will keep my hearty request and will bless the bride with your graceful appearance.

Also, pay my regards to Mr. Acharyaas well.

Your loving friend

Sushil

Sample of informal letter 3: ( Letter of Sympathy )

Gyaneshwor, Ratopul
Kathmandu, 44600
Nepal
March 2, 2021

Dear Oggy

With a very heavy heart, I am writing this to you. Before, going any further, I ask for a humble apology for not being able to make it there to attend the procession of your father’s death because of the delay in Visa processing. You know how I hate it when I remember my absence on such a sorrowful day.

But, my friend, I always want you to remember this fact that no matter wherever we may live or whatever the distances are, I am always there for you and will always remain true to our friendship. I just loathe it every time when I have to repeat but as you are the brave man, I know you will learn to live with this and soon recover from the great loss. I don’t want to say this just to put forth my sympathy but as a genuine friend, I will always be standing by your side.

Your best friend
Jhaplu

In a nutshell

Informal letter writing actually is personal communication between any two or more two people where we do not need to stick to any predefined formats or language structures.
The nature of language can be determined as per the foundation of one’s personal tie with the other. In other words, the language may be regulated according to the sender and the receiver. Because these letters are often between friends or relatives, the language used is natural and unceremonious.

With the above simplifications, we hope all dear readers have now gained some ideas or few about how to write an informal letter, and if you then please don’t hesitate to leave your comments below.

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