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ENG1131 English Handbook

Table of Contents

Editing for Grammar and Punctuation

Basic Review of Sentence Structure 3

Fixing Common Grammatical Errors 3

Fixing Common Sentence Errors 6

Punctuation Inside Sentences 7

Capitalization 9

Choosing the Right Words

Choose Words for a Purpose 10

Commonly Confused Words 12

Active Verbs 13

Revising for an Improved Message

Revising Sentences 13

Revising Paragraphs 14

Improve Your Message through Revision 14

Style of Writing 14

Basic Business Document Formats

Using MSWord to Type Documents 15

Block Letter Format 16

Modified Block Letter Format 17

Business Memo Format 18

Business Email Format 19

Basic Résumé Format 20

Note: This handbook is a supplement to the ENG1131 course textbook.

ENG1131 English Handbook

There are four sections to this handbook: Editing for Grammar and Punctuation, Choosing the Right Words, Revising for an Improved Message, and Basic Business Document Formats.

Section One: Editing for Grammar and Punctuation

This section reviews basic sentence structure and covers strategies for fixing common grammatical and sentence errors. This section also reviews punctuation and special formatting.

Basic Review of Sentence Structure

A complete sentence must contain a subject—person, place, or thing—and a verb—the action of the subject. Of course, sentences get more complicated than just two words, but this subject and verb structure is the foundation of all sentences.

A main clause is a complete statement.

· Your order will arrive Thursday.

· He dreaded talking to his supplier.

· I plan to enroll for summer school classes.

A subordinate clause has a subject and verb but is not a complete statement.

· If you place your order by Monday

· Because he was afraid the product would be out of stock

· Since I want to graduate next spring

A clause with one of the following words will be subordinate: after, although, though, because, since, before, until, if, when, whenever, while, and as.

A phrase is a group of words that do not contain both a subject and verb.

· With our current schedule

· As a result

· After talking to my advisor

Fixing Common Grammatical Errors

This part looks at five common grammatical errors: agreement, case, dangling modifiers, misplace modifiers, and parallel structures.

Agreement means the subject and verbs agree when they are both singular or both plural.

· When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns connected by and, use a plural verb. Example: She and her friends are at the fair.

· When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by or or nor, use a singular verb. Example: The book or the pen is in the drawer.

· When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun or pronoun joined by or or nor, the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is nearer the verb. Examples: The boy or his friends run every day. His friends or the boy runs every day.

· Doesn’t is a contraction of does not and should be used only with a singular subject. Don’t is a contraction of do not and should be used only with a plural subject. The exception to this rule appears in the case of the first person and second person pronouns I and you. With these pronouns, the contraction don’t should be used. Examples: He doesn’t like it. They don’t like it.

· Do not be misled by a phrase that comes between the subject and the verb. The verb agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase. Examples: One of the boxes is open. The team captain, as well as his players, is anxious.

· The words each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody, someone, and no one are singular and require a singular verb. Examples: Each of these hot dogs is juicy. Everybody knows Mr. Jones. Either is correct.

· Nouns such as civics, mathematics, dollars, measles, and news require singular verbs. Example: The news is on at six. Note: the word dollars is a special case. When talking about an amount of money, it requires a singular verb, but when referring to the dollars themselves, a plural verb is required. Examples: Five dollars is a lot of money. Dollars are often used instead of rubles in Russia.

· Nouns such as scissors, tweezers, trousers, and shears require plural verbs. (There are two parts to these things.) Examples: These scissors are dull. Those trousers are made of wool.

· In sentences beginning with there is or there are, the subject follows the verb. Since there is not the subject, the verb agrees with what follows. Examples: There are many questions. There is a question.

· Collective nouns are words that imply more than one person but that are considered singular and take a singular verb, such as group, team, committee, class, and family. Examples: The team runs during practice. The committee decides how to proceed.

· Expressions such as with, together with, including, accompanied by, in addition to, or as well do not change the number of the subject. If the subject is singular, the verb is too. Examples: The President, accompanied by his wife, is traveling to India. All of the books, including yours, are in that box.

Case refers to the grammatical role a noun or pronoun plays in a sentence. The pronoun cases are simple though. There are only three:

1. Subjective case: pronouns used as subject are I, you, he, she, it, one, who, we, and they.

2. Objective case: pronouns used as objects of verbs or prepositions are me, you, him, her, it, one, whom, us, and them.

3. Possessive case: pronouns which express ownership are my, mine, your, yours, his, her, hers, its, one’s, whose, our, ours, their, and theirs.

A dangling modifier pertains to a word that is not in the sentence. Modifiers give more information about subjects, verbs, or objects.

· Name the appropriate or logical doer of the action as the subject of the main clause. Example: Having arrived late for practice, a written excuse was needed.Who arrived late? This sentence says that the written excuse arrived late. To revise, decide who actually arrived late. The possible revision might look like this: Having arrived late for practice, the team captain needed a written excuse. The main clause now names the person (the captain) who did the action in the modifying phrase (arrived late).

· Change the phrase that dangles into a complete introductory clause by naming the doer of the action in that clause: Example: Without knowing his name, it was difficult to introduce him. Who didn’t know his name? This sentence says that “it” didn’t know his name. To revise, decide who was trying to introduce him. The revision might look something like this: Because Maria did not know his name, it was difficult to introduce him. The phrase is now a complete introductory clause; it does not modify any other part of the sentence, so is not considered “dangling.”

· Combine the phrase and main clause into one. Example: To improve his results, the experiment was done again. Who wanted to improve results? This sentence says that the experiment was trying to improve its own results. To revise, combine the phrase and the main clause into one sentence. The revision might look something like this: He improved his results by doing the experiment again.

Misplaced modifiers incorrectly relates to the wrong word in the sentence. Modifiers are just what they sound like—words or phrases that modify something else. Misplaced modifiers are modifiers that modify something you didn’t intend them to modify. For example, the word only is a modifier that’s easy to misplace. Examples: I ate only vegetables. I only ate vegetables.

The first sentence (I ate only vegetables) means that I ate nothing but vegetables—no fruit, no meat, just vegetables. The second sentence (I only ate vegetables) means that all I did with vegetables was eat them. I didn’t plant, harvest, wash, or cook them. I only ate them. It’s easiest to get modifiers right when you keep them as close as possible to the thing they are modifying. When you’re working with one-word modifiers, for example, they usually go right before the word they modify.

Parallel Structure relates to items in a series or lists that must have the same grammatical structure. Parallel structure means using the same pattern of words to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance. This can happen at the word, phrase, or clause level. The usual way to join parallel structures is with the use of coordinating  conjunctions  such as “and” or “or.”

· Words and Phrases with the -ing form (gerund) of words. Examples: Mary likes hiking, swimming, and bicycling. Mary likes to hike, to swim, and to ride a bicycle. Mary likes to hike, swim, and ride a bicycle. (Note: You can use “to” before all the verbs in a sentence or only before the first one.)

· Do not mix forms.

Not Parallel Structure: The production manager was asked to write his report quickly, accurately, and in a detailed manner.

Parallel Structure: The production manager was asked to write his report quickly, accurately, and thoroughly.

· A parallel structure that begins with clauses must keep on with clauses. Changing to another pattern or changing the voice of the verb (from active to passive or vice versa) will break the parallelism.Not Parallel Example: The coach told the players that they should get a lot of sleep, that they should not eat too much, and to do some warm-up exercises before the game.

Parallel Example: The coach told the players that they should get a lot of sleep, that they should not eat too much, and that they should do some warm-up exercises before the game.

· Lists after a colon must keep all the elements in a list in the same form. Not Parallel Example: The dictionary can be used to find these: word meanings, pronunciations, correct spellings, and looking up irregular verbs.

Parallel Example: The dictionary can be used to find these: word meanings,  pronunciations, correct spellings, and irregular verbs.

Proofreading strategies for correcting parallel structures

· Skim your paper, pausing at the words “and” and “or.” Check on each side of these words to see whether the items joined are parallel. If not, make them parallel.

· If you have several items in a list, put them in a column to see if they are parallel.

· Listen to the sound of the items in a list or the items being compared. Do you hear the same kinds of sounds? For example, is there a series of “-ing” words beginning each item? Or do you hear a rhythm being repeated? If something is breaking that rhythm or repetition of sound, check to see if it needs to be made parallel.

Fixing Common Sentence Errors

This part looks at four common sentence errors: comma splices, run-on sentences, fused sentences, and sentence fragments.

Commas splices occur when a comma is used to join two sentences. Error Example: My new job starts next month, I’ll go on vacation before it begins. Corrected Example: My new starts next month, so I’ll go on vacation before it begins.

To fix comma splices:

· If the ideas are closely related, use a semicolon rather than a comma. If they aren’t closely related, start a new sentence.

· Remember that you cannot use just a comma with the following transitions: however, therefore, nevertheless, and moreover. Instead, use a semicolon to separate the clauses or start a new sentence.

· Add a coordinating conjunction.

· Subordinate one of the clauses.

Run-on Sentences string together too many ideas and thoughts that become confusing to the reader. Error Example: My boss asked about the report, but I didn’t have it done because of all the confusion about the new hires that just started when the restructuring took place last month in order to increase production. Corrected Example: My boss asked about the report, but I didn’t have it done. This was due to the restructuring last month that brought in new hires to increase production.

To fix run-on sentences:

· Correct a short run-on sentence by adding a comma.

· Separate a long run-on sentence into two or more sentences.

· Consider subordinating one or more of the clauses.

Fused sentences join two sentences together without proper punctuation or a conjunction. Error Example: Mike bought a truck it is really cool. Corrected Example: Mike bought a truck, and it is really cool.

To fix fused sentences:

· Insert a conjunction between the two sentences.

· Insert a semicolon between the two sentences.

· Break the fused sentence into two separate sentences.

Sentence fragments are incomplete sentences or thoughts. Error Example: After you finish lunch. Corrected Example: Finish your lunch and then take a nap.

To fix sentence fragments:

· Add whatever parts of the sentence are missing or

· Incorporate the fragment into the sentence before it or after it.

Punctuation Inside Sentences

End marks are easy to use. Periods are used most often, question marks are used at the end of questions, and exclamation points end sentences that show high emotions. Punctuation inside sentences cause writers the most trouble, but are necessary to add meaning and tone to the writing.

· Apostrophes (‘) are used for contractions and to indicate possession. Example: We can’t go to Paula’s office.

· Colons (:) are used before a list or an example. Example: Selling is simple: give customers what they want. Give customers bread, milk, and cheese if they want them.

· Commas (,) are used to create breaks inside the sentence. This is when two words or clauses need to be separated otherwise, the meaning would change. Without commas, James would only bring home two items from the example below. Example: Tell James to get paper, folders, and diskettes.

· Dashes (—) are used to indicate a break in thought. Example: One reason to shop at Burrell’s—perhaps the best—is our excellent customer service.

· Hyphens (-) are used to join two words that cannot be joined as a compound word. Example: Let’s develop our problem-solving skills with this 4-foot board.

· Parentheses ( ) are used to set off words, phrases, and sentences as well as when expressing numbers as a word and digit. Example: Last month (January), Paul was promoted two (2) times.

· Periods (.) are not only used to end sentences but for certain abbreviations as well. Example: Most sentences will end with a period, A. J.

· Semicolons (;) should only be used for separating two complete sentences that are closely related or to separate items in a series when commas are also in play. Example: Sales are up significantly; last week they increased 12 percent.

Punctuation for Quoting Sources

This is a category of punctuation inside sentences that takes on a life of its own. Quotation marks, square brackets, and ellipses all indicate that you are dealing with someone else’s words.

· Use quotation marks (“”) around

· The names of brochures, pamphlets, and magazine articles.

· Words to indicate you think the term is misleading.

· Words that you are discussing as words.

· Words or sentences you quote from someone else including dialogue.

· Use square brackets ([ ]) to add your own additions to or changes in quoted material.

· Use ellipses ( . . . ) to

· Indicate that one or more words have been omitted in the middle of quoted material. You do not need ellipses at the beginning or end of a quote.

· To imply the pace of spoken comments in advertising and direct mail.

Special Formatting

Special formatting deals with font styles, numbers, and dates.

· Use italics to

· Indicate the names of newspapers, magazines, movies, and books.

· Emphasize words.

· Format numbers based on their purpose and/or amount.

· Spell out numbers from zero to nine.

· Use figures for numbers 10 and over in most cases.

· Use figures for amounts of money, calculations, and statistics.

· Spell out any number that appears at the beginning of a sentence. If spelling it out is impractical, revise the sentence so that it does not begin with a number.

· Type dates based on the corporate practice.

· In dates, use figures for the day and year. The month is normally spelled out.

· Be sure to spell out the month in international business communication.

· U.S. usage puts the month first, so that 1/10/04 means January 10, 2004.

· European usage puts the day first, so that 1/10/05 means 1 October 2005.

· Modern punctuation uses a comma before the year only when you give both the month and the day of the month.

Capitalization

Capitalizing the first letter of a word indicates the word is being used in a special way. Here are guidelines which will help you capitalize correctly.

· Capitalize the first word of a sentence and the pronoun I in any location. Example: The agency bought a computer, and I learned how to use it.

· Capitalize the first word in a quotation. Example: Mr. Marsh exclaimed, “Let’s do the best we can!”

· Capitalize the first word and all titles and nouns in the salutation of a letter and the first word in the complimentary close. Examples: Dear Miranda, Sincerely yours, Very truly yours

· Capitalize the names of the days of the week, special days (holidays), months of the year, historic events, and eras. Example: Tuesday, Memorial Day, American Revolution,

Fourth of July, December, Paleozoic Era

· Capitalize the first, last, and all other important words in the titles of written works (documents, books, journals, newspapers, reports) and their contents (chapters, sections, articles), works of art and music, and movies. Capitalize articles (a, an, the), conjunctions, or prepositions only when they are the first or last words in a title or subtitle. Examples: The Wealth of Nations A Day at the Races, The Declaration of Independence, Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest Love of All”

· Capitalize nouns and abbreviations referring to parts of a written work only when the reference is followed by a number. Examples: Book IX, Chapter 6, Section 2, Volume III

· Capitalize words referring to the Deity and a specific religion. Examples: the Creator, Buddhism, Christian, Allah

· Capitalize the names of people and words associated with the name (places, diseases, etc.) Examples: Joyce M. Wexler, Hodgkin’s disease, David Ponitz Center

· Capitalize titles when used as follows:

· when immediately preceding a name. Examples: Dr. Carl Maxwell, Miss Dorothy Mosher, Uncle Don, Sergeant Jackson, Mr. Edward Crane, President Wilma Dorn, Grandma Judy Seaman Hoover

· after a name in an address of typed signature. Example: Ms. Maria Richards, Director of Personnel; Marvin J. Feldman, Manager

· when used in the place of a person’s name. Examples: “I understand your decision, Judge,” replied the defendant. I love you, Grandma.

· Capitalize the specific names of the following:

· geographical sites & places: Rocky Mountains Lake Superior Austin, Texas

· regions: the Midwest the South the Middle East

· organizations: the United Way American Red Cross Salvation Army

· buildings: Union Baptist Church Empire State Building Dunbar High School

· works of engineering: Hoover Dam Great Wall of China Jefferson Memorial

· state abbreviations: IL OH UT CA WI MI

· Capitalize words based on nationalities or historical background. Examples: Alaskan, Canadians, Mexican, Chinese, New Yorker, Indian, Midwesterner, Californian

· Capitalize the name brand but not the generic product’s name. Examples: Hostess Twinkies snacks, Lava soap, Mercedes-Benz automobiles, Reebok tennis shoes, Wonder bread, Apple personal computers

· Capitalize the names of specific courses (usually followed by a number) but not those of general areas of study (except languages). Examples: Mrs. Cramer’s record includes many business, mathematics, and political science courses; she is now studying Spanish and Psychology 267.

· Below is a list of some words that should NOT be capitalized.

· trees: redwood, oak, willow

· flowers: daffodil, rose, tulip

· diseases/illnesses: cancer, measles, appendicitis

· titles following a pronoun/article: my mom, our doctor, the judge

· seasons: fall, winter, spring, summer

· directions: north on Interstate 75, rain from the west, southerly winds

Section Two: Choosing the Right Word

When choosing words, you have a lot of options due to all the synonyms that exist. The challenge is to decide what you want the reader to understand or to take action. This part will cover denotation, connotation, precise words, commonly confused words, jargon, and active verbs.

Choose Words for a Purpose

Denotation is a word’s literal meaning. These words are formal and clinical in nature and have a neutral emotional coloring. Examples: male, female, book, house. Bypassing is when two people define the same word differently. The word pound, for example, denotes a unit of weight, a place where stray animals are kept, a unit of money in the British system, and the verb to hit. Example: If someone asks for a cola at a restaurant, the waitress may bring a Pepsi when the customer wanted a Coke.

Connotation refers to words that contain either positive or negative emotional. Example: A positive word for male is “man,” and a negative word is “jerk.”

Familiar words are in almost everyone’s vocabulary. These are better choices when writing for customers, clients, and patients.

Formal and Stuffy	Short and Simple
ameliorate	improve
commence	begin
enumerate	list
finalize	finish, complete
prioritize	rank
utilize	use
viable option	choice

Short, common words sound friendlier; however, use a longer word when

· It is the only word that expresses your meaning exactly.

· It is more familiar than a short word.

· Its connotations are more appropriate.

· The reader or industry prefers it.

Precise Words for ExactnessWhat do the words good, great, nice, bad, terrible, thing, stuff, item, very, really, definitely, extremely, wonderful, fabulous, awesome, horrible, and excellent all have in common?

a. These words are vague.

b. These words aren’t precise.

c. These words don’t describe the subject fully and accurately.

d. These words can lead to miscommunication in your writing.

e. All of the above.

Consider the following sentences written by one writer, unknown to us:

Mary is a very good girl. I really want to get her something nice for her graduation.

Just what does the writer of the sentences above mean by “something nice?” One person might think that six foot tall plastic flamingo sculpture would look stunning in Mary’s front yard. Another friend knows she needs a watch. Would Mary be impressed with a genuine Rolex or would a Timex work just as well? That word “really” indicates emphasis. How badly does the writer want this gift: enough to mortgage the house? What exactly, does the writer mean by “very good?” Does Mary excel at academics? Does she help little old ladies cross the street? Does she always call her aunts and uncles on their birthdays? How many aunts and uncles does she have, by the way? Did someone mention they all live in Argentina?

Are you getting the point? Aim for “precision” in your writing. From now on, one goal in all your writing is to use precise words. You want to use specific words and descriptive words. You want to use examples and illustrations.

Eliminate vague words like good, great, bad, nice, very, really, definitely, and most of their synonyms. These words are now what you might call, “forbidden words.”

Jargon is technical or specialty words that are specific to an industry, an area of study, or a specific group. Acceptable Jargon is specialized terminology of a technical field. Example: LIFO and FIFO are technical terms in accounting; byte and baud are computer jargon; scale-free and pickled and oiled designate specific characteristics of steel. Also, business slang are terms that are borrowed from technical fields but are used in a more general sense. Examples: bottom line, blindsiding, and downsize. Unacceptable jargon is arcane or dated language that should be avoided. Examples: as per your request, enclosed please find, please do not hesitate.

Commonly Confused Words

Commonly Confused Words are usually words sound similar, but they have different meanings. Some of these words sound don’t sound alike and the meanings are confused to be the same, but the meanings are not the same.

Accept/Except

· accept: to receive

· except: to leave out or exclude; but

· Example: I accept your proposal except for point three.

Affect/Effect

· affect: (verb) to influence or modify

· effect: (verb) to produce or cause; (noun) result

· Example. He hoped that his argument would affect his boss’ decision, but so far as he could see, it had no effect.

· Example: The tax relief effected some improvement for the citizens whose incomes had been affected by inflation.

Between/Among

· between: (use with only two choices)

· among: (use with more than two choices)

· Example: This year the differences between the two candidates for president are unusually clear.

· Example: I don’t see any major differences among the candidates for city council.

Compose/Comprise

· compose: make up, create

· comprise: consist of, be made up of, be composed of

· Example: The city council is composed of 12 members. Each district comprises an area 50 blocks square.

Fewer/Less

· fewer: (use for objects which can be counted individually)

· less: (use for objects which can be measured but not counted individually)

· Example: There is less sand in this bucket; there are probably fewer grains of sand, too.

It’s/Its

· it’s: it is, it has

· its: belonging to it

· Example: It’s clear that a company must satisfy its customers to stay in business.

Stationary/Stationery

· stationary: not moving, fixed

· stationery: paper

· Example: During the earthquake, even the stationery was not stationary.

To/Two/Too

· to: (preposition) function word indicating proximity, purpose, time, etc.

· too: (adverb) also, very, excessively

· two: (adjective) the number 2

· Example: The formula is too secret to entrust to two people.

Your/You’re

· your: belonging to you

· you’re: you are

· Example: You’re the top candidate for promotion in your  division.

Their/There/They’re

· their: possessive (shows possession)

· there: location/place (shows location or where something/someone is)

· they’re: a contraction meaning they are

· Example: Their house is over there where they’re standing.

You can find many more examples of commonly confused words online.

Active Verbs

Active verbs show an action such as ran, careened, smiled, sang, etc. Active verbs are clear about the actions of the subject and are less ambiguous. The most commonly used verbs do not show any action, so these verbs are considered passive. These passive verbs include is, are, was, were, be, been, being, andam . Try to eliminate passive verbs from your writing.

Passive Example: Active Example: Your plants will be arriving next week.  Your plants will arrive next week. The passive example sounds tired while the active example sounds confident, direct, and exact.

Passive Example: We are in the process of making a really good presentation later this week. Active Example: We will make a good presentation later this week.  Once again, the active example sounds more direct.

No one can “is” or “was” and that is what makes these verbs passive. Strive for action verbs.

The English language includes a lot of choices.

Section Three: Revising For an Improved Message

This section deals with tips for revising your writing to improve your message. Most of these tips will refer back to material already covered in this handbook.

Revising Sentences

· Use strong verbs, see “action verbs.”

· Tighten your writing and be concise, see “familiar words.”

· Vary sentence length and structure.

· Use parallel structure, see “parallel structure.”

· Put your readers in your sentences. This refers to “you-attitude” from the textbook.

Revising Paragraphs

Begin most paragraphs with topic sentences.

· The topic sentence states the main idea and provides a “scaffold” to structure your document. Open with the main point and then follow it with details.

· Example: The company and the IRS disagree about whether the company is liable for back taxes. In fiscal 2002, the company filed claims for starts with a refund of federal income taxes of $3,199,000 and interest of $969,000 paid as a result of an examination of the company’s federal income tax returns by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the years 1999 through 2001. It is uncertain what amount, if any, may ultimately be recovered.

Use transitions to link ideas and to move from one paragraph to the next.

· Transition words and sentences signal the connections between ideas to the reader.

· Example: and, but, however, for example, after, moreover.

Improve Your Message through Revision

There are several techniques that will help you improve your sentences, paragraphs, and entire document.

· Try the 3×3 writing process.

· First, brainstorm for 20 minutes then leave it and come back to your writing in an hour or more.

· Second, begin to group ideas together for a rough draft and outline.

· Third, revise your drafts several times, especially after a peer reviews it.

· Read the draft aloud to someone. As you read aloud, have your peer editor take notes about what works, what doesn’t and what is confusing to them. After reading, have your peer partner hand you his notes so that you may revise using them.

· Ask someone else to read it to you. By doing this, you are able to catch some of your own errors.

· Use the ruler method. Place the ruler below the first line so that you are focused on a single line instead of the entire document. Move the ruler down one line at a time to help you focus.

· Use the backwards approach. Read from the end of your document and move backwards. Start with the last sentence, read it, correct it and then move up to the sentence above it. The last line you will read will be the first line.

Style of Writing

Style refers to whether you are using formal language, clinical language, friendly language, etc. In business situations, a friendly tone is most often used. This would change if the situation is more serious or of a legal nature. In this case, formal words would be used.

It is important to use an appropriate level of formality:

· Use friendly, conversational words.

· Avoid contractions, slang, and even minor grammatical lapses, when you write to people you don’t know.

· Edit your writing to sound confident, even in uncomfortable situations.

· Allow for some individual variation-use your own “voice.”

Business vs. Academic Style

Here are some important differences between academic writing and business writing.

Effective Business Style	Traditional Term Paper Style
Conversational; sounds like a real person talking	More formal than conversation; however, it retains a human voice
Contractions OK	Few contractions, if any
Uses I, first- and second-person pronouns	First- and second-person pronouns kept to a minimum
Friendly	No effort to make style friendly
Personal; may refer to reader by name; refers to specific circumstances of readers	Impersonal; may generally refer to readers but does not name them or refer to their circumstances
Short, simple words but avoids slang	Many abstract words, scholarly, and technical terms
Short sentences and paragraphs	Sentences and paragraphs are usually long
Standard edited English	Standard edited English
Attention to the visual aspect of the document	No particular attention to the visual impact

Half-Truths About Writing

None of the following is necessarily true.

· Write what “sounds” good.

· Never use I.

· Use big words.

Decide what is appropriate based on audience and discourse community.

· Analyze your audience carefully and write appropriately.

· If you want the effect produced by an impersonal style and polysyllabic words, use them. But only use them when you want the distancing they produce.

Section Four: Basic Business Document Formats

This section focuses on using MSWord to type documents, the block letter format, the modified block letter format, the memo format, the business email format, and the basic résumé format.

Using MSWord to Type Documents

Here are some tips for using MS-Word more effectively.

1. Starting a document.

a. Word always runs auto-format which will do weird things to your spacing and indentations. You need to choose “Select All” or use Ctrl A when you open a document for the first time.

b. Now, open the “Paragraph” box which is located in the upper toolbar toward the center. Use the arrow in the bottom, right-hand corner.

c. When the box opens, you need to change two areas in the “Spacing” section.

i. Change “After” to 0 pt.

ii. Change “Line Spacing” to single if you are typing business documents.

d. After you have made these changes, hit the “OK” button and you are good to go.

2. For business documents, you need to follow the appropriate format of a letter, memo, or report. These documents will use a combination of single and double spacing.

3. Fonts.

a. Font size 12 is considered the most appropriate. Do not use any font under size 10 or use a font larger than 12.

b. Calibri is the default font because it uses the least amount of ink.

4. Getting a consistent look.

a. If you have a variety of fonts in your paper, choose “Select All” and once your entire paper is highlighted, choose a font and font size. The paper will now be consistent throughout.

b. If you are have spacing and indentation issues, choose “Select All” and change the spacing and indentation information in the “Paragraph” section.

5. Saving documents.

a. Go to “Save as” in the Office button located in the upper left-hand corner.

b. When the box pops up, change “Save in” to the place where you want to save the document such as your flash drive, cloud, or the desktop.

c. The title of the document will automatically load as the first words typed on the document but you can change it here by changing the “File name.”

d. Hit the save button in the lower right-hand corner. If all went well, your document has been saved.

Block Letter Format

Block letters are the most common letters used by business today. The set-up is easy to remember, type, and read. Here is an example of a block letter that also explains how to type it.

5 Hill Street Madison, Wisconsin 53700 March 15, 2005 Ms. Helen Jones President Jones, Jones & Jones 123 International Lane Boston, Massachusetts 01234   Dear Ms. Jones: Ah, business letter format-there are block formats, and indented formats, and modified block formats . . . and who knows what others. To simplify matters, we’re demonstrating the block format on this page, one of the two most common formats. For authoritative advice about all the variations, we highly recommend   The Gregg Reference Manual , 9th ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2001), a great reference tool for workplace communications. There seems to be no consensus about such fine points as whether to skip a line after your return address and before the date: some guidelines suggest that you do; others do not. Let’s hope that your business letter succeeds no matter which choice you make! When you use the block form to write a business letter, all the information is typed flush left, with one-inch margins all around. First provide your own address, then skip a line and provide the date, then skip one more line and provide the inside address of the party to whom the letter is addressed. If you are using letterhead that already provides your address, do not retype that information; just begin with the date. For formal letters, avoid abbreviations where possible. Skip another line before the salutation, which should be followed by a colon. Then write the body of your letter as illustrated here, with no indentation at the beginnings of paragraphs. Skip lines between paragraphs. After writing the body of the letter, type the closing, followed by a comma, leave 3 blank lines, then type your name and title (if applicable), all flush left. Sign the letter in the blank space above your typed name. Now doesn’t that look professional? Sincerely, John Doe Administrative Assistant

Modified Block Letter Format

Modified block letters are the second most common letters used by business today. The difference here is that indents are used for specific parts of the letter. Here is an example of a modified block letter that also explains how to type it.

5 Hill Street Madison, Wisconsin 53700 March 15, 2005 Ms. Helen Jones President Jones, Jones & Jones 123 International Lane Boston, Massachusetts 01234   Dear Ms. Jones: Ah, business letter format-there are block formats and modified block formats and who knows what others. To simplify matters, we’re demonstrating the modified block format on this page, one of the two most common formats. For authoritative advice about all the variations, we highly recommend   The Gregg Reference Manual , 9th ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2001), a great reference tool for workplace communications. There seems to be no consensus about such fine points as whether to skip a line after your return address and before the date: some guidelines suggest that you do; others do not. Let’s hope that your business letter succeeds no matter which choice you make! If you are using the modified block form, place your address at the top, with the left edge of the address aligned with the center of the page. Skip a line and type the date so that it lines up underneath your address. Type the inside address and salutation flush left; the salutation should be followed by a colon. For formal letters, avoid abbreviations. Skip another line before the salutation, which should be followed by a colon. Then write the body of your letter as illustrated here, with indentation at the beginnings of paragraphs. Skip lines between paragraphs. Instead of placing the closing and signature lines flush left, type them in the center, even with the address and date above, as illustrated here. Sign the letter in the blank space above your typed name. Now doesn’t that look professional? Sincerely,   John Doe Administrative Assistant

Business Memo Format

Business memos are short documents for sending messages inside the company or industry. The following example shows the memo format as well as describing how it is set-up.

MEMO August 16, 2015 TO: ENG1131 Class FROM: Aaron Moyer, ENG1131 Online Coordinator AM SUBJECT: A Basic Memo This memo is to, well, explain memos. A memo came long before email existed as a way to quickly write and send internal messages. That is why email adopted the same header information tags . Memos are meant to send direct, clear messages to colleagues and supervisors about situations, projects, initiatives, or any other information that needs to be quickly conveyed. Mem os are typically shorter than letters and do not contain addresses or a closing signature. As you can see by the structure above, only the date, the name of the recipient, the name of the sender, and a subject line are needed. Notice the alignment of the specific information after the TO/FROM/SUBJECT tags. Just use the tab key to get these to line up. If the memo is sent as paper, the “FROM” line must be initialed or signed by the sender. Quite often, memos have two or three headings throughout the text to help the reader understand the information more quickly. Also, the memo format is perfect for bulleted or numbered lists. That is the very basics of the memo and you will be using this format for your next document. If you want to see more examples, look at Module 9 in your textbook. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Business Email Format

Most email templates are set-up like a memo. But business expects the typed area to resemble the salutation, body, and closing of a letter. Here is an example of a basic business email.

Basic Résumé Format

Résumés come in a variety of formats. You can find templates in Word and several examples online. The following example uses the categories of education, work experience, computer skills, and other skills to group your life experiences related to work. Within these categories, you would list schools or employers in chronological order with the most recent information listed first. If you have more work experience than education, switch those and list work first.

Your Name

Your Address

Your Phone and Email

3

Education

Date Name of School

Program

Degree

Date Name of School

Program

Degree

Work Experience

Date Name of Business & Location

Title

Description of Job Duties

Date Name of Business & Location

Title

Description of Job Duties

Date Name of Business & Location

Title

Description of Job Duties

Computer Skills

Types of computer & technical skills

Other Skills

Languages

Other skills—mechanical, mathematical, etc.

Other training—business skills, accounting, etc.

Other relevant jobs, projects, etc. not included above

Sources

Locker, Kitty and Stephen Kyo Kaczmarek. Business Communication: Building Critical Skills.

2nd ed. McGraw Hill. 2003.

Purdue Online Writing Lab. Purdue University. 2015. Web. 8 October 2015.

The Tutoring and Learning Center. Sinclair Community College. 2015. Web. 8 October 2015.

The Writing Center. The University of Wisconsin. 29 August 2014. Web. 8 October 2015.