Notes on informal letters

Informal letters

 

Beginnings
In an informal letter in may be appropriate to mention a letter which you have recently received or by making general friendly comments.

Useful language

Many thanks for your letter…

It was lovely / great to hear from you recently…
Thanks a lot for the letter
Sorry to hear about your…
Sorry I haven’t written for so long
I’m really sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to you.
It’s ages since I last heard from you. What have you been up to?
I was glad to hear that…
I hope you and your family are well
It was wonderful to hear your latest news.

 

Invitation

Say what the event is and explain the details of date, time and place clearly. You may need to add other details such as who else is coming, what you would like your friend to bring, whether they can bring a partner or friend, when you need a reply

 

Persuading

You’d get so much out of it

It’d be a wonderful opportunity for you to
Just think of (all the people you’d meet)
Just imagine how it would(improve your cv), not to mention (the money you could earn).
 

Advising

Whatever you do, make sure you…

It’s not worth/There’s no point + gerund
I would(n’t) … if I were you
You’d be much better off + gerund
 

Adding extra points

Besides

Also
One thing / another (was that)…
Apart from this / that…
 

Ending the letter

Write back soon and let me know how it goes

Looking forward to hearing from you again
Can’t wait to see you again
Give my love / regards to…
 

Signing off

Friends

All the best
Best wishes
Bye for now

Close friends or relatives

Lots of love

All my love
Love