Transactional Writing This type of writing deals with

Transactional Writing This type of writing deals with practical situations and communicative purposes.

Informal Letter • This is written to someone you know. • Informal register is used – you may use contractions, colloquialisms and jargon. • The tone will be conversational and informal. • Adjust register and tone according to recipient. • Always be sensible – this will be assessed for marks!

Sender’s Address Use the recipient’s first name in No commas or full 21 Maple Street the salutation UNLESS you are stops or abbreviations. Eldoraigne writing to someone older! Block form! Centurion Date in full. 0157 NO comma after the salutation 21 September 2012 Body of the Letter Dear Anita Ø This includes the intro, body xxxxxxx paragraphs & conclusion. Introductory Paragraph Ø Intro should be short. xxxxxx ü Use more than ONE Ø Body must be at least 2 Body Paragraph paragraph for the paragraphs and expands on the xxxxxx body. reason for the letter. Body Paragraph ü Leave a line open Ø Conclusion is short and rounds between all the xxxxxx off the letter. paragraphs. Conclusion Ø This is also the part you include xxxxxx in your word count. Yours sincerely No comma after Don’t leave a line open between Nathan the valediction and your name!

formal Letter Business’s Address Insert title of recipient Insert name of business Insert postal address & code 5 Fern Acres Sender’s Address 21 Oak Avenue Highveld 0157 21 September 2012 The Personnel Manager ‘ABSA Bank’ Subject line P. O. Box 1234 ü Use a one-line Pretoria summary. 0001 xxxxxxx Body of the Letter Ø This includes the intro, body paragraphs & conclusion. Ø Intro & conclusion should be short. Ø This is also the part you include in your word count. Always use ‘faithfully’ to end a formal letter Dear Sir/Madam xxxxxxx Reason for writing xxxxxx ü Underline the heading. ü Leave lines open before and after. Introductory paragraph xxxxxx Paragraphs giving further information xxxxxx Conclusion xxxxxx Yours faithfully NZeeman N Zeeman (Mrs) Sign between ending and your name

formal Letter – Do Nots N Do not address the person twice. N Never use contractions – do NOT use don’t! N Avoid any informal language – always be formal. N Write out the word and – do not use & N Do not start with “I am writing this letter to …”. N Avoid repetitive writing. N Do not end with “To conclude / In conclusion …”.

formal Letter – Guidelines ü The tone must always be polite, confident and respectful – even when complaining. ü The introduction should give a basic outline of the issue being addressed. ü The body should elaborate with more specific details. Be specific: What happened? Where and when did it happen? Who was involved? Why and how did it happen? ü In the conclusion summarise the addressed issue and state your expectations (within limits).

Formal Letter of Complaint Give all important details in the intro: ―Business name & location ―Dates ―Names of people involved Briefly describe the problem. Always be polite. Never use threats.

Formal Letter of Apology Give the important details first: ―Names of people/business involved ―Date of incident Do not “suck up” – it is disgraceful. NEVER demand anything! Do not try to bargain or bribe. Do not shift the blame – own up and apologise.

Formal Letter to the Editor Body of the Letter v Outline the issue being addressed in the introduction. v In the body paragraphs, elaborate and validate your opinion. Also suggest plausible solutions if applicable. v Summarise the main idea of the letter in the conclusion and state your future expectations. NEVER ask the editor to fix the problem or to print your letter. Be polite and respectful. Use persuasive language to sell your point of view. Business’s Address The Editor ‘Pretoria News’ P. O. Box 1234 Pretoria Subject line 0001 If you are responding to xxxxxxx an article, quote the Sir/Madam headline and add the xxxxxxx Reason for writing publication date. xxxxxx Introductory paragraph xxxxxx Paragraphs giving further information xxxxxx Conclusion xxxxxx Add a pseudonym if Yours faithfully you do not want your Concerned Citizen NZeeman name published. Nicole Zeeman 12 Blossom Road Wierda Park 0157 21 September 2012 Sender’s Address and date

Formal Letter of Application Keep it brief. You don’t need to give a lot of detail. Aim for a clear and concise explanation of your suitability for the job. Avoid inappropriate language such as slang or technical jargon. Make use of formal register. Use brief, informative sentences and short paragraphs; be confident and positive. Check your spelling, grammar, and punctuation carefully. Some employers routinely discard job applications that contain such mistakes.

Application Letter – Lay-out INTRO: Refer to the position you are applying for. Mention where you saw the job advertisement. BODY: Outline current job: focus on advertised job requirements and current skills/responsibilities If studying, focus on the relevant aspects/modules of your course. Be clear and positive about why you want the job. Outline qualities and skills you believe you can bring to the organisation. NEVER badmouth your current employer. CONCLUSION: Restate you interest in the job, the company and the challenges ahead. Thank the recruiter for taking the time to consider your application.

Newspaper Report This is a report on something newsworthy and must be unbiased and factual. Concentrate on the 5 WH: who, what, where, when, why and how. Always report in PAST tense! Use third person narrator. Make sure that the names of people and places are spelt correctly. Use formal register. Add quotes to give credibility and a personal touch, but use sparingly.

who is involved; what happened; when, where and why did it happen; how did it happen? The lead paragraph and MOST important details – 5 WH (30 words) Additional and essential information Less important information that may be cut without losing meaning. Less essential details More important information about the topic. 13

Newspaper Report 1. Headline: a short, attention-getting statement about the event (present tense). 2. Byline: who wrote the story. 3. Lead paragraph: has ALL the 5 WH in it (25 – 30 words). 4. Explanation: other facts or details the reader might want to know after reading the headline and the lead paragraph. Mention facts in order of descending importance. This section can also include direct quotes from witnesses or bystanders. 5. Additional Information: the least important that can be left out. This part can include information about a similar event.

Magazine Articles • • • Make sure the article is interesting and informative. Use a short, catchy title. Introduce the main idea with a strong first paragraph. The body is logically structured with short paragraphs. This works like an essay – title, intro, body and conclusion. Provide examples to validate your point of view. Ideas must be summarised in the conclusion – a judgement may be made if applicable. The nature of the article will determine the tone and style. Write your name at the end.

Editorial Article Ø It’s the first article in a magazine; it plays an introductory role and should make the readers want to read the articles. Ø As opposed to regular articles, an editorial is more about opinions than facts. It is meant to express a specific opinion about a current piece of news. Ø The editorial can be written to accuse, praise, explain something or to persuade an audience. Ø The editorial usually provides the issue’s theme and refers to some of the feature articles.

Review A review is a personal response that shows your overall impression of a piece of art/literature, restaurant, film or production. Write in the first person. Use appropriate adjectives and emotive language. Always provide evidence/justification for any of your opinions. Recommendations are allowed. This works like an essay – title, intro, body and conclusion. Write your name at the end.

Books Restaurants Movies Events Paintings Reviews DVDs or CDs Concerts Plays Places

Review outline Review Procedure Pointers 1. Title/Heading Suitable to subject, short & catchy 2. Introduction: Introduction an outline of the subject being evaluated. Short & crisp. State the title and author/artist of the subject. Make use of humour – if suitable. 3. Background information Give details about the subject’s history, design, features. 4. A short summary of the subject with supporting material. Outline the plot/ content/ service/ feature. Do not give away endings! 5. Crux: Crux give an overall assessment. Evaluate and offer an opinion about what is being assessed. Be honest & balanced. Support your opinions with reasons. Aim at informing & entertaining. 6. Conclusion: wrap it up. Offer a neat ending. Round off and summarise your findings.

Draw a pencil line on the left Dialogue Susan: Did you complete your homework? Skip a line between speakers Kathy: (puzzled expression) What homework? I did not know we had any! Susan: We had a dialogue to write for English, remember? Only write the speakers’ names in this space.

Dialogue Notes Write in direct speech but do NOT use inverted commas. Remember the pencil margin on the left-hand side for the speakers’ names. A colon follows the speakers’ names. Leave an open line between speakers to ensure clarity. Use brackets to provide extra cues, like how to say or do something but do NOT overuse it. All writing and grammar rules still apply as this will be assessed for marks!

Interview • This is written in dialogue format. • It follows a question-answer format. • Questions should follow each other naturally whenever possible or flow from the answers. • It must sound convincing! • The register and tone will depend on who is being interviewed. • Never forget that this will be assessed for marks therefore all grammar and spelling rules apply! apply

Obituary This is a public notice of a death, as will appear in a newspaper, usually in the form of a short, positive biography of the deceased. It must contain the 3 Ps: D Personal – be caring D Praising – always be nice D Pertinent – stick to the facts and get to the point Language and style is formal – NO abbreviations or slang. Write in the third person narrator. Please use euphemisms – passed away instead of died. Always be respectful.

Obituary • First paragraph: – Name, age, residence, cause of death and date of death of the deceased. • Second paragraph: – Date and place of birth and details of education • Further paragraphs: – Details of achievements and anecdotes about his/her life • Paragraph close to conclusion: – Details of the members of the deceased family still living • Last paragraph: – Information about the funeral

Formal Report WThis is a summary of an issue that has been investigated and must be objectively presented. WAfter info has been collected and summarised, recommendations are made and conclusions drawn. WA report is formal and brief and follows a specific format. WUsing the passive voice helps to make the register more formal. WAvoid emotional language! WWrite in the 3 rd person narrator.

All headings are underlined. No lines are left open before the end. Use 3 rd person narrator and formal register. The passive voice sounds more objective. Title of report For Attention: who reads this? Terms of reference: who requested this and what was requested? These may be Procedure: written in point or • Logical steps of investigation. paragraph form. • How was the data gathered, who was consulted and what was done with the findings? Findings: • What was the outcome from the research process? • Focus on the discovered facts. Conclusion: Present a summary of the findings in the form of a paragraph. Recommendations: • What can be done? • Written in bullet format. xxxxxx 26 March 2013 RZeeman R. Zeeman Personnel Manager Leave open a line after recommendations and write the date in full. Sign and print your name underneath. Under your name write your job title.

Remember the 4 Cs: Completeness: nothing is left out. Correctness: language and information are free of mistakes. Conciseness: report is to the point. Clarity: sentences are kept simple and clear.

Agenda and Minutes Ø An agenda is a numbered summary of the contents that will be discussed in a meeting. Ø It should be circulated a few days before the meeting to ensure that all discussion points are clear and can be amended if necessary. ü The minutes of a meeting is a formal record of all the decisions taken during the meeting. ü The purpose is to ensure that there can be no discrepancies over who attended, what was discussed and what was decided.

Suthies Mental Health Task Force 10 March 2009, 10: 00 -12: 00 Agenda 1. Welcome 2. 1 Approval of minutes, agenda, and old business 2. 2 Matters Arising 3. 1 Identification of possible learners with mental problems 3. 2 Suggestions of teachers to work with these learners 4. General 5. Next meeting and adjourn Name of meeting at the top Date and Time Include this for any matters that can be added to the minutes of the previous meeting Number all items on the agenda for easy reference This is for everything else that will crop up during the meeting

Minutes of Meeting: Suthies Mental Health Task Force 10 March 2009, 10: 00 -12: 00 1. Welcome Present: Hard Atwork, Crazy Person, Doom N. Gloom, Multe Kultural, Will Boring Apologies: Firan Brimstone, Nicen Tuff 2. 1 Approval of minutes, agenda, and old business The minutes of the previous meeting were read and signed as correct. 2. 2 Matters Arising None. 3. 1 Identification of possible learners with mental problems Crazy Person was elected to research the topic of mental problems and to gather information on mental problem indicators. 3. 2 Suggestions of teachers to work with these learners Doom N. Gloom and Nicen Tuff were nominated. 4. General Multe Kultural was appointed as Mentor. 5. Next meeting The next meeting was scheduled for 20 March 2009, 12: 00 – 14: 00