Writing an Email

The task gives you a reader, a reason to write and a list of points. You need to write a message this person could read once and act on. That means covering every listed point, in an order that makes sense to the reader, in a tone that fits your relationship with them. The reader has to follow the message easily and know what you want from them. So ask yourself: can you invent believable everyday details, organize them so the reader never gets lost, and keep the same voice from greeting to sign-off?

Step by step

1. 1

   Read the reader and purpose before the points

   Ask who this person is to you: a company, a manager, a neighbour, a friend or a stranger. Decide how formal you need to be before you write anything. Tone shapes every sentence, so fixing it early saves you from rewriting later.

2. 2

   Give each listed point a concrete detail in your head

   For each point, invent a specific fact: what happened, when, where, what it cost you or exactly what you want. Keep this plan in your head. If the test allows notes, a single word per point is enough. Planning details now gives every paragraph something real to say.

3. 3

   Open by telling the reader why you are writing

   In your opening lines, make the purpose clear so the reader does not have to guess. Keep background short here. The details belong in the paragraphs that follow.

4. 4

   Give each point its own paragraph, in a logical order

   Start each paragraph with a sentence that shows which point it answers. Then support it with your planned detail. Order the points the way the reader needs them, for example situation, then effect, then request. Use linking words that match the real relationship between ideas, such as cause, contrast or sequence.

5. 5

   Close with the next step and a matching sign-off

   End by saying what you want to happen or what you will do next. Choose a sign-off that fits the relationship you decided on at the start. A clear next step tells the reader why the email matters to them.

6. 6

   Reread against the list and the counter

   Go through the listed points in your head and find the paragraph that answers each one. Check that the word counter is within the length the task asks for. Then fix long sentences joined only by commas, and replace any key word you have used again and again.

Using the time

At the start, spend a short stretch on reading and planning: the reader, the tone and a detail for each point. Spend most of your time writing the body, point by point, and glance at the word counter after each paragraph. Save the last stretch for rereading. When the clock runs out, whatever you have written is submitted, so make sure every point has at least a basic answer before you polish any single part.

What usually goes wrong

• Dropping or blurring a listed point

  It is easy to merge points into one paragraph, or to forget a point while you focus on one you find easier. Before you write your closing, go down the list in your head and name the paragraph that answers each point. If you can't find one, add a short paragraph right away.

  In your feedback: Off prompt

• Tone that drifts partway through

  An email can start politely to a landlord or manager and then slip into slang or sharp demands once the complaint begins. The opposite can happen too: an email to a friend sounds stiff and cold. Reread your opening and closing side by side. Check that both sound like the same relationship.

  In your feedback: Wrong tone

• Claims with nothing behind them

  Saying a service was poor or a plan is better, with no detail, leaves the reader unable to picture it. After each paragraph, ask whether the reader could see what happened. If not, add a specific fact such as a time, an object, a consequence or a reason.

  In your feedback: No supporting example

• Spending too many words on the first point

  If you write at length about the first point, the last one may get a rushed line or be cut off when the clock runs out. Check the counter after your first body paragraph. If it has already used a large share of the length the task asks for, tighten it and move on.

  In your feedback: Word count

Checking your own work against what is judged

Content/Coherence

Content/Coherence: Check that each paragraph has a clear main idea supported by a specific detail you invented. Check that the paragraphs follow an order the reader can follow without jumping back.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary: Look for general, all-purpose words where a precise word for the object, action or feeling would fit. Look for any key word you repeated again and again, and swap some of them for accurate alternatives.

Readability

Readability: Check that each sentence ends where its idea ends, with no long chains joined only by commas. Check that your linking words vary and actually match the relationship between the ideas. Make sure the paragraph breaks are visible.

Task Fulfillment

Task Fulfillment: Confirm that every listed point is answered, that the tone suits the stated reader, and that the purpose is clear from the opening. Confirm that your length is within the range the task asks for.

Drafted by an AI writer and passed by a separate AI editor after one rewrite, checked against our content rules: structure and approach only, no wording to reuse. How our content is made