Home » Cover Letters and Thank You Letters » Letter Writing Styles
Sidestepping some common errors in word usage
Research is key to writing a good letter. The more you know about an employer's goals, problems, and culture, the better you can address his concerns in your letter.
Commas
Commas should separate elements of a date. However, no comma is needed when just the month and year are stated The following examples demonstrate this rule:
- I am available starting on Wednesday, June 23, 1999.
- During June 1999, I oversaw the opening of four new stores.
Insert a comma between a person's name and an abbreviation that follows his name, except when the abbreviation is Jr. or Sr.:
Maria Twang, M.D.
George Grossman Sr.
Place a comma after the salutation in an informal letter. If the letter is of a more formalnature, a semicolon or colon may be used instead of a comma in the salutation:
Dear Mr. Corazon,
Dear Mr. Corazon;
Dear Mr. Corazon:
Bonus Check
To be sure you haven't used too many commas in your sentences (a common writing mistake), do this simple trick: Remove all the commas from a sentence. Then replace a comma only if you need it to have correct grammar or to clarify the meaning of the sentence.
Numbers
Don't use an apostrophe to indicate the plural form of a number. The following example shows the correct method:
The job market had some lows in the 1990s.
Bonus Check
Capitalizing a job title in the text of your letter is optional. If you want to give it importance or emphasis, capitalize it. If you capitalize one title, you must capitalize all other titles in your version When referring to the official name of a department, the name should be capitalized. For example, "I sent my resume to the Human Resources department." Don't capitalize the name if you're referring to it as a function. For example,"I've worked in human resources for 10 years."
Spell out numbers from 1 to 10. Use numerals for numbers 10 and greater. The number 10 may be either spelled or numerated: Our department oversees the work of eight engineers and five technical writers. When all 13 employees are in high gear, things cook!
If two or more numbers appear within a sentence, their written form should be consistent (either spelled out or numerated):
- We hired 12 waiters and 3 chefs.
- We hired twelve waiters and three chefs.
You can state large amounts of money in all numbers, all words, or a combination of numbers and words or numbers and letters. All of the following examples are correct:
- $50,000,000 (insert commas in large numbers to make the quantity easy to identify quickly)
- fifty million dollars
- $50 million
- $50M
Job-Hunt Hint
For clarity when referring to a range of figures, repeat the word thousand, million, or whatever increment you're speaking of each time you mention a number. For example, write, "20 million to 40 million," not "20 to 40 million."
Career Casualty
Avoid short, choppy writing (short consecutive sentences) in your letter. In some cases, you can combine two shorties with a semicolon to create one comprehensive sentence.
A Few Good Words
Among the many frequently confused words, I've selected the ones most commonly misused in job-search letters. The following information can keep you out of trouble when it comes to using these tricky words:
- Anxious and eager. Use anxious to mean "fearful or concerned." Use eager to mean "desirous or willing." For example, I'm eager to work for this company, but I'm anxious about the repercussions of quitting my current job.
- Assure, ensure, and insure. Assure means "to with someone confidence." Ensure means "to make certain." Insure means "to protect against loss." Here are some examples:
I assure you that I will be there Monday morning.
I have taken every measure to ensure that the sale will go through.
I will insure the house for every cent it's worth.
- Its and it's. Its is the possessive form of it. It's is a contraction that means it is. The difference between the two is shown in the following examples: Please place the resume back in its file. It's been a long time since I updated my resume.
- Who and Whom. Who is never used as the object of a preposition. Whom is always the object of a preposition. Here are some examples:
Who is the person in charge?
My interview is with whom?
To find the answer to other sticky-word questions, consult a dictionary. Then you can besure to write the right word in the right place.