初中英語作文寫作指導：書信的格式

　　書信(Letter)一般可分為事務信件或公函(Business Letter or Offical Correspondence)以及私人信件(Private Letter)兩大類。

　　1.寫作要求：

　　一般包括以下幾個要點：

　　1) 收信人的姓名和地址;

　　2) 寄信人的姓名及其與收信人的關系;

　　3) 寄信人的地址(有時可以省略);

　　4) 寫信的時間;

　　5) 信的內容。

　　1. 書信的格式

　　1) 信頭(Heading);

　　2) 稱呼(Salutation);

　　3) 正文(Body of the letter);

　　4) 結束語(Complimentary close);

　　5) 簽名(signature)。

　　2. 書信的種類

　　邀請信有正式和非正式之分，也有介于兩者之間者。正式邀請信一般屬于公函類，私人邀請信一般屬于非正式文體。邀請朋友、熟人參加某一聚會時，再詞句上不一定多加斟酌，用詞太正規倒顯得關系不密切。但是如果與被邀請人不太熟悉的話，最好用正式文體。如雖認識但并不十分了解，文體可介于兩個者之間。由此可見，私人邀請究竟用什么文體，關鍵看與被邀請人之間的親疏的程度。邀請信要明確寫出活動(是晚會、晚餐還是一般的聚會等)、活動的時間地點組織這項活動的理由，有時還應告訴對方可能出席的人，另外一般希望對方給予答復。

　　(1) 非正式邀請信，如;

　　26 Coventry St.

　　London

　　Sept. 15th, 1999.

　　Dear Jack,

　　I am going to the cinema to see the Red River Valley and I have two tickets. Would you like to come? The film starts at 7:30 p.m. Maybe we can meet at the Covent Garden Station at 7:00 p.m. and have a drink before the film starts. Please phone me at home to let me know.

　　Looking forward to seeing you.

　　Love

　　Mary

　　這封信是寫給朋友的，所以用語比較隨便，比較口語化。

　　(2) 正式邀請信，如：

　　Dear Ms. Gupta;

　　It’s our great pleasure to announce that Jan. 19th is the 3rd anniversary of the founding of our corporation. We have a small party as follows: 7:00p.m.,Jan. 19th, Room No.123, Kunlun Hotel. At this moment, we would like to express our sincere gratitude to our clients for both courtesy and support over the past three years. Please confirm if you plant to attend.

　　Yours Sincerely,

　　Lewis

　　這是一封正式邀請信，十分正規，無論從句式，還是用語都十分講究。

　　【參考范文】：

　　Dear Xiao Hong,

　　I am really glad to receive your letter. In your letter you asked me to give you some advice on how to improve your writing ability. It is not easy to give such advice. But in my opinion, you can only improve it by writing more. The more you write, the better you can write. I suggest that you keep diary every day. You can write down what you see and hear in the day in your diary. It's a good way to practice writing. Just have a try.

　　I am not sure whether my advice will be of any help to you. But don't hesitate to write to me if you have any more questions.

　　Best wishes.