In this era of digital technology, writing and receiving manually written letters is a priceless luxury. If you're looking to write a letter to someone close to you, try reading this article for easy tips! In general, most letters to relatives begin with a greeting such as, “Dear. (Dear) or Yts. (dear ones)”, followed by the name of the recipient of the letter. If you and the recipient are close, or if you and they are the same age, please include their nickname in the greeting. However, if the nature of your relationship with them is more formal, don't forget to write a greeting such as "Mother" or "Father" before the recipient's name. To simplify the process of writing the greeting, simply include a greeting such as “Family (surname of the recipient of the letter)” after writing the greeting.
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Method 1 of 2: Choosing the Right Greetings
Step 1. Begin the letter with a greeting such as “Yts
” or “Dear.”. In fact, both are the most common ways to start a letter. Then, follow the greeting with the recipient's name or their surname.
Instead of "Yts.", letters can also begin with a greeting such as "Hello."
Step 2. Include the recipient's first name or nickname for a more casual greeting
This method is appropriate if your relationship with the recipient of the letter is close enough. For example, after including a greeting such as "Yts.", write the first names or nicknames of the parents in the family, followed by the nicknames of the children in the family.
- To add a personal touch to the letter, please include the first name of each family member on the list.
- If you wish, you can also include the recipient's surname or last name after writing the last person's nickname, such as, “Yts. Sally, David and Lilly Stevens."
Step 3. Address the letter to a family as a unit by including the word “Family” before writing the recipient's surname
For example, you could write, “Dear. The Smiths," or "To the Turners." By doing so, your greeting will look shorter and more concise because it is not filled with the names of all family members.
The word "family" can actually start with a capital letter, it may or may not. However, the recipient's surname must always begin with a capital letter
Step 4. Add the words “Father” or “Mother” to write a more formal greeting
Basically, such a greeting can be included before the first name or last name of the recipient of the letter. For example, a letter may begin with a greeting such as, “Dear. Mr and Mrs Adams," or "Dear. Mrs. Kate, Mr. Robert, and Mrs. Sierra” to make the letter seem more formal and polite.
- If you're unsure of the age of the female recipient of the letter, or don't know their preferred greeting, simply use "Mother."
- Another example is, “Dear. Mrs Stern and Mr Lichtman."
Step 5. List the names of each recipient if their surnames are different
This method is used if the letter is addressed to a married couple who have different last names, even to unmarried couples or children who live in the same house but do not have the same surname. In this situation, you can include the full name of the recipient of the letter, or include the last name of each recipient with the proper greeting in front of it.
- For example, you could write, “Yts. Ross Green and Trudy Smith."
- Another example is, “Dear. Mr Thornhill and Mrs Morgan."
Step 6. List the title, title, or rank of the recipient of the letter
If one of the adults who will receive your letter is a doctor, pastor, or other respectable person, don't forget to include his title, title, or rank in the greeting. For example, if one of the recipients of the letter is a doctor, please write, “Dear. Dr. Parker” followed by the names of all his family members.
- Add title or rank if the recipient is a member of the military and/or a judge.
- Another example is, “Dear. Lieutenant Allen and family,” or “Dear. Reverend Smith, Mrs. Smith, and family."
Step 7. Put a comma after the light name, then start writing the letter
After including the family name, put a comma to close the greeting. Then, leave one to two blank lines after the greeting, and start writing your letter.
Instead of a comma, you can also use a colon (:) or em dash (–), although commas are still the most common punctuation marks to use
Method 2 of 2: Preparing Letters for Sending
Step 1. Use neat handwriting so that the post office can easily read the address you provide
It's a good idea to print the name and address of the recipient instead of writing it down manually to improve readability. If you still want to write manually, use neat handwriting using a ballpoint pen.
Step 2. Write the mailing return address on the left corner of the envelope
In fact, this is the address of the sender of the letter. Therefore, if you are the one who wrote the letter, please write your address on the left corner of the envelope. In particular, write your full name on the first line, your full address or PO box number on the second line, and your city name, province name, and postal code on the third line.
Start writing in the top corner of the envelope to make sure there's enough space available to fit all of the information
Step 3. Write the surname and address of the recipient in the center of the envelope
Since you have limited space, simply write down the surname (usually the last name) of the recipient, followed by their full address, city name, province name, and postal code.
- If the recipient doesn't have a surname, or if several family members have different last names, try writing, “The Smiths and the Walkers.”
- Include the PO box number if the recipient of the letter cannot provide a complete address.
- Examples of captions you need to write in the center of the envelope: The Joneses (first line), 1234 wikiHow Place (second line), Palo Alto, California 94301 (third line).
Step 4. Glue the stamp on the right corner of the envelope before sending the letter
Prepare the required number of stamps so that the letter can arrive at its destination smoothly, then stick the stamps in the upper right corner of the envelope tightly.
