Letter  Purpose Planning  should  begin  with  a  clear  purpose. The  first  step  in  letter  preparation  is  a  clear understanding  of  the  objective(s)  of  the  letter. Identifying  the  subject  will  help  to  clarify  the purpose and furnish guidelines as to what should be  included  in,  or  omitted  from,  the  letter. It is possible for a letter to deal with more than one  subject,  but  this  is  not  advisable  in  most instances  unless  the  subjects  are  very  closely related. A reply on one subject may be prepared in hours, whereas days or weeks may elapse before an  appropriate  answer  can  be  given  on  another subject.  Therefore,  if  both  subjects  are  covered in the same letter, unnecessary delay in obtain- ing a response to one item may result. Further- more, correspondence may be addressed to more than   one   department,   officer,   or   agency,   and confusion  among  addressees  may  result  as  to which   subject   should   be   addressed   first. Therefore,  writing  several  letters  to  the  same addressee on the same day would be better than preparing one letter with multiple subject lines. Some  common  purposes  of  letters  are  listed below. .  To  request  permission  or  authorization  to act .  To  request  that  an  action  be  taken .  To  convey  information  or  instructions .  To  reply  to  letters  received While not every letter the RP drafts will fall into  one  of  these  categories,  they  will  serve  to illustrate how to plan a letter. For instance, when the purpose is to request something, the request should  be  definitely  and  clearly  stated.  Usually there  also  should  be  a  statement  as  to  why  the request  is  being  made  and  any  additional  explana- tions   or   suggestions   that   are   required   or appropriate. When a letter is written in reply to one  that  was  received,  the  receipt  is  acknowledged either  by  citing  the  letter  as  a  reference  or  by acknowledging the receipt in the body of the reply. Organizing the Letter The  order  in  which  the  various  parts  of  the letter  are  arranged  should  be  planned  with  the reader in mind. A letter of request, for instance, may begin with the request itself, followed by an explanation as to why the request is being made. Sometimes,  however,  it  may  be  clearer  to  the reader if the letter begins with a discussion of the situation and leads up to the request. A letter of reply  frequently  begins  by  acknowledging  the letter  received.  When  assembling  the  letter,  the RP  should  (1)  see  the  body  of  the  letter  as  a succession of units; (2) arrange these units in the most  satisfactory  order;  (3)  complete  each  unit before  moving  on  to  the  next;  and  (4)  maintain continuity by providing transition from one unit to  another. In  letters  of  average  length,  each  important unit may be one paragraph, although there is no rule  about  this.  For  example,  an  explanation  of various  steps  of  a  procedure  may  be  presented more effectively by devoting a paragraph to each step. Some letters, on the other hand, may be so simple that the entire letter may consist of only one paragraph. Just as each letter has a subject, it  follows  that  each  paragraph  should  cover  a  topic or subtopic. Each paragraph should be structured so that one idea leads naturally to another, and one  paragraph  leads  to  the  next.  In  the  case  of long   letters,   the   final   paragraph   may   be   a summarization  of  the  letter. Choice of Words Choosing the right words is an important step in  writing.  The  best  words  are  those  that  are precise  in  meaning,  are  suited  to  the  intended reader,  and  are  as  short,  simple,  and  direct  as possible. One mistake that writers often make is using a word that sounds or looks like the correct word. For  example,  “the chaplain was appraised of the situation.   .   .”  It probably would have been bet- ter  in  the  first  place  simply  to  have  said,  “The chaplain  was  informed  as  to  the  situation.  .  .  .” But in any event, the writer should have known that  “to  tell”  is  to  apprise,   whereas  appraise means  to  evaluate. The  writer  should  be  able  to  distinguish between  the  following  words:  affect  and  effect; eminent  and  imminent;  counsel  and  council;  adapt and  adopt;  principal  and  principle;  capitol  and capital.  These  words  may  be  perceived  as  spell- ing problems, but the writer must also be aware of  the  meaning  of  a  word  in  order  to  use  it correctly. If the meaning or spelling of any word is   not   clear,   the   writer   should   consult   the dictionary. Some   examples   of   words   that   are   fre- quently  misused  are  listed  below  with tips 3-11