What Is Informal & Formal Essay Writing?

The tone of your writing can be as important as its content.

The difference between formal and informal essays can be recognized instinctively when reading. However, when actually writing an essay, it is rarely so easy to make the right distinctions. The main factors that go into determining whether a piece should be written formally or informally are the subject matter and the intended audience. Once the desired degree of formality is known, there are certain rules of writing that will ensure readers get the right impression from the final piece.

The Formal Facade

The convention in formal writing is to pretend there is no writer, no reader and no written piece. This means that formal essays do not use the first or second person ("I" or "you"). This also means that the essay itself should not be referred to; the writer of a formal essay should avoid "this report is about," "this essay proved," and anything similar. Informal essays may use these, but only if necessary.

Language

In informal writing, contractions may be used, but formal writing requires that they be avoided. Slang should also be avoided, unless it is part of a direct quotation. Slang is not automatically appropriate in informal writing, though. The intended audience of the piece should be taken into consideration; slang is essentially a type of jargon, and is only appropriate if the readers will all understand what is being said.

Mechanics

Sentence structure and grammar should be beyond perfect in formal writing. Every sentence needs an explicit subject and predicate; command statements have "you" as the implied subject, so they should still be avoided in formal writing. In informal writing, the adage about knowing the rules before breaking them applies; the use of sentence fragments for reader impact is permissible in informal writing, provided it is done sparingly.

Tone

While informal essays allow some shifting in the voice of the writing for dramatic effect, formal writing should be steady and even, erring on the side of boring. No matter what the topic, the writing should not suggest excitement, disgust or any other emotion. If emotions must be expressed, it should be done by use of quotes or the reactions of others.

Organization

Formal writing requires a straightforward introductory paragraph, supporting arguments and a clear conclusion. Informal essays can be less rigidly structured, following a more natural thought path, or alternating between anecdotes and analysis.

References

• "Writers INC"; Patrick Sebranek, Dave Kemper, and Verne Meyer; 2001.