Detailed Explanation of Direct and Indirect Expression Skills in English Writing

So now you know that to decide how formal you should be, you should ask the question, who am I writing to? But what about directness? Directness means saying something very clearly. Well, to decide how direct you need to be, you ask the question, what am I writing about? Let's take a look at some situations. If we're making a request and we think the answer will be yes, we can be direct. If we're making a request and we don't know what the answer will be, we should be indirect. For example, if I asked to borrow your stapler, would I be direct or indirect? That's right, I'd be direct. I'd be very surprised if you said that I couldn't borrow your stapler.

If we're making a request and it's something routine, normal, or not special, we can be direct. If we're making a request and it's something special or non-routine, we should be indirect. For example, if I request a catalog from a mail order clothing company, would I be direct or indirect? That's right, I would be direct. This is something routine. If we're making a suggestion and we think it will be acceptable, we can be direct. If we're making a suggestion and we don't know if it will be acceptable, we should be indirect. For example, if I suggest that we move our weekly meeting to 6 p.m. on Friday, would I be direct or indirect? That's right, I would be indirect. I don't know if my suggestion would be acceptable, actually. I'm pretty sure most people wouldn't be very happy with my suggestion.

If we're giving a positive opinion, we can be direct. If we're giving a negative opinion, we should be indirect. For example, if I write that the length of your report is too short, would I be direct? Or indirect? It would be better to be indirect in this particular case. If we're answering a request or a suggestion positively, we can be direct. If we're answering a request or suggestion negatively, we should be indirect. For example, if I say that I can meet you for coffee tomorrow, would I be direct or indirect? In this case, I would be direct. If I couldn't make it, I would be indirect. If we're giving good news, we can be direct. If we're giving bad news, we should be indirect. For example, if I'm writing that there will be no salary increase this year, would I be direct or indirect? Hopefully, I would be indirect in this situation.

Great, so we've looked at the question, what am I writing about to help us decide how direct we should be? But again, we need to know how we can change the language to be direct or indirect. Instead of changing the vocabulary, we can change the structure or grammar to make what we write indirect. Let's take a look at some examples. If you look at the second example, you can see that it's a question. In fact, it's a yes-no question. Using a yes-no question for something like a request is one of the easiest ways to make it more indirect.

Now let's look at another example. What's the difference between the first sentence and the second? I wonder if you can attend the meeting. I was wondering if you could attend the meeting. The second one uses the past forms was wondering and could instead of wonder and can. When we're making requests and offers or using verbs like wonder or think, using past forms can make something sound more indirect, but we're still talking about the present time. And in this example, using the passive, I wasn't told, and avoiding you makes it more indirect. In this example, why does the second example sound more indirect? Using might and softeners like a little, a bit, or slightly, can help avoid being too direct. Sometimes, by making the sentence longer, we can sound more indirect. Take a look at this example. Good. So let's review the ways we can be indirect. Use yes-no questions. Use past forms could, would, wondered or was wondering, thought, in requests or invitations. Use passives and avoid you. Use softeners like a little or a bit and make the sentence longer.