Transactional writing

Transactional writing does a job in real life: it records, informs, invites or asks for something. In CAPS you write diary entries, dialogues, notices, invitations, CVs, reports, agendas and minutes. Each one has its own layout, so learn the format as well as the words.

Key facts

  • A diary entry is personal: the date or ⟦Dear Diary⟧, the first person, the past tense for what happened and your feelings about it.
  • A dialogue is set out like a play script: the speaker's name on the left, a colon, then the words, with no speech marks: ⟦Sipho: Are you coming to the match?⟧ Directions go in brackets.
  • A notice is short and clear: a heading, the key facts (what, when, where) and who it is from. An invitation gives the occasion, the date, the time, the venue and how to reply (RSVP).
  • A CV (curriculum vitae) lists your personal and contact details, education, skills, experience and references under clear headings.
  • A formal report has a title and headings such as introduction, findings and recommendations. An agenda lists what a meeting will discuss; the minutes record who came and what was decided.

Worked examples

Example 1

What kind of text is this? ⟦You are invited to Lerato's 13th birthday party! Saturday 3 June, 2 p.m., 12 Oak Street. Please reply by 25 May.⟧

  1. It names the occasion, the date, the time and the place.
  2. It asks the guest to reply, so it is an invitation.

Answer: an invitation

Example 2

Set this out as a dialogue: ⟦"Have you finished your homework?" asked Mum.⟧

  1. Write the speaker's name on the left, then a colon.
  2. Write the words without speech marks and without ⟦asked⟧.

Answer: ⟦Mum: Have you finished your homework?⟧

Example 3

Which goes in a CV: your skills or the dress code?

  1. A CV tells an employer what you can do.
  2. The dress code belongs in an invitation.

Answer: your skills