Military Writing Handout

Military Writing HandoutTable of Contents

Sample Letter 2

Sample Memo 4

Message Drafter Guide 6

Sample Texts 11

Capitalization 12

Numbering 17

1/21 Military Writing Handout Updated: 9 Jan 03

PROTECTED A

Canadian Forces School ofAdministration and LogisticsPO Box 1000 Stn MainBorden ON L0M 1C0

1000-1 (Position of Drafter)

25 December 2001

Commanding OfficerCanadian Forces Base HalifaxPO Box 99000 Stn ForcesHalifax NS B3K 5X5

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT CLERKQUALIFICATION LEVEL THREEA11 222 333 CORPORAL JOHNSON JL

References: A. NDHQ OTTAWA D MIL C 234 241901Z FEB 01B. CFB Halifax 5600-1 (Adm O) 5 June 2001(enclosed)C. CFB Halifax 5600-1 (CC) 6 Jul 01

1. A letter is a common form of correspondence within the Department of National Defence (DND). The tone is formal and can cover topics ranging from business and operations to congratulatory and welcome greetings. Abbreviations will not be used and the numbers one to nine will be written out. Two spaces proceed each period (.) and colon (:). All other punctuation shall be separated by one space.

2. The following formatting rules apply to a letter:

a. the document is left justified;

b. a one inch margin is set for letters without letterhead, and a one and a half inch margin for those with letterhead; and

c. if a letter contains a service number the designation PROTECTED A will appear one inch from the top and bottom of the page. It is not necessary to number a single page, however if you have more than one page they must be numbered.

3. All DND correspondence shall follow a logical sequence including an introduction, development of the subject matter and a conclusion. The text should be accurate, brief in description and clear in direction. All information included in a piece

1/2

PROTECTED A


Date in Full

For single addressees, the full address and position (never name) is identified. For multiple addressees, use a Distribution List.

The subject line shall not extend past the centre of the page and only the bottom line is underlined.

Use a header/footer to ensure page numbering and security markings are located on each page.

One inch margin

PROTECTED A

of correspondence should be relevant to the subject matter identifying who, what, where and when and why. Annexes and appendices are an excellent way to include large amounts of organized information that is pertinent to the subject of the document. Lastly, the document shall be free of spelling and typographical errors.

D.A. BossLieutenant-ColonelCommandant(705)555-2378

Enclosures: 1

2/2

PROTECTED A


Signed

A minimum of two lines must be carried over to the second page. A signature block shall not appear alone on a page.

Full signature block

Five clear spaces. Type on sixth line.

PROTECTED A

Memorandum

1000-1 (Posn of Drafter)

6 Nov 01

Distr List

SAMPLE MEMO FOR RMS QL3A11 222 333 CPL JOHNSON JL

Refs: A. NDHQ OTTAWA D MIL C 234 241901Z FEB 01B. CFB Halifax 5600-1 (Adm O) 6 June 2001C. CFB Halifax 5600-1 (CC) 6 Jul 01

1. A memorandum is a common form of correspondence within an originators establishment/unit. The tone is business like and to the point. Numbers used in the text from one to nine will be written out. Two spaces fol the colon (:) and a period (.), all other punctuation shall be separated by one space.

2. The fol formatting rules apply to a memo:

a. the document is left justified;

b. all margins are set at one inch from the top, bottom, and one inch on the sides; and

c. if the memo contains a SN the designation PROTECTED A will appear one inch from the top and bottom of the page. It is not necessary to number a single page, however if you have more than one page they must be numbered.

3. The full use of official abbreviations and acronyms is required. Keep ranks and names/dates together on the same line of text.

D.A. BossLColCmdt2378

Distr List (page 2)

1/2

PROTECTED A


Signed

No "0" prior to single digit date Month and year abbreviated.

Last line of the subject shall be underlined The subject should not extend past the middle of the page.

Refers to a Message

Refers to a letterRefers to a memo

Five clear spacesType on sixth line

Abbreviated rank and title

Only used if there is more than one addressee.If only one addressee you must address the memo to a position i.e. CO

If more than one page it must be numbered numbered if more than one page

PROTECTED A

Distr List

Action

ITMIS Supr and Ops SgtSp Tm NCOMPSS Rcds

Info

G3 MASM

2/2

PROTECTED A


Addressed to a position not personally addressed. Abbreviated posn titles and headings (Distr & Info).

DND MESSAGE DRAFTER EXAMPLE


Time Objectives

(Next Day)(Six Hours)

(Sixty Minutes)(Ten Minutes)

ADDRESSES

Appointments or office designators shall be separated from the message address by two oblique strokes// and followed by two oblique strokes//

XO is the office designator

From the address manual

Day/Zulu Time (Ontario)EDT + 4 hoursEST + 5 hours

Shilo +5/+6Victoria +7/+8

INTERNAL DISTRIBUTION


Internal distribution to sections within the originators unit would be identified in this section. An alternate method is to include them in the “To” tab and mark them as ZEN.

TEXT

-Use Abbreviations-Punctuation should not be used unless essential-No period at the end of a sentence-A space is left instead of an apostrophe-One space is left after all punctuation-When possible numbers should be written as digits.

UNCLAS 5000-1 (CFFM)

01 02 080948Z OCT 02 RR RR UUUU UUUU CFFM 034

NDHQ OTTAWA//CFFM//

HMCS ATHABASKAN//XO//

AIG 1704

UNCLAS CFFM 034

SIC WAH

BILINGUAL MESSAGE/MESSAGE BILINGUE

SUBJ: RETIREMENT CPO1 JOE KMYTA SMM CD FIRE FTR 651

1. AFTER OVER 34 YEARS OF DEDICATED SERVICE WITH THE RCN AND THE CF

CPO1 JOE KMYTA CFFM 3-2 MOC 651 TRADE ADVISOR WILL BEGIN HIS

RETIREMENT LEAVE ON 15 NOV 02

2. A LUNCHEON IN JOE'S HONOUR WILL BE HELD 13 NOV 02 AT PATTY

BOLAND'S IRISH CARVERY AND PUB (ABBEY ROOM) IN OTTAWA 101 CLARENCE ST.

THOSE WISHING TO SEND MESSAGES OF WELL WISHES AND ANECDOTES ARE

INVITED TO SEND THEM TO CFFM 3 MAJ YVON FLEURANT BY E-MAIL

FLEURANT.JY AT FORCES.CA OR FAX 613-996-1753 NLT 8 NOV 02

END OF ENGLISH TEXT/TEXTE FRANCAIS SUIT

OBJET: RETRAITE DU PREMIER MAITRE DE 1ERE CLASSE JOE KMYTA MSS DC

POMPIER 651

1. APRES PLUS DE 34 ANNEES DE LOYAUX SERVICES AU SEIN DE LA MRC ET LES FC

LE PREMIER MANTRE DE 1RE CLASSE JOE KMYTA DSIFC 3-2 AVISEUR DU


This is a message printed from the message drafter prior to release from the message centre. It must be signed by the releasing officer.

UNCLAS 5000-1 (CFFM)

02 UUUU CFFM 034

METIER 651 DIBUTERA SON CONGE DE RETRAITE LE 15 NOV 02

2. IL Y AURA UN DINER EN L HONNEUR DE JOE LE 13 NOV 02 AU

PATTY BOLAND S IRISH CARVERY AND PUB (PIHCE ABBEY) 101 RUE CLARENCE A

OTTAWA. CEUX ET CELLES QUI DESIRE FAIRE PARVENIR UN MESSAGE DE

FELICITATION OU CERTAINES ANECDOTES SONT PRIES DE LES ENVOYER AU

BUREAU DU DSIFC 3 LE MAJOR YVON FLEURANT PAR COURRIEL

FLEURANT.JY A COMMERCIAL FORCES.CA OU PAR TELECOPIEUR AU 613 996-1753

AVANT LE 8 NOV 02

VCDSADM(MAT)CFSU(O)

S.T. UDENT, CPL, CFFM CLK, 1111

H.O.T. FIRE, CAPT, CO CFFM, 2222


Signed

RAAUZYUW RCCLHAV6020 2811632-UUUU--RCEOCEA RCEOOQA RCEQCFA RCEQPSA.ZNR UUUUU ZOCRUETITF T CFIOGHQ DET FORT GEORGE G MEADE MDR 080948Z OCT 02FM NDHQ OTTAWA//CFFM//TO HMCS ATHABASKAN//XO//AIG 1704BTUNCLAS CFFM 034SIC WAHBILINGUAL MESSAGE/MESSAGE BILINGUSUBJ: RETIREMENT CPO1 JOE KMYTA SMM CD FIRE FTR 6511. AFTER OVER 34 YEARS OF DEDICATED SERVICE WITH THE RCN AND THE CFCPO1 JOE KMYTA CFFM 3-2 MOC 651 TRADE ADVISOR WILL BEGIN HISRETIREMENT LEAVE ON 15 NOV 20022. A LUNCHEON IN JOE'S HONOUR WILL BE HELD 13 NOV 02 AT PATTYBOLAND'S IRISH CARVERY AND PUB (ABBEY ROOM) IN OTTAWA 101 CLARENCE ST.THOSE WISHING TO SEND MESSAGES OF WELL WISHES AND ANECDOTES AREINVITED TO SEND THEM TO CFFM 3 MAJ YVON FLEURANT BY E-MAILFLEURANT.JY AT FORCES.CA OR FAX 613-996-1753 NLT 8 NOV 02END OF ENGLISH TEXT/TEXTE FRANCAIS SUITOBJET: RETRAITE DU PREMIER MAITRE DE 1ERE CLASSE JOE KMYTA MSS DCPOMPIER 6511. APRES PLUS DE 34 ANNEES DE LOYAUX SERVICES AU SEIN DE LA MRC ET LES FCLE PREMIER MANTRE DE 1RE CLASSE JOE KMYTA DSIFC 3-2 AVISEUR DUMETIER 651 DIBUTERA SON CONGE DE RETRAITE LE 15 NOV 022. IL Y AURA UN DINER EN L HONNEUR DE JOE LE 13 NOV 02 AUPATTY BOLAND S IRISH CARVERY AND PUB (PIHCE ABBEY) 101 RUE CLARENCE AOTTAWA. CEUX ET CELLES QUI DESIRE FAIRE PARVENIR UN MESSAGE DEFELICITATION OU CERTAINES ANECDOTES SONT PRIES DE LES ENVOYER AUBUREAU DU DSIFC 3 LE MAJOR YVON FLEURANT PAR COURRIELFLEURANT.JY A COMMERCIAL FORCES.CA OU PAR TELECOPIEUR AU 613 996-1753 AVANT LE 8 NOV 02BT#6020BAU554 DELIVERED 2811705 804511

ALTERNATIVE DELIVERY FOR RI RCEQCFA


This is an example of a message that has been released and received

by a unit.

Sample Texts

Introductory Statements:

“In accordance with reference…” “As requested/stated/identified at reference…” “It has come to the attention of…” “On behalf of all the personnel…” “Subject member has requested…”

Referring to Subject:

“You are invited to attend the subject event.” “Request approved for the subject member.”

Invitation/Request Attendance

“You are cordially invited to attend…” “Your presence is requested …” “This memo/letter serves to request your attendance…” “It would be greatly appreciated of you to deliver a presentation on…”

Commencing sub-paragraphs

“This request is made for the following reasons:” “Equipment required is as follows:” “The following topics will be discussed:”

Closing Statements

“Thank you in advance for your assistance in this matter.” “Should you require further assistance/information, please contact…” “For your information/approval, Sir/Ma’am.” “This unit supports the member’s request.”


CapitalizationGeneral Information

Capital letters have three basic uses:

to give emphasis, as in official titles and initial words;

to distinguish proper nouns and adjectives from common ones; and

to highlight words in headings and captions.

The term capitalize will be used extensively. When that term is used, it is referring to the initial

capitalization (first letter) of the word, otherwise the term, fully capitalize will be used to indicate that the

word is completely capitalized.

Initial Words

Capitalize the first word of a sentence or sentence equivalent

There are no other commitments.

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation that is itself a complete sentence

The candidates said, "We are in favour of a free vote on the death penalty."

Do not use a capital if the quotation is merely a sentence fragment or if it is worked into the

structure of the sentence

The candidates said that they were "in favour of a free vote on the death penalty."

The personal pronoun I is always capitalized in English

Personal Names

Capitalize proper names and titles that accompany or replace them.

Cornelius Breckenridge

Mona Couture

Peter the Great

the Sun King

Words Derived From Proper Nouns

Capitalize an adjective derived from a proper noun or composed of a proper name.

Canadian whiskey

Digby chicken

When the association is remote there is no need to capitalize

manila envelope

Verbs that are derived from proper nouns are capitalized unless their association is remote

Anglicize

italicize

Note: It is important to check proper noun derivatives carefully. Usage in this regard is not

standardized.


Governments and Government Bodies

Capitalize the titles of governments and government departments and agencies

the Government of Canada (the Government)

the House of Commons (the House)

the Parliament of Canada (Parliament)

Note: Both the legal title and the applied title of a federal department are capitalized.

When the short forms are used in a non-specific sense they are normally written in lower case

We have formed a committee to study the matter.

Our section held its monthly meeting yesterday.

Institutions and Official Documents

Capitalize the official names of institutions and official documents following the same rules as in

Governments and Government Bodies.

the University of Manitoba

the Canadian Medical Association

members of the Liberal Party

the liberal arts

the White Paper on Taxation

Titles of Office or Rank

Capitalize civil, military, religious and professional titles and titles of nobility when they precede a

personal name:

Lord Carrington

General Theriault

Cardinal Carter

Capitalize all titles following and placed in apposition to a personal name, except those denoting

professions:

Clare Smith, Director of Public Affairs

Jane Tanaka, professor of physics

Do not capitalize them when they are in the plural:

the lieutenant-governors of Quebec and Ontario

Capitalize a title referring to a specific person and used as a substitute for the person's name and

as a short form of the full title:

They discussed the matter with the Colonel.

Titles are lower-cased when modified by a possessive or other type of adjective:

They discussed it with their colonel.

They discussed it with the Canadian prime minister.

Languages and People

Capitalize nouns and adjectives denoting race, tribe nationality and language:

Cree Indian

Francophone Anglophone French

Note: The terms native people(s) and aboriginal people(s) are lower-cased.

School Subjects, Courses and Degrees


The names of languages are always capitalized. Do not capitalize the names of other disciplines

when used in a general sense. When used to refer to school subjects or the names of particular courses,

they should be capitalized:

She is interested in history.

She passed with a "B" in History this term.

Do not capitalize the name of a degree in general references, but do capitalize it when it follows a

person's name and when its title is stated in full:

Janet is earning her master's degree.

Ellen Compton, Doctor of Philosophy

He holds a Master of Arts degree from McGill University.

Military Terms

Capitalize the names of military bases, forces and units of all sizes and medals and exercises:

the Canadian Forces

Canadian Forces Base Borden the Victoria Cross

Note: In Canadian Forces writing the names of exercises are written in full capitals:

EXERCISE RAPIER THRUST

Ships and Aircraft, etc

Capitalize the names and types of aircraft, cars and other modes of transportation:

a Boeing 747

the Bricklin (a car) Mariner IV

Note: In Canadian Forces writing the names of vessels are written in full capitals:

HMCS HALIFAX

HMCS DONNACONA

Time References

Capitalize the names of months, days, holidays and historical periods:

Wednesday October

Thanksgiving Day the Second World War

Passover the Ice Age

Do not capitalize the names of the seasons, centuries or decades unless they are personified or

are part of special names:

spring

winter

the twentieth century

the Roaring Twenties (name of an era)

Religious Denominations

Capitalize the names of religious denominations as well as adjectives and verbs derived from

them that relate to religion:

Anglican

Roman Catholic

Christianize


Geographical Terms

Capitalize the names of countries, regions, cities and other official area designations:

Canada

the Prairies

the Atlantic provinces

Generic terms such as city, county, province are lower-cased when they precede the proper name

or stand alone unless they are used in the corporate sense:

the city of Montreal

the county of Simcoe

the province of British Columbia

Province of Ontario bonds

Do not capitalize generic terms used in the plural:

lakes Huron and Ontario

Do not capitalize the names of compass points or similar descriptive terms:

northern New Brunswick

west of Saskatchewan

Buildings, Monuments and Public Places

Capitalize the official names of specific buildings, monuments, parks, etc:

the O'Keefe Centre

the Toronto Public Library

the Vancouver International Airport but not the Vancouver airport

Metric Units

When writing the names of metric units, the only capitalized word is Celsius. When using

symbols, capitalize all those based on proper nouns and the letter L for litre:

30 m (metres)

475 g (grams)

12 V (volts)

30 L (litres)

Capitalize the symbols for the prefixes from mega to exa:

mg (milligram)

Mg (megagram)

Books and Articles

Titles of books, articles, periodicals, etc have all words capitalized except articles, conjunctions

and prepositions:

Red Storm Rising (book)

Under the Volcano (book)

How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying (play)

The Definite Article

Capitalize the when it is part of a corporate name:


The Globe and Mail

The Salutation and Complimentary Close

Use capitals for the first word and all nouns in the salutation of a letter but only for the first word

in a close:

My dear Sir

Dear Madam

Yours truly

Very sincerely yours

Parts of a Book or Document

Capitalize certain common nouns in the singular when they are used in text references with

numbers and letters. A letter following such a term is also capitalized:

Appendix B

Volume 3

Chapter 14

Minor subdivisions such as page, note, line and paragraph are written in lower case:

See page 6, line 48

Single Letters Used as Words

Capitalize a single letter used as a word, whether hyphenated or not:

T-shirt

vitamin A

X-ray

H-bomb

Acronyms and Initialisms

An acronym is a pronounceable word formed from the first letter or letters of a series of other

words:

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

CFSAL (Canadian Forces School of Administration and Logistics)

An initialism is formed from the initial letters only of a series of words and may not be

pronounceable as a word:

YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association)

TGIF (thank God it's Friday)

Do not use periods or spacing between the letters of an acronym or an initialism.

Use upper-case letters for acronyms or initialism in their entirety, even if some of the component

words are not normally capitalized:

FORTRAN (formula translation)

NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence)

Exceptions happen when organizations concerned prefer lower-case:

Stelco (Steel Company of Canada Ltd)

Alcoa (Aluminum Company of America)


Computer Languages

The acronyms for computer languages should be fully capitalized:

BASIC COBOL

NumberingGeneral Information

Numerical information should be conveyed in such a way as to be comprehended

quickly, easily and without ambiguity.

Generally, one-digit numbers are written out:

zero to nine (0 - 9)

Numbers with two or more digits are to be expressed in figures:

10

649

Ordinals should be treated in the same way as cardinal numbers:

seven and seventh

101 and 101st

The terms cardinal and ordinal numbers will be used. Cardinal numbers refer to the fundamental

form of numbers (one, two, three, etc) whereas ordinal numbers define the position or the order (first,

second, third, etc).

Consistency

Numbers modifying the same items should be treated alike within a given passage. If figures are

used for any, they should be used for all of the numbers:

Of the 318 sections established on these five bases over the past eight years, only 6 are without

the use of computers.

the 3rd, 6th and 127th items in the series

Initial Numbers

Spell out a number - or the word number - when it occurs at the beginning of a sentence. This

also includes the related numbers that closely follow it:

Three hundred persons were expected, but only twenty-three showed up.

Number 16 was the last in the series; there was no number 17.

Sixteen RMS Clks were tasked for the exercise and six remained at the unit.

Fractions

Simple fractions are spelled out:

one-half inch or half an inch

a quarter of an inch or one-quarter inch

three quarters of an inch or three-quarters inch (not inches)

Fractions that may be confusing when spelled out, are better expressed in figures:

1/25 not 1/25th

3/100 not 1/100ths


A fraction expressed in figures should not be followed by of a or of an:

3/8 inch not 3/8 of an inch

Decimal Fractions

Normally, no number should begin or end with a decimal point:

$0.64 not $.64

11 or 11.0 not 11.

Formerly, groups of three figures were separated from one another by a comma. To prevent the

comma from being mistaken for the decimal marker and to comply with the Metric Commission and

International Standard, it is recommended that this practice be abandoned except in financial documents.

It is currently the policy of the Government of Canada to continue to use the comma to separate triads of

numbers on payment and financial documents.

A space should be used instead of a comma on both sides of the decimal point after each group of

three:

Whole Numbers

5005 or 5 005

50 005

500 005 000

Decimals

5.0005 or 5.000 5

5.000 05

5.000 005 050

Quantities and Measures

When quantities or measures consist of two or more elements or when a decimal marker is

involved, write them in figures. Otherwise, follow the rule of writing the number out if it is less than 10:

three miles

5.6 km

20/20 vision

two metres tall

8 1/2 by 11 inch paper or 8 1/2 x 11 inch paper

Both the figure and the unit must be written in full or both must be abbreviated:

two metres or 2 m not 2 metres or two m

Percent is usually written out, except when used adjectivally:

15 percent

a 15% bond (no space between the numeral and %)

Money

Sums of money are usually expressed in figures, except when they refer to round or indefinite

amounts:

a twenty dollar bill

a few thousand dollars $5.98 a pair

The following forms should be used:


654 or $0.65 or 65 cents not $.65 or .654

$100 not $100. or $100.00 (when standing alone)

five dollars or $5 not 5 dollars

Time of Day

The Canadian Forces uses the 24-hour system for representing the time of day. The hour is

represented by a two digit number ranging from 00 up to 23, the minute and second are represented by a

two digit number ranging from 00 up to 59.

0815 hours (full format)

2030 hrs (abbreviated format)

The instant of midnight should be represented as either 2400 hours, the end of one day, or 0000

hours, the beginning of the next day, according to circumstances.

Dates

For calendar dates, the common alphanumeric method remains acceptable, provided that

cardinal numbers are used:

15 March 1997 (full format)

15 Mar 97 (abbreviated format)

not 15th March 1997

the cipher (0) is not used in single digit dates 9 Jan 97

The order remains day, month, and year. Consistency is necessary, therefore when the month is

in the abbreviated format, the year must also be in the abbreviated format. The choice to use either the

abbreviated or full format will be determined by the type and formality of the piece of correspondence.

The all-numeric form of dating may only be used when the form/document being produced only

allows the space for this style of dating. The order of the date will vary depending upon the requirement

of the form/document.

21-05-99

19/11/1995

Ages

Exact age is indicated in figures even if less then 10:

John, aged 9, and brother Tom, 10, led the hike.

It is written out, however, in the case of approximate age and in formal contexts:

He's eighty if he's a day.

She was no more than seventeen at the time.

Government and Military Designations

Write out numbers of governing bodies and sessions of Parliament as ordinals:

Third Reich Thirty-second Parliament

Designations of large military units, may be written out in ordinals; otherwise use cardinal figures:

First Canadian Army

5 Combat Engineer Regiment

422 Tactical Helicopter Squadron


Names of Organizations

Ordinals modifying the names of churches and religious bodies are usually written out:

First Baptist Church

Seventh-Day Adventists

Use Arabic figures in referring to fraternal lodges and similar organizations:

Royal Canadian Legion, Stittsville Branch 618

Teamsters Union Local 91

Addresses

Street and avenue designations up to and including Tenth are usually spelled out, especially when

this helps to prevent confusion with the building number. If the street number is written in figures,

cardinal rather than ordinal numbers are preferred:

9511 Tenth Avenue 96 Avenue 101 Street

In the abbreviated form, apartment numbers are written before the building number and are

often followed by a dash:

107-6807 92 Avenue North

Ordinal figures are normally used to identify floors of a building:

11th floor, L'Esplanade Laurier

Plurals

Plurals of figures are normally formed by adding an s:

the 1960s

five 55s

In cases where this might cause misreading, an apostrophe and s should be added to the figure:

6's and 7's

Do not pluralize metric unit symbols:

5 kg not 5 kgs

Roman Numerals

Roman numerals are becoming extremely rare, but they still have the following uses:

- names of rulers, and the names of ships and space vehicles:

Bluenose II

Mariner IV

- numbers of volumes, chapters, tables and other divisions of a book:

Volume XII

Appendix III

- years, centuries and recurring events of major importance:

XXI Century

XXIV Olympiad

IMPORTANT NOTE:


The importance of consistency and the setting of a common standard can never be over

emphasized. The quality of work and degree of professionalism is reflected in every piece of

correspondence that is produced. It is therefore essential to ensure that you familiarize yourself with

these and all other aspects of correct writing skills to ensure that not only you but your unit is always

represented correctly.
