Public Services and Procurement Canada
Symbol of the Government of Canada

Important notice

The Canadian Style has been archived and won’t be updated before it is permanently deleted.

For the most up-to-date content, please consult Writing Tips Plus, which combines content from Writing Tips and The Canadian Style. And don’t forget to update your bookmarks!

Search Canada.ca

10.19 Body of the letter

The body of the letter contains the message. Here, more than anywhere else, the general principle of communication applies: say it clearly and succinctly, so that the reader will understand the message properly and quickly. Letters are normally single-spaced, with one blank line left between paragraphs. If a letter is very short, it may be double-spaced. When double spacing is used, the first line of each paragraph must be indented. Avoid writing paragraphs of more than ten lines. By the same token, do not divide a letter into many very short paragraphs.