Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-27

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A magazine wants to include contributions from its readers for an article called 'The book that influenced me most'.

Write a letter to the editor of the magazine about the book that influenced you most. In your letter

- describe what this book was about
- explain how this book influenced you
- say whether this book would be likely to influence other people

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

Being a novelist, I am always keen to read varieties of books available in market. I would like to contribute to an article that is going to be published by your magazine, and I am more than happy to share my experiences from my favourite book.

"The Spirit" written by European novelist, is so close to my heart. This book is all about the mental energy that you are surrounded by, and the effects of that in your own life. Even in a stressful condition, it is teaching the way of living with joy and pleasure.

There are a plethora of examples of people's lives are described in this inspirational book. Foremost among them, my favourite one was special needs patient. The patient was over 45% paralysed, and he had started to work on mental energy enhancement and a few mental exercises. At the end of 3 years, he was able to walk by himself without any support, and his doctor's jaw was dropped.

I believe that, this book can inspire a huge amount of people for sure, by teaching the life experiences.

Hopefully you will enjoy my feedback from this book and will be helpful in your article edition.

Best regards,

Dhara Patel

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You described the book, explained its influence, and provided a clear opinion on its potential to influence others. The ideas are relevant and well-developed, particularly the example of the patient, which adds depth to your explanation of the book's impact. The tone is appropriate for a magazine contribution, and the letter format is maintained throughout. To reach a higher band, ensure that all claims are fully supported; for instance, the mention of '45% paralysed' is a specific detail that helps, but ensure the connection between the book's 'mental energy' and the physical recovery is explained with slightly more clarity to fully convince the reader.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph focuses on a distinct aspect of the task, which helps the reader follow your argument. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'Foremost among them' and 'At the end of 3 years', to link ideas. However, the flow between sentences could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words. Some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the paragraphing is functional but could be more sophisticated. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the structure supports the purpose of the letter effectively.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'plethora', 'inspirational', and 'enhancement' appropriately. There are some minor issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'varieties of books available in market' (should be 'the market') and 'special needs patient' (which is slightly imprecise in this context). While you attempt to use less common vocabulary, some phrasing feels slightly unnatural. To improve, focus on more precise collocations and ensure that articles (a/the) are used correctly with nouns to enhance the professional tone of your writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While many sentences are clear, there are recurring grammatical errors that slightly affect the flow. For example, 'There are a plethora of examples of people's lives are described' contains a redundant verb structure. Additionally, there are minor errors with articles and prepositions, such as 'in stressful condition' (should be 'in a stressful condition') and 'feedback from this book' (should be 'feedback on this book'). Despite these errors, the meaning is always clear, and the mistakes do not impede communication. Increasing the variety of complex sentence forms while focusing on accuracy will help you reach a higher band.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.