Letters of reference follow a standard form and generally employ an all-seeing but distant professional voice. In other words, they are pretty dry. Years ago, after boring myself into a stupor writing the things, I decided I'd write a letter that while professional, had a voice. The sample letters that follow won each of the students a scholarship, or admission to a university, or a major award, such as a national office in an honor society. Similar letters either secured a colleague's teach