An Interpersonal Approach To Writing Negative Messages 

Writing negative messages is one of the most difficult tasks facing business communicators. Because we usually find saying “no” harder than saying 'yes,” and because refusing a request often is interpreted by a reader as personal rejection, most writers know enough to approach the task of writing negative messages with some degree of caution. Recently I spent all of five minutes writing a note to a job applicant, telling her that she had been hired for an opening. I spent almost ten times as long composing the letter sent to the applicants who did not receive the job offer.

Salerno, Douglas. JAC (1986). Articles>Rhetoric>Writing