A mail-merge template can look correct while individual letters contain a mismatched name, an empty address line or a salutation that does not fit the recipient. Review the generated records before printing the full batch.

This workflow starts with an already configured form-letter merge in desktop LibreOffice Writer. Keep the template and recipient source intact. Confirm the intended recipient list and use fictional records while developing or changing the template.

Preview individual recipients

The Mail Merge Wizard under Tools guides the document, address, salutation and layout choices. After configuration, enable View, Toolbars, Mail Merge to access the final review controls.

The toolbar lets you browse address records or enter a recipient record number to preview that letter. Inspect a normal record, one with a long name and address, and any record with optional fields missing. Check that each name remains associated with the correct address.

Use Exclude recipient only for a deliberate exclusion and keep a note of it. An unexplained reduction in the output count should be investigated rather than accepted as a harmless printing difference.

Create a reviewable merged file

Edit Individual Documents creates a combined document separated by page breaks between recipients. Save the merged output to a file for review before printing.

Compare the number of generated letters with the intended list after exclusions. Review every letter’s identifying information, and inspect page boundaries for cases where a long address or body creates an extra page. Page count alone is not a reliable recipient count when letters have different lengths.

Correct systematic problems in the template or source data and regenerate the batch. Keep one-off edits clearly accounted for so they are not silently lost on the next merge.

Only print the reviewed output after the content and recipients are accepted. Store the merged file with access appropriate to its personal information, and name it clearly enough to distinguish it from a later run. This process ends with a checked local document; email distribution is a separate operation.

References: LibreOffice: Mail Merge Wizard, LibreOffice: Mail Merge toolbar.