1. Rambling Autobiography

2. Brainstorming… My favorite color is green. I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk when I was six. I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things on birthday cards. I like s’mores a lot. I hate duplexes. I hate fringies. I hate incomptence. My dad died when I was 23. I dream that my dad’s still alive sometimes. I am a big nerd. I hate chaos. I write poetry. I laugh at lame jokes. I am secretly a Trekkie I wish I could cry gracefully.

3. Revise Individual statements: Add Detail My favorite color is green. My favorite color is the green of sunlight through tree leaves.

4. Revise Individual statements: Add Detail I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk when I was six. Once, when I was six, I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk and my dad was furious; the chalk was still there 12 years later when we remodeled.

5. Revise Individual statements: Add Detail I wish I could cry gracefully. I wish I could cry gracefully, like my mother.

6. Revise Individual statements: Vary sentence structure I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things on birthday cards. On birthday cards, I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things.

7. Revise individual statements: Vary sentence structure I dream that my dad’s still alive sometimes. Sometimes, I dream that my dad’s still alive

8. Revise Individual statements: Spice it up! I like s’mores a lot. I am alarmingly fond of s’mores I hate duplexes. I have an irrational dislike of duplexes.

9. Revise Individual statements: Juxtapose I hate fringies. I hate incomptence. I hate fringies and incompetence.

10. Now What? Mix it up! My favorite color is the green of sunlight through tree leaves. Once, when I was six, I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk and my dad was furious; the chalk was still there 12 years later when we remodeled. On birthday cards, I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things. Sometimes, I dream that my dad’s still alive. I wish I could cry gracefully, like my mother. I am alarmingly fond of s’mores. I have an irrational dislike of duplexes. I hate fringies and incompetence. I am a big nerd. I hate chaos. I write poetry. I laugh at lame jokes. I am secretly a Trekkie.

11. Mix up long and short sentences Long: My favorite color is the green of sunlight through tree leaves. Once, when I was six, I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk and my dad was furious; the chalk was still there 12 years later when we remodeled. On birthday cards, I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things. Short: I hate fringies and incompetence. I am a big nerd. I hate chaos. I write poetry. I laugh at lame jokes. I am secretly a Trekkie.

12. Mix up heavy and light topics Heavy: Sometimes, I dream that my dad’s still alive. I wish I could cry gracefully, like my mother. Light: On birthday cards, I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things. I am alarmingly fond of s’mores. I have an irrational dislike of duplexes. I am a big nerd. I hate chaos. I write poetry. I laugh at lame jokes. I am secretly a Trekkie.

13. Mix up sentence beginnings “I” beginnings: I wish I could cry gracefully, like my mother. I am alarmingly fond of s’mores. I have an irrational dislike of duplexes. I hate fringies and incompetence. I am a big nerd. I hate chaos. I write poetry. I laugh at lame jokes. I am secretly a Trekkie. Clausal beginnings: Once, when I was six, I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk and my dad was furious; the chalk was still there 12 years later when we remodeled. On birthday cards, I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things. Sometimes, I dream that my dad’s still alive.

14. Other beginnings: My favorite color is the green of sunlight through tree leaves. My dad told my first boyfriend to call him “Ace.” It takes me a long time to open up to people; please keep trying. My sister used to put soap on my toothbrush when she was mad at me. One of my favorite things about my husband is that he can make me laugh when I’m angry.

15. My favorite color is the green of sunlight through tree leaves. I laugh at lame jokes. Once, when I was six, I drew all over the wall of our garage with chalk and my dad was furious; the chalk was still there 12 years later when we remodeled. I am alarmingly fond of s’mores. My sister used to put soap on my toothbrush when she was mad at me. I hate chaos. On birthday cards, I draw cartoon possums disguised as other things. Sometimes, I dream that my dad’s still alive. It takes me a long time to open up to people; please keep trying. I have an irrational dislike of duplexes. I hate fringies and incompetence. I wish I could cry gracefully, like my mother. I write poetry. My dad told my first boyfriend to call him “Ace.” I am a big nerd. One of my favorite things about my husband is that he can make me laugh when I’m angry. I am secretly a Trekkie.