This is your intro to me, even if you think I already know you...

Go here (scroll down.)  Try one of those student stories, about the same length, about yourself, and, most importantly, with the same tone.

Think about the tone. It's personal material but even so the tone is dry, a little removed, unemotional. To see the emotion you have to read between the lines and use your imagination, stretch a little, work with the writer.

And despite being personal, it's also public. Nothing embarrassing, nothing 'omigod-no-no-no' about these three samples. Again, the reader is entitled to read between the lines and take a lightly-mentioned fact for a run around the block, but there's nothing in-your-face.

Your writing over the semester will range widely in tone, style, content, and imagination invested. This is a very straightforward and basic exercise, just something to limber up your fingers on the keyboard before the real work begins.

Post it on your blog, and then we're off to the races, 262ers.