One of the most important advantages to using literature with developmental writing students is that some pieces can be used as illustrations of important rhetorical principles and strategies that the instructor would like students to use in their own writing. The most important reason to use literature has to do with its usefulness as a source of inspiration. To build the students' confidence, teachers need to involve them in reading that elicits powerful, often very personal, reactions to written language. One way to use literature as a springboard for creative efforts is by asking students to keep a journal in which they can record responses to brief writing prompts designed to help them improve their understanding of literature. The instructor must choose selections that are accessible to the student both in vocabulary and in subject matter. The objective is not to introduce students to the study of literature, to important cultural phenomena in the canon, or even to new vocabulary. It is to foster their growth as writers. Instructors must also prepare their classes somewhat differently and perhaps more carefully when using literature as a springboard for developmental writers. (MG)