Style is teachable and learnable, but literary models should not be introduced for imitation until the basic writer has already developed some fluency in writing; then literature can provide students with examples of experiences that they can internalize, store away, and draw upon in their own writing. A brainstorming exercise, "the messy kitchen," is useful for teaching several writing skills. Students first provide the details of the common, unpleasant experience of cleaning up a messy kitchen. After working out various patterns of organization and their rationales, they next write the actual descriptions. The traditional elements used for teaching style--economy, emphasis, clarity, concreteness, unity and coherence, variety, and correctness--are introduced by the teacher during the process of revision. Only after the students have gained the confidence that they can write--by writing--are they ready to look analytically at the writing of others. To provide students with the secrets of language, to encourage them to be precise, to be adventurous, to be adult, to "try on" a role and therefore a style, teachers must expose them to the process of revision, create a positive learning environment, and keep them practicing and reading. (JL)