A study examined basic writers' written responses to literature and looked for the effects of practice and personality on the development of these students' responses. Subjects, 24 students enrolled in a 4-week summer enrichment program for high risk students at a large Southeastern university. Students were asked to read and respond in writing about their "thoughts and reactions" to Langston Hughes' short story "T'ain't So." The students were also administered the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). Throughout the four-week duration of the program, the students were asked to read a series of short stories, to discuss them, to write responses to them and to share these written responses with fellow students. At the end of the program, students were asked to respond in writing to Gwendolyn Brook's "A Self-Solace." Responses to the stories were classified according to Purves' Response Preference Measure (developed in 1968) and analyzed for degree of focus. The Wilcoxin Matched Pairs Sign Test was used to analyze pre- and post-changes in written responses. Results showed trends found in pre- and post-written responses to text in this study supported the assumption that a response-oriented curriculum can effect change in students' reading and writing, suggesting that personality preference theory may offer an essential foundation for developing a curriculum that allows for the validation of individual differences within the context of shared language communities. (Twelve references are attached.) (RAE)