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In addition to her work as novelist and critic, Eudora Welty is also a valuable resource for the teaching of composition, particularly through both her theory and example, for she is always writing about writing. Many of Welty's essays on literary theory speak to problems encountered in the college writing class. Perhaps the most accessible text for demonstrating Welty as a writing teacher is her autobiography "One Writer's Beginnings," in which each section deals with a problem basic to all writing and lends itself to student writing experience. In the first section, entitled "Listening," Welty's dynamic and expressive verbs and adjectives are the basis for an exercise in diction. Classroom assignments emphasizing concrete, concise language and character analysis grow out of this section when used in conjunction with the Welty essay entitled "Clamorous to Learn." Also, Welty's own readings of writers she admires give insights into creative listening, helping students make meaning emerge from texts before responding in their own writing. In the section entitled "Learning To See," Welty's text provides a model of her visual imagination as well as evidence of her belief in the importance of what she calls writing with an "eye for the telling detail." The last section, "Finding a Voice," addresses the techniques of focusing, illustrated in one of her early stories. It includes a discussion of a writer's efforts at achieving distance, perspective, and frame of vision. (An appendix contains student writing assignments for "Finding a Voice.") (KEH)