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“Talk” the paper to someone — your teacher, a friend, a roommate, a tutor in the Writing Lab. Just pick someone who’s willing to give you fifteen to thirty minutes to talk about the topic and whose main aim is to help you start writing. Have the person take notes while you talk or record your conversation. Talking will be helpful because you’ll probably be more natural and spontaneous in speech than in writing. Your listener can ask questions and guide you as you speak, and you’ll feel more as though you’re telling someone about something than completing an assignment.