"During my seven years as a lecturer teaching college freshman writing, I gained a deep understanding of the major challenges college students face. Additionally, in my ten years of teaching middle school English Language Arts (ELA) as a classroom teacher, I scaffolded instruction to help students mold their complex ideas into cohesive, well-organized essays. I increased the number of my school’s seventh graders passing the statewide writing and reading exam by 18% after creating and compiling my own set of materials for preparing them.

My approach is to listen to your concerns, carefully analyze your work, and meet you where you are. I can guide you in breaking down writing prompts, creating prewriting, drafting efficiently, editing, building confidence, and/or overcoming writer’s block. For ELA, I will help you identify, use, and describe rhetorical devices, literary devices, grammar, and punctuation.

I hold a BA in Literature, an MFA in Creative Writing, and an MEd in Teaching and Learning. In addition to my degrees, I hold a single-subject teaching credential in English Language Arts with English Learner Authorization.

I’ve published a collection of poems, as well as poems in journals. I’ve been invited to host workshops, speak on panels, and publish my work in anthologies. As an experimental poet with a strong background in the formal aspects of poetry—sound devices, line breaks, and forms—I’d be delighted to assist you in your poetry journey.

As a creative thinker, I always felt that writing was never easy for me. I still remember in college when a professor called my writing “confused and confusing.” I used that as fuel to work like crazy—revising and revising, visiting tutors and professors—until finally an instructor told me I was doing graduate level work when I was a senior in college. I know that writing takes time, practice, and sheer will. I understand the struggle, and I’m here to walk beside you on your journey." less...