"I specialize in helping top students write memorable college essays. I also offer tailored coaching, tutoring, and editorial support for anyone looking to improve their writing skills or complete almost any kind of writing project.

QUALIFICATIONS

I've been a professional writer, editor, tutor, and teacher for almost thirty years. My writing has appeared in Harper's, National Geographic, The NY Times Magazine, and on the award-winning radio program This American Life. I've taught, read, and given talks at numerous academic institutions, including Emerson College, Evanston High School, NYU, Northwestern, SAIC, Notre Dame, UChicago, and UChicago Lab School.

My qualifications include writing related fellowships from Columbia U, Goucher College, Bread Loaf, and the Chicago Area Writing Project, plus nearly half a decade served as Director of a busy full-service writing center at a college prep high school.

But beyond these professional highlights, I suspect what most sets me apart as an effective writing coach is the fact that—due to a childhood learning difference—I didn't learn to read and write until I was almost ten. And yet I went on to become an accomplished writer and writing teacher. What's the point? Just that I get not getting it. I know what that's like. Meaning: it's never hard for me to grasp why one of my clients might struggle with some literary concept or convention. But the point is also that, with enough support, absolutely anyone can become a stronger writer, reader, and public speaker. And I humbly hold myself up as proof.

APPROACH

Writing is a process and that's how I teach it, guiding my clients through all the steps, from brainstorming and freewriting to outlining, drafting, revising, polishing, and proofreading.

RESULTS

My college essay students have gained admission to some of the most prestigious institutions in the U.S, including:

Barnard

Bowdoin

Columbia U

George Washington

Harvard

Northwestern

Pitzer

Princeton

Santa Clara

Scripps

Stanford

UChicago

UMichigan

Wellesley" less...