Featured By

Augustus R.

Private tutor in Chicago, IL

Education

MA in English and Creative Writing University of California, Davis BA in Film Studies University of California, Santa Barbara

Experience

I have taught writing at the college level (currently I teach at University of Chicago) for over ten years and always have an excellent relationship with my students. I know they appreciate the attention I give to each of them, the genuine interest I show in their ideas and the drive I have in helping them improve their writing skills. Most of them find me at once laid back and easy to talk to on the one hand, and highly demanding on the other, because I am always pushing them to do better and put their best work forward. I’ve seen plenty of students come in to one of my required college writing classes with no interest in taking it, and have by the end of the course given them a newfound interest to pursue writing further. I think this is in part due to the emphasis I put on authenticity. Authenticity is one of the most important, but also most difficult elements of any piece of writing. None of us want to read yet another essay by a student with no interest in their subject, writing something that that think we want to hear in the way they think we want to hear it. Authenticity is difficult to grasp because it is both abstract and fluid, but it is in many ways about voice. And I’ve come to understand that voice is about more than syntax, or dialect, or the how of something said. It is about being unexpected without being contrived. It is about knowing both your subject and your audience. And an authority of voice is one of the most essential skills of a good writer. Voice is about authenticity, and authenticity is about voice. One of the things I do for your son or daughter is to help them find their own. Regardless of what they are writing about. I’m looking to tutor because I love mentoring students and helping them bring their thoughts and ideas to the page in effective, efficient and moving ways. I also have years of insight into the college admissions process (my wife was the director of an MFA creative writing program and I have myself read through hundreds of statements of purpose) so I know and understand what admissions boards are looking for, and I can help your son or daughter with the process of writing his or her own. At University of Chicago I have taught a Master Class in Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School, helping these aspiring PhDs find their own stories and put them to the page in such a way as to set them apart from the hundreds of other such essays the admissions board has to read through. In addition to my years as a teacher I also have years of experience as a freelance editor, consulting on dozens of clients’ books and helping them with everything from larger structural and developmental issues, to matters of language and syntax. Some of the classes I've taught: University of Chicago: - Fiction Writing Lecturer. Sample courses: Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Fiction Writing; Reading as a Writer. - Master Class in Writing Personal Statements for Graduate School. - Master Class in Narrative Structure. Columbia College Chicago: - Fiction Writing Lecturer. Sample courses: Fiction Seminar; Critical Reading and Writing; Film & Story. University of Michigan: - Writing Lecturer. Sample courses: Writing & Rhetoric; Argumentative Writing.

Subject Expertise

English 10th Grade Writing 12th Grade Writing Literature Essay Editing 6th Grade Writing 8th Grade Writing ACT with Writing Expository Writing GMAT Analytical Writing Assessment Persuasive Writing SAT Writing Writing 11th Grade Writing Introduction to Fiction Literary Analysis College Essays 7th Grade Writing 9th Grade Writing ACT Writing Creative Writing Fiction Writing GRE Analytical Writing PSAT Writing Skills

Availability

Any day at any time

Can Meet

Up to 20 minutes away for no additional charge, Up to 30 minutes away for a flat fee

Hobbies

On a personal level: I am a new father, and experiencing (vicariously) the triumphs and firsts of my toddler has become my new greatest joy. I’ve always loved any kind of good narrative art, be it fiction or film, TV or video games. I’m a baseball fan (go Giants!) and have a wide and eclectic taste in music of all eras and genres.

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