Dr. Dan's English Reading, Writing & Creative Coaching/Consulting
About
My services as a Writing Coach & Consultant is to ensure your personal writing VOICE, (whether creatively, in your college essays, or resumes) is clearly heard while making sure you cultivate a skill set which will achieve any of the writing goals you have set for yourself.
Working with me is a personable experience. Unlike working with a tutoring company, we work side-by-side. We become a team concerned only with YOUR success.
I believe that with my creative writing background as a Poet and my experience as a USC Writing Professor gives me a unique perspective on how to approach writing, both academically and creatively. Writing is a collaborative effort. It is not a contest, but instead is a skill which invites an audience--that audience can be a blog readership, academic scholars, your teacher, or fans of your creative writing--to get to know who you are, intimately.
Being a college professor and private writing coach allows me to also learn. This sounds like something all educators say, but I truly take this to heart. When I first started to teach, I had no experience, and in order for me to get through my first semester, I really had to listen to the needs of my students. After that first semester, I began to do classroom evaluations, where the students are able to tell me what worked and what didn't work.
It is not about me and my ego as an instructor and coach but is instead working to serve the best interests of my students and clients. Ego has no role in learning. This is the heart of my approach and has given me years of enlightening work with a vast amount of clients and students.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/danieldissinger/
Highlights
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
Before any of the work begins, I usually do an initial meet & greet. This first meeting helps both myself and the new client to get a feel for how the working relationship will play out. After this meeting, we collaborate on a personalized plan of attack. Any sort of Writing work calls for collaboration.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I currently work as a professor of writing at University of Southern California. My experience in higher education has spanned over 10 years now, and I have taught courses in College Writing, Creative Writing, Business Writing, Literature (Intro, American, World), Theory, and Critical Thinking. During that time, I also tutored students of all levels and ages in a variety of Reading and Writing needs from Standardized Testing to writing books.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
I have a fair and competitvepricing system. Usually if I am traveling to a student, pricing does reflect the distance and time it takes to get to the location. My online (Skype, phone, other) is lower than in-person.
How did you get started teaching?
Oh man; it was purely chance, and that is the truth. I had graduated with my MFA from The Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University in Boulder, CO and just floated for 6 months. I finally decided to start looking for work and emailed some ex-professors for letters of recommendation to get adjunct work and there happened to be a position they were trying to fill. I was offered this position. In four days, I was in a college classroom for the first time.
Since then, I fell in love with teaching! I am so grateful for that chance, and everyday I make sure I am being the best educator/mentor I can be for my students. Tutoring has become something that has just given me opportunity to spread my personal teaching philosophy after class time. It has made me a better classroom teacher, as well as a better poet.
What types of students have you worked with?
As a tutor, I am asked to help students work on college admissions essays, class assignments, English writing/reading/speaking comprehension, creative editing, creative mentoring.
Describe a recent event you are fond of.
I was helping a student writing essays for college admission and she was having trouble getting the essays to sound genuine. When I looked at the essays, I noticed they were absent of her VOICE; she was not representing herself in the essay, just answering the question. We spoke about why it is important to represent one's VOICE in writing, did free writing exercises, and built a personal process to get the essays finished.
She was accepted into her first choice school! I was also told that the admissions committee said her essays were extremely impressive, and was a major reason for her acceptance.
What advice would you give a student looking to hire a teacher in your area of expertise?
Talk to potential tutors/teachers and see how they listen. If you are just listening to the tutor/teacher, or is this person inviting you to be part of the conversation? This will show you how much control you will have over your own educational and creative journey.
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
I want people to know that educators take their work home with them. This does not mean we are carrying papers home (which we are), but that our students' lives become our lives. The success of my students is connected to my success.