Harrisonburg & Lancaster Graduate Writing Coach

skip kempeSkip Kempe

If you think you need help with a writing assignment, I’m happy to look over your work, talk through your questions, and—in general—help you feel better about your writing!
Below is a description of how the process works and what I can offer you. Then, when you’re ready, use this Google form to tell me about your assignment and schedule an appointment with me. If you’re in Harrisonburg, we can meet in person in the Sadie Hartzler Library (room 208 on the main floor); if you are a remote learner or in Lancaster, we’ll meet on Zoom.

How it works

I’m happy to talk you through any stage of the writing process, whether you just need some
help generating ideas at the very beginning, or are ready for a final review of your citation
formats or your paper’s overall structure.
If you already have some writing, even if it’s a rough draft, you can send it to me using the
Google form above and I’ll carefully review it before we meet. I’ll write up some comments on
it and we’ll meet to discuss your work.
When you schedule your appointment, you can tell me what you need help with—what you’d
like my feedback on. Here are some typical areas students want feedback on:

  • help understanding the assignment itself—what are the requirements, what kind of writing is
    expected?
  • help generating ideas and getting started
  • help organizing my thoughts or the order of the paper
  • help writing a strong thesis statement
  • help supporting my ideas with evidence
  • help researching and evaluating the quality of sources
  • help formatting the paper to meet the technical requirements
  • help with citation formats
  • help writing for a scholarly audience

…and then some students are just feeling lost and all they know is that they need some
help—which is OK too!

Typical timeline

It’s important to leave yourself enough time. I need 24-48 hours to review your paper before
we meet the first time, and you should leave yourself at least three days after your
appointment before your paper is due, so that you won’t get frustrated if major revisions are
needed that might take some time.
You’ll be given an hour-long block of time to meet with me, although you’re welcome to end
sooner if you’d like; most appointments last between 30 minutes and an hour. You can meet
with the coach for up to two hours per week. Again, in-person meetings are preferred if you’re
in Harrisonburg, but Zoom appointments are also available.

The goal

The immediate goal, of course, is to help you complete this particular assignment well. But
hopefully, by working together, you’ll begin feeling more confident in your writing and research
abilities and thus more prepared for your next assignment, and the next—and as you do so,
each one might just get a bit easier!
I can also point you to additional resources to help you with the writing process, like citation
guides, help incorporating quotations, etc.

Questions?

If you have any questions you’d like to discuss first, feel free to email me at
skip.kempe@emu.edu.

About the writing coach

I’m a former high school English and humanities teacher since 2001. I hold an MA in the
Teaching of English from Teachers College, Columbia University, and just completed an MS in
Library and Information Science and Human-Computer Interaction from Drexel University. I
graduated with a BA in English from Messiah College in Grantham, Pa.
I’ve helped many, many students with their writing over the years—those who struggle with
writing, those who love writing, those writing in English as a second or third language, those
who prefer poetry but struggle to understand the expectations of academic writing. No matter
who you are or what your writing ability is today, I’m excited to meet with you and help you
take the next steps in your writing!

Schedule your appointment!

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