"I bring 20+ years of coaching and editing staff writers in American newsrooms as well as 15 years as a professional journalist, for which I shared the 2014 Pulitzer Prize in Editorial Writing. I coach high school as well as college students in all forms of nonfiction: from the personal essay to thesis-level arguments. Separately, I engage adults on book-length memoir-writing projects.

My process is simple: It's all about sorting through, narrowing and sharpening the idea before writing. Words, if not secondary, are but icing on the cake!

Nationally recognized, widely published journalist and critic. Also write stage plays.

It's all about finding the right fit. Stanford was wonderful for me but might be bewildering for another, equally prepared, student. The wisely chosen college comes from knowing one's strengths and appetites and, such as they can be known at age 17, dreams. The wisely chosen college is not a hood ornament for a breezy ride through life but a dynamic home: a place of nurture, sometimes daunting challenge, personal and academic growth, surprise. Life happens large there and after.

Happy to talk by phone or via email to individuals and parents for a free initial consultation. I seek quick results for those eager for same. Lessons are best scheduled for Mondays and Tuesday's from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. PST." less...