I am a teacher, tutor, writer, editor, researcher, songwriter, guitar player, and world traveler, originally from the suburbs of Philadelphia. I recently took a hiatus from college-level teaching in order to move back to Los Angeles, where I live with my wife, who is an associate professor of philosophy at a local university. My Ph.D. is in English, and I specialize in U.S. literature and culture, including multiethnic literature. My greatest skill is helping students and professionals become...
I am a teacher, tutor, writer, editor, researcher, songwriter, guitar player, and world traveler, originally from the suburbs of Philadelphia. I recently took a hiatus from college-level teaching in order to move back to Los Angeles, where I live with my wife, who is an associate professor of philosophy at a local university. My Ph.D. is in English, and I specialize in U.S. literature and culture, including multiethnic literature. My greatest skill is helping students and professionals become better writers. I have helped hundreds of writers achieve this goal over my fifteen-plus-year career.
Throughout my life I have tried to blend educational and professional opportunities with real world experiences. I have attended and excelled at some of the most prestigious universities in the U.S. and taught in a number of different academic settings, from middle school Spanish classes, to test-prep tutoring, to elite college writing programs. I have also worked in a range of other jobs, including grocery stores, pizza shops, homeless shelters, and even a monastery! I have backpacked through all of Europe and much of Southeast Asia and visited other places off the beaten path in El Salvador and Cuba. Some day soon I hope to visit the Hebrides, China, or West Africa, and my dream trip would be to the Galapagos. When I'm not writing about music, I'm listening to it, and I enjoy everything from Bach to the Beach Boys to Notorious B.I.G. Ask me some music trivia and see if you can stump me.
I have studied and taught world literature and writing at some of the most prestigious universities in the U.S. I have also worked with an extraordinarily diverse group of students from many different backgrounds and with many different levels of preparation. When it comes to literature, my knowledge base is both deep and wide, especially within the field of U.S. lit, and I can use a variety of popular, philosophical, and theoretical examples to expand my students' knowledge and hone their skills. I have taught many canonical texts d
