How do you tutor writing skills online? Don't you need to see the person?
When you use our e-tutoring/editing services, we don’t see you because the tutoring does not take place in real time. Here’s how it works:
You email us your paper. We then review your paper behind the scenes and write feedback on comment boxes within your paper. Click here to see how that looks.
Our feedback is practical, thorough and covers all form and content. Our e-tutoring works well for students with a visual learning style. Feedback is written directly on papers, which eliminates the need for notetaking, not to mention travel time.
We know how to ask questions to get you thinking. We also provide examples that you may use as models in your own writing. Student feedback has shown that our indirect tutoring methods are very effective (please see our testimonials).
Our customers appreciate the convenience of learning from home. Female students in particular have legitimate concerns about safety when meeting a tutor in the community.
Our methods also work well for students with disabilities:
Example 1: Students with disabilities of attention such as ADHD. These students tend to get distracted and have trouble remembering key points of lessons. Research has shown that people with ADHD disorders tend to be highly visual in their learning style. Our e-tutoring is tailored for visual learners. Needing to remember key points is not an issue as all feedback is in writing.
Example 2:Students with central auditory processing disorders: These students experience a delay in processing what they hear (despite testing normally on auditory screenings). Students with CAPD do not learn best through their hearing but must rely on their other senses–frequently their vision. Our e-tutoring provides a solution as all tutorials are visual, typed directly on students’ papers.
Example 3:Students with high-functioning autism (until 2013, this condition was called Asperger syndrome): These students tend to experience significant social anxiety that can interfere with learning. Many struggle with assertiveness and self-advocacy. Virtual tutoring provides an approachable solution for them to get help yet maintain their privacy. They might otherwise feel too intimidated to ask for help. These students also frequently experience sensory overload. They often have co-existing ADHD and trouble processing through their hearing. Receiving tutorials in writing provides a welcome relief for these students.
May I see a sample of a tutorial you have done?
Yes. Click here to see a page from an actual grad student’s paper (used with her permission).
Give me a quick version of how In Writing works.
1. You email us an attachment of your writing, along with a rubric, or detailed instructions of what your instructor expects you to do.
2. We will assess your paper (free of charge) to learn more about how you write. This will help us identify your strengths and needs as a student. Once we learn more about your abilities, we can estimate the time and costs involved in giving you feedback. Our assessment includes but is not limited to the following areas:
Composition skills
Knowledge of formats (such as APA, MLA, Chicago style)
Spelling, grammar and punctuation skills
Ability to cite sources properly
Organization of ideas
Effectiveness of thesis
Quality and quantity of supporting evidence for your thesis
Other elements to be determined on case-by-case basis
3. After our initial free assessment of your writing, we will send you an email with a quote for our services.
4. If our fee fits your budget, we can get started with tutoring.
5. When we agree to work together, you will need to read and sign our terms and agreements contract.
6. We also require you to give us the day and date of your deadline (e.g. I need to receive the paper marked with In Writing’s feedback by Tuesday, May 7). We appreciate a few business days’ notice to review your paper and write feedback. Depending on our schedule, if you have a large project (e.g. a 30-page literature review), we need as much advance notice as possible. One week is appreciated. One month is better.
7. We require prepayment of 50% of the total tutoring fee. We make it easy for you to pay by credit online since we have our own merchant account. We will email you the invoice and will begin work after we receive your 50% deposit.
***For students awaiting financial aid, we require you to sign and email us a payment agreement before we begin the work.
8. We will email you when we finish writing feedback. We will send you an invoice for the remaining 50% due. Once we receive your payment, we will release you your paper by email along with a receipt. For students awaiting financial aid, we will immediately release your paper.
Are all of your services virtual? Can you help students who learn better face to face?
We find that most of our customers choose online tutoring, but we offer face-to-face tutoring, too (through Skype). We can also tutor you in person and meet you in the community–at libraries, coffee shops, or another location near your home, work, or school.
For some learners (e.g. auditory, hands on), it is just more practical to meet in person to discuss what might be difficult to do virtually. For example, some students might bring a pile of printed research to sort. We can help you sort your research (we do not get your research for you, though) and help you find a direction in your work.
Sorry, we do not offer in-home tutoring at this time (we will meet you at any public location near your home).
I don't like to sign contracts. There always seem to be hidden costs and commitments in the fine print.
Our contract does not try to trick you into buying multiple sessions. It does not contain buried fine print that asks you to pay more than what we quoted. The terms and conditions contract explains to you our services in detail. It is important that you understand what you can expect from our services before we work together. We also tell you what we expect from you as our customer. If you read our FAQs, the contract will contain no surprises.
What happens if I am completely blocked and have nothing to send?
We can arrange a face-to-face meeting. Otherwise, just email us the assignment/rubric from your instructor and whatever thoughts or plans you may have for the assignment. We can then brainstorm and email you back an outline or map of ideas to help you start writing.
Also, you’re welcome to call us, and we can discuss your needs over the phone.
What if I only need you to do a quick proofread?
We are always happy to proofread your work and suggest edits. It can give you peace of mind to know another set of eyes has reviewed your work.
What if I need intensive form and content help?
We will review your work and suggest edits for your paper. We will look for good sentence structure and clarity.
We can review every comma, every citation, plus grammar, punctuation and spelling. We also handle APA, MLA, and other formatting styles, and we answer citation questions.
Am I required to purchase a certain number of tutoring sessions?
What do you charge for tutoring?
In Writing charges an hourly fee of $35 per hour.
We require payment in advance (50% deposit by credit card) and require payoff of the balance before we return your paper.
We always review your paper before we work with you to estimate the time it will take to write feedback. Undergraduate work tends to take less time to review and tutor than graduate work, but that is not always true.
The length of time we spend reviewing and writing feedback on your paper depends on your strengths and needs.
How do I pay for tutoring?
When you decide to work with us, we will require a 50% deposit (by credit card) through our secure site. We will apply the 50% deposit toward your final payment.
We use one of the most respected companies in the industry for payment processing and use current best practices in electronic security.
Once your paper is completely reviewed and annotated with suggestions of edits to make in your writing, we will email you an invoice.
When you receive the emailed invoice, you will then pay us the remaining 50% balance of your bill (by credit card). When we receive your payment, we will release your paper by email attachment along with a final receipt for your records.
Am I 'buying a term paper' by working with In Writing?
No. As tempted as you might be to contact a “paper mill” to buy a paper that someone else wrote–don’t. Aside from questionable ethics, the advent of anti-plagiarism software makes it more likely that you will also get caught. Your instructors aren’t dumb and can usually figure out when someone else wrote your paper. “Buying a paper” can result in consequences, up to and including expulsion from school.
If you want to “buy” a paper from a paper mill, In Writing is not a good match for you. We are ethical in every aspect of running our business. We are not responsible for your content. We take no liability for your plagiarism. We accept your paper with the trust that YOU have written it and not plagiarized it. We do not have software to detect plagiarism.
Customers with different abilities and learning styles
We understand that time management, organization and executive functioning are serious impairments for some people.
That is why we ask that you please consider your deadlines–especially if you know that deadlines create a problem for you.
We require that you provide us with an exact day and date (e.g. Tuesday, May 7) of your deadline so we can come up with a plan and reserve room in our schedule for you.
We make every effort to provide special arrangements for in person, telephone, or electronic meetings to get you started and help you get organized and stay on a timetable. It helps to be accountable to another person.
As described earlier, a majority of our customers with a visual learning style prefer virtual tutoring.
We have direct experience working with adults with ADHD (hyperactive, inattentive, and combined type), auditory processing disorders, visual processing disorders, autism spectrum disorders, traumatic brain injury, and other “invisible” conditions.
Our “tax time”
Just as tax time is the busiest season for accountants, we’re busy toward the end of traditional college semesters (typically April and May and November and December = our “tax time”).
