Testimonials
“Karen Fitts is, simply, an exceptional writing coach. For months I struggled to write a research article for publication, with no clear understanding of what the problem might be. Karen saw it immediately and offered concrete strategies for identifying the competing purposes at work in the draft. This included strategies for reconsidering who the specific audience for the piece would be, and how to best narrow the scope of the argument to these readers. She also provided incredible feedback on multiple drafts of the article throughout the process, and always did so in a generative and generous manner. I was thrilled to see the piece in print and will certainly work with Karen Fitts again.”
— Professor C. M. Tremonte, Michigan State University
“We had the pleasure of having Karen tutor our teenage son for two years. Our son has dyslexia and was slow to learn how to read. We saw tremendous growth in his abilities and confidence after working with Karen. It is not easy to make a connection with a teenage boy, but Karen was able to find readings that interested our son and kept him engaged.
Due to COVID concerns, Karen utilized zoom for a few months—this was challenging and our son was a bit moody during that time, but Karen took it in stride and was able to draw the best out of him. Karen was flexible with her approach and willing to do homework assistance, work on phonics, read young adult novels aloud with him, and play word games like ‘hangman’. We highly recommend her.”
— Matt and Mary Zibilich, Portland, Oregon
“After attending Dr. Karen Fitts’s course on literary theory during my tenure as a master’s degree seeking student in 2012, I sought her assistance nearly a decade later for my application to PhD programs in English. Even with the time between our class and my application process, Dr. Fitts remains open and supportive of me and my writing. She quickly responded to my outreach and met with me within a week over zoom as she is on one side of the United States and I on the other. During this meeting we discussed my goals, professional and academic, as well as the contents of my statement of purpose.
For anyone who has applied to graduate school, we can attest to the anxiety-provoking state brought on in writing a one-two page paper that encompasses your skill, intellect, and history. Dr. Fitts, as I remembered her from class, offered her full attention and asked pointed, clarifying questions to help me probe deeper as a writer. From this single session, I sent her a draft of the statement of purpose. In a timely fashion yet again, she returned it with suggestions and ideas pulled from our conversation that in this first iteration were not expressed adequately.
If you are looking for someone to see you, your writing, and the strengths of both, Dr. Karen Fitts is someone you want helping you in whatever writing endeavor you’re undertaking. I can confidently state the time and conversation spent with Dr. Fitts has made me a better person and writer. What else could you want in a writing coach? I hope one day in the future I can utilize her services again for conference papers and, fingers crossed, dissertation chapters. Her coaching is worth it and more; thank you, Dr. Fitts!”
— Riley Wilkins, Drexel University
“Karen was a major help for our son when he started high school (in the middle of the pandemic, no less). He is a bright kid but always struggled with the depth and quality of his writing for a variety of reasons, including a mild learning disability. He wasn't a confident writer and seemed a bit overwhelmed by the increased demands of high school-level writing.
But Karen was a huge asset to his growth as a writer. She did a great job building a real relationship with him so that she had a foundation to start building his skills. She was especially helpful in helping him organize his thoughts, find research citations to back claims in essays, and strengthen his transitions between ideas so that the writing flowed naturally and helped the reader understand his ideas clearly. His confidence as a writer grew tremendously and within a year or so of working together, he was able to write much longer essays than I would have guessed was possible.
Most importantly, Karen taught him skills that he can apply on his own, so her help went beyond just helping in the moment, but really built his abilities for the long haul. We think Karen would be a tremendous help to any writer who is trying to find their voice or who knows what they want to say but needs a bit of help saying it in the best way they can. She is a wonderful collaborator and sounding board for anyone trying to express themselves through writing, and we know first hand that she can help writers of all abilities build their confidence and skills.”
— Mike and Rebekah Garringer, Portland, Oregon
“For more than two years Karen was one of our most deeply-skilled comprehensive writing tutors. Her professional background paired with her passion for helping young writers made for high satisfaction by the families and students she served. Her assignments included helping four students for programs of up to two years in duration. Her clients loved her and the results she inspired.”
— Tutor Doctor of Metro Portland