Get help improving your academic writing skills.

“If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.”
― Margaret Atwood

While there is no need to wait for perfection to start writing, there is a lot to be said for working to improve your writing skills. And sometimes, that means seeking a little help!

As part of our commitment to supporting students and auditors in their academic pursuits, Signum University offers a writing tutorial program – Writer’s Forge – to help individuals who want to improve their academic writing skills. This program is open to all members of the Signum community, including current M.A. or certificate students, auditors, and participants in any of our public programs like Signum Symposia or the Mythgard Academy.

Assistance offered through Writer’s Forge includes (but is not necessarily limited to):

  • Strengthening sentence structure, stylistics, and standard writing conventions
  • Clarifying logic and argumentation
  • Addressing pervasive, recurrent issues with syntax, diction, organization, specificity, and quote integration
  • Reviewing sources and citations in academic writing

Our Student Support team will work with interested writers to set up a one-on-one video chat and to share their work with their tutor through Google Docs. Both writer and tutor will thus be able to see the document and read it over together as they talk through the writing process, and the writer will be able to mark it up, ask questions, and make suggested revisions alongside the tutor.

In-Class Support

In all of our courses, preceptors are available to provide feedback on individual papers (and other assignments) and work with students on their revisions.

However, in the event that a student needs help with more fundamental writing skills not directly related to the course content, the preceptor for the class may recommend that the student make an appointment with a tutor.

For questions about what types of writing help are covered in class, contact our Student Support team.

Writer’s Forge Pricing

$25 per half hour

At most schools, students pay high tuition and fees in order to cover the costs of all the services the school offers to all students. Because we do not want to charge high tuition, we have chosen to take an a la carte route for additional services; we only want students to pay for what they use, rather than higher tuition to cover something they may not need.

In line with Signum’s commitment to keeping costs fair and reasonable, we are offering this tutoring program as a way to support students, auditors, and others who may not be confident in their writing skills and may need assistance with their writing – without passing on unnecessary costs to all students.

Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts.

Patrick Rothfuss

If I knew how the books were going to end before embarking on them, there would be little reason to write them.

Lois McMaster Bujold

Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.

Robert Heinlein

You don’t start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it’s good stuff, and then gradually you get better at it.

Octavia Butler

Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way.

Ray Bradbury

Inspiration usually comes during work rather than before it.

Madeleine L'Engle

Writing is a lonely job. Having someone who believes in you makes a lot of difference.

Stephen King

A piece of writing is like a piece of magic. You create something out of nothing.

Susanna Clarke

I write only because I find it easier so to say such things as I really want to say.

J.R.R. Tolkien

Skill in writing frees you to write what you want to write. It may also show you what you want to write. Craft enables art.

Ursula K. Le Guin

Always try to use the language so as to make quite clear what you mean and make sure your sentence couldn’t mean anything else.

C.S. Lewis

Schedule a tutorial session today!

To schedule an appointment, or for more information about our writing tutorial program, email [email protected] or [email protected]