- Stephen North in “The Idea of a Writing Center”

Writing Center Tutoring Sessions

Have you ever wished you had someone who would read your paper, listen to your ideas, and help you express yourself? Now you do!

Our staff offers assistance with writing across the curriculum, including, but not limited to, expository writing, creative writing, personal writing, and any other form of written expression. In the Shasta College Writing Center, a student can try out ideas and writing strategies while receiving immediate feedback. Tutoring appointments are highly interactive. Trained in the process of inquiry and collaboration, our tutors will work along with you at any stage of your writing such as:

  • Outlining and organizing
  • Fighting writer’s block
  • Brainstorming
  • Focusing on a topic
  • Developing and supporting a thesis
  • Revising for clarity
  • Editing the finished draft
  • Revising a graded writing assignment

Our goal is to help you become a better writer by assisting you in understanding your specific rhetorical situations and how they shift from discipline to discipline. In addition, through the process of inquiry and collaboration, our Writing Assistants are able to guide you in learning how to critique and revise your own writing. The atmosphere in our tutoring sessions is one of productive collaboration.

What we won’t do for you

  • Write your paper for you
  • Correct your paper 
  • Impose our ideas on you 
  • Put your ideas into our words 
  • Guarantee a good grade on your paper

How can I arrange for a tutoring session?

Anyone needing assistance with writing can make an appointment by dropping by the Writing Center, located on the main floor of the Learning Resources Center (700 Bldg.) or by calling 242-7589. Drop-ins are taken if an assistant is available. Appointments are made on the hour or the half hour. Appointments are usually for a half hour. However, papers five pages or longer and group papers usually require an hour or more. Students often find it helpful to make more than one appointment during the writing process.

All tutoring is FREE!

Who can benefit from being tutored in the writing process? 

  • Inexperienced writers who need help making the transition to college-level writing
  • Writers who value having a sensitive and helpful reader 
  • Writers who have a particular concern about their work 
  • Writers who need assistance with a particular style/format
  • Writers working on a group writing project

More Services

The Shasta College Writing Center offers assistance with writing via telephone or email to students from any Extended Education site in the Shasta-Tehama-Trinity area: Burney, Red Bluff, Corning, Hayfork, and Weaverville. The same service is offered to online students also.

To schedule a phone appointment, call us at 242-7589 from any of the Extended Education Sites we serve. All telephone appointments will be scheduled for one hour in length. Second, fax (225-3945) or email (youwriteright@shastacollege.edu) your essay to the Writing Center.

Remember, you must schedule an appointment before emailing or faxing your paper if you want a telephone appointment. If you would like to have assistance with a paper via email, email us (youwriteright@shastacollege.edu) along with a copy of your paper, the assignment and the due date.

Red Bluff students can also make an appointment to work with a Writing Assistant on Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. by calling the Tehama Campus office at 530-529-8980.As with all of our tutoring sessions, we will tutor students in any phase or area of writing.

The Writing Center is equipped with 24 Dell computers, an HP LaserJet black and white printer.

We are a Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) center; therefore, we give priority to students writing papers. Our computers are available to anyone on a first-come, first-serve basis. No appointment is necessary, but students and all other users must log in with our Time Keeper system.

We have Writing Assistants and Paraprofessionals available to help you with questions you may have about writing or any assistance you may need with MLA, APA and Chicago Style formats.

Our internet capabilities allow you to research academic topics, access online classes, and send/receive email.

  • ​Are you overwhelmed by vocabulary? ​
  • Do you have difficulty understanding your assignments?
  • ​Are you having trouble conveying your ideas? ​
  • How is your sentence structure? ​
  • Do you need help with tenses and articles?
  • Do idioms and slang confuse you?

If so, drop in at the Writing Center or make an appointment. This is a free service! We are located in the Tutoring and Learning Center (TLC) Bldg 700 - First Floor. ​Contact the Writing Center to make your appointment today at (530) 242-7589 or youwriteright@shastacollege.edu.

We look forward to working with you!

Each semester the Writing Center offers mini drop-in workshops on writing and grammar.

The workshops are presented by Writing Center staff members who offer their knowledge and experience in assisting students in this sometimes difficult process.

Some workshops will cover the basic points of a research paper; others will cover grammar and punctuation; still, others may focus on MLA, APA or Chicago formats.

No pre-registration is required, and all the workshops are free. Students, staff, and community members are welcome to attend. Workshops are typically 30 minutes