Tutor Week: Meet Dianna!

It's Tutor Week at the Miller Writing Center, and we're showcasing some of the awesome members of our staff all week. To kick things off, we're interviewing one of our stellar lead consultants, Dianna! 

Name: Dianna Tingle

Major: Communication Disorders (soon to be a doctoral candidate in Audiology!)

Year: Senior/Future Graduate Student

What do you like doing best in your spare time?

If I have a lot of free time, reading is my spare time activity of choice. If I’m busy and just need a mental break, Netflix is my go-to. I also enjoy playing volleyball any chance I get.

What’s the best advice anyone has ever given you about writing?

“Write crappy rough drafts.” Seriously, before someone told me this, I focused on perfection with every sentence I wrote.  Now I get all of my ideas out on paper and write multiple drafts. It has changed my writing process and actually sped it up.

What has been the most rewarding part of your job at the Miller Writing Center?

I have enjoyed getting to know my clients over the years. I love learning from their thoughts, ideas, and papers. Everyone who comes into the writing center comes from a different background and major, so I get to learn something new every single day. My range of general knowledge is so much greater now because I get to read about so many topics from week to week. My clients also keep me updated on other important life things; for instance, do you know there is a really awesome Canvas app for iPhones? I didn’t until a client told me about it.

Is there anything challenging about your job in the Writing Center? If so, what is it?

I also struggle when reading chemistry papers, especially dissertations. I don’t know what it is about chemistry, but I have a hard time reading through all of the formulas and symbols.

When and where do you work at the MWC?:

I work on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9-11 in Multicultural and 2-4 on Tuesdays in RBD.

Hidden talent?

I can pogo with no hands.

Book recommendation:

If you haven’t read The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, get on Amazon Prime right now and order it.

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From Page to Screen: Books to Read Over Spring Break

I don’t know if you had to read Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of Craft in high school, but I did. (Confession: I loved it.) In it, he makes it clear that reading and writing skills correlate. As King says in On Writing, “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.”

I know Spring Break’s next week, and you’re thinking, “Pleeeassse, no more books. All I want to do is sleep, party, and watch Netflix.” I get that.  But it’s kind of difficult to watch Netflix movies on the beach. So, when you’re taking a writing break during Spring Break next week, try reading one of these soon to be movies:

Divergent by Veronica Roth

(March 21)

“What’s the next Hunger Games?” you ask. Some people have their money on Divergent.

 

So, What’s It About? Divergent takes place in a dystopian civilization made up of five factions based on different virtues, like bravery and intelligence. It follows the life of sixteen-year-old Beatrice “Tris” Prior, who must choose one of the factions. During her initiation, she discovers a secret about herself, love, and tensions between the factions that might crumble the society.
 

Why Do I Like It? It’s fast-paced and doesn’t follow the dystopian YA love formula, which means there’s no love triangle.
 

Key Actors: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Kate Winslet, and Ansel Elgort

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

(June 6)

Warning: Keep tissues close.

 

So, What’s It About? Hazel has cancer, but she says this is not a “cancer book.” When Augustus Waters walks into her life, she learns that she can be more than a grenade--that she can make friends and find love and happiness in short infinities.

Why Do I Like It? John Green’s writing rocks, and his characters are insanely witty.

Key Actors: Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
(October 3)
This book might be the definition of page-turner.

Photo found at imbd.com


So, What’s It About? Nick Dunne comes home to find his missing wife’s supposed murder scene--and he’s the main suspect. His reactions cause his friends to question his mental stability, but after reading passages from his perspective and from his wife’s diary, you’ll question who the crazy one really is.

Why Do I Like It? It’s told from alternating viewpoints, and the twists, guys… The twists.


Key Actors: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, and Neil Patrick Harris



Happy reading!

-Haley P.

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