Linda Tate
English PhD

Where did you get your undergraduate degree? What was your major? Where did you get your MA and PhD? What was each in? Why did you choose DU?
I earned my BA and MA in English at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. I earned a PhD in English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After I finished my doctorate, I taught for fifteen years at Shepherd University, part of the West Virginia public higher education system. When I met my future husband and decided to move to Boulder to make a new life with him, I was delighted to learn that the University of Denver was starting a new writing program. The timing was perfect for us!

Describe what your writing process is like:
I like to start on a writing project without really starting on it. I tell myself that Im just becoming familiar with the task and topic. Then I decide that Ill just jot a few notes and before I know it, Im generating material and, often, creating a first draft. I continue returning to the draft, playing with the ideas and the shape of the piece. Eventually, I decide that I need to put the project aside. Then in a day or two or longer if its a larger project I come back and see what I have. Revision is always a challenging process, especially if the words on the page arent matching the vision I have in my mind. At this point, I typically stew around a lot and tell my husband that I hate being a writer, that I have no idea why I thought I wanted to take on this particular writing project. When things finally fall into place (and they almost always do), I love the feeling of having created something. I often say, I hate writing, but I love having written.

What do you enjoy most about writing?
I love it when Im in the zone when things are clicking, working, falling into place. When Im in that space, I lose all track of time Im just there with the piece of writing, and thats a sweet feeling. As I said above, however, my absolute favorite part of writing is having a completed piece. I love the feeling of having written something and being satisfied with it.

Briefly, how would you describe your teaching philosophy?
As a university writing instructor, my goal is to make writing accessible and engaging, a skill students can learn and even master, a tool they can use as they move forward into the larger university and into the multiple roles theyll play in their communities. I try to move students away from the common misconception that good writers dash off effective prose under pressure or at magic moments when they are seized with inspiration late at night. When writing doesnt come as easily to students as they imagine it comes to their peers, when they struggle to get words on the page or to complete a draft, their fears that they cant do writing are prematurely confirmed. I know that students will gain confidence and grow as writers if they can see the steps in the process as discrete increments they can attempt, master, and build on as they move forward in a project. As an experienced writer, I help emerging writers expand their bag of tricks, sharing with them tried-and-true techniques that Ive found useful in my own writing or that other writers and students have found to be productive. Also important to my teaching is the notion of community-based learning. I actively look for ways to connect classroom learning with students lived experiences and with the larger communities we inhabit. My recent WRIT 1122 and WRIT 1522 courses, for example, focused on the issue of homelessness in Denver, the focus of a DU partnership with the City of Denver. In the Honors course (WRIT 1522), students worked at Project Homeless Connect, DUs one-day event that provides services for homeless individuals in Denver. While I developed these courses, I was a Service-Learning Faculty Scholar in DUs Center for Civic Engagement and Service Learning (CCESL). Next year, Ill continue my work with CCESL, leading a year-long faculty discussion group that will explore the ways we might incorporate place-based learning more fully throughout the DU curriculum.

What drew you to become a writing teacher?
Ive been doing this for so longtwenty-five years that I cant even recall how I was initially drawn to this work. Teaching has been so integral to my sense of my self for such a long time that I cant really imagine not teaching.

What do you enjoy most about teaching writing?
I enjoy all the teaching Ive done literature, writing, editing, composition theory, technology integration. For me, it is not so much about the particular subject matter Im teaching but rather the privilege of working with human beings who are in the process of becoming themselves. I love working with college students because they are just on the brink of launching out into the world. Its a very exciting time in a persons life, and I love being part of that.

What are your hobbies and outside interests?
My absolute favorite thing is to spend time with my husband, our dog, our cat, our friends and neighbors. We live in a cohousing community in North Boulder its a very close-knit community, and we spend a lot of time relaxing and enjoying each others company. My husband and I are also passionate about music acoustic, folks, American roots, and world music. We listen to a lot of music in our home, and the two of us also produce a house concert series. When I want quiet time, I love to cook and love to read.

Name an unusual or little-known fact about yourself.
I grew up around motorcycles. In fact, I had my first motorcycle ride at age three weeks!

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