By Tyler Lilly – Editorial and News Editor

Mr. Healy is the Advanced Creative Writing and Publishing teacher at Law. Advocate Editorial and News Editor Tyler Lilly interviewed Healy about the class.

Tyler Lilly: What do you like most about teaching Creative Writing?

Mr. Healy: I just love art, including stories, and so helping young artists tap into their potential and guide them has always been rewarding to me. Plus, I love learning alongside students. Every year, I learn and find new techniques. Lastly, I love reading the stories students come up with. They’re random, and funny, and sad, and complicated, and they just always bring up interesting, thought provoking topics that I don’t always get to discuss in a core English class.

TL: What obstacles do you face trying to get the book published? 

MH: First, just getting stories ready to publish. It’s a big task to get high school level writing up to that advanced, polished level. Then really it’s just the work it takes to get the book formatted, printed, and shipped, which is something that goes above and beyond the responsibilities I have in other classes. but I love doing it.

TL: How many years have you taught Creative Writing?

MH: Seven years.

TL: What Creative Writing advice do you have for students?

Mr. Healy: So much, but let me try to give you one pithy maxim. I guess I love the advice, “write what you know.” So many students want to write these big, epic fantasies, or mysteries, involving all sorts of complicated ideas. So they struggle because there’s a lot they need to learn or come up with to make it realistic and detailed enough to be published, so they give up because they didn’t realize that challenge. But I would say, especially when you’re just getting started, try to mine your own life and experiences for interesting and thought provoking moments and conflicts, because you’ll find writing about those much easier. Then read and learn as much as you can to increase what you know about, so when you go to write about cops, or doctors, or armies, you have more knowledge to tap into.

TL: What goals do you have for the Advanced Creative Writing and Publishing class this year?

Mr. Healy: I would love to publish another class anthology, but overall, I just want to see your confidence as writers grow.