Read a short interview with the Fillmore Central School English Teacher, BUY THE BOOK !
By Andrew Harris
Publishing a book is a lifetime accomplishment that very few experience. An English Language Arts teacher from northern Allegany County NY has joined that elite club who can say something really cool in conversation:
“Yeah I wrote a book, a memoir. You can check it out on Amazon.com.”
Read the back of the book synopsis of “It’s Okay:”
😊”Buckle up! It’s Okay is a seriously funny ride through the journey of adolescence. This memoir sits squarely in the “coming of age” genre and invites nostalgia for the wonder years of youth. Brendan Heaney details a real-life coming of age experience that often seems stranger than fiction. Painful moments are both hilarious and heartfelt. Humor proves time and again to be the best medicine. Laughter and tears can be found within a search for purpose and meaning in everyday life. Packed with hard-earned stoicism and a sense for the absurd, this is a story of self-discovery that highlights the importance of finding meaning from the random chaos of life. It’s Okay is more than a memoir. It is a celebration of life.”
I asked Heaney a few questions about the endeavor of writing and publishing a memoir:
I’m wondering if you had a moment when writing a book just started, thoughts crystalized, and a process started ?
HEANEY: I guess I began writing the book long before I ever set pen to paper. In the book I describe how my classroom students have loved to hear my personal stories throughout my career as a teacher. In using these stories and bringing them into the classroom, I’ve gained an appreciation for their humor and the value of them as entertainment. The book is a personal memoir and it’s very much about the odd and funny things that happened because of the colorful characters I grew up with. It’s really a collection of stories that detail the joy and the pain of growing up. I wrote the book because an awesome student asked me to. Simply, he gave me a homework assignment and I did it. The first draft took a month to get down and then the process of refining and editing took place over a few years.
Does the accomplishment of writing and publishing a book make you want to keep writing books or was this a “one and done” kinda of mission ?
HEANEY: Publishing is hard and you have to be a little lucky and a little persistent to get that done. First and foremost, I’m a teacher. I love teaching. However, being a teacher and a writer at the same time is a tough gig. Stephen King said that coming home from a day of lessons and writing your book is a bit like trying to do something really hard after having jumper cables zapping your head. I’m paraphrasing. However, I love writing and have discovered the joy of people telling me that my stories have made them laugh and cry. That’s really all the praise I need. I tell my students that good writing makes you think and makes you feel. That’s my goal. I’m positive I have more stories in me that need to be told. I’m looking forward to outlining a new book. I’ve got a lot of ideas swimming in my head.
You teach reading and writing as an English teacher, how did this book impact your teaching philosophy ?
That’s a great question. I guess I got a little tired of talking about how Hemingway and Fitzgerald write and wanted to be able to talk about how I write. After all, I’m a writing teacher. Shouldn’t a writing teacher also write their own work? I have been using my written work in my classroom for a few years now and students are the best audience. If high school students who would rather be on their phones are having emotional reactions to my stories, I must be doing something right. I guess my teaching philosophy has expanded to challenge myself to not just be a teacher of other people’s ideas and work, but to allow myself the opportunity to use my own creative process and allow students into it. I want my students to be able to think critically and to love reading. I also want them to value writing and to be inspired to write and create for themselves. Essentially I’m trying to practice what I preach. I like doing that.
Most important— How do people buy the book ? Is there an e-book version ?
You can buy my book online if you go to Amazon or Barnes and Noble and type in “It’s Okay by Brendan Heaney“. LINK BELOW:
