Getting students to write is like giving shots. Getting most students to write in their free time is a joke. But 95 pages of original student artwork and writing pieces are no laughing matter.

The McKinney High School Literary Club, a student-led organization sponsored by Freshman English Teacher Kaitlin Allen, compiled a complete anthology of original works over the course of a few months last school year. This year they’re back and hoping to make the literary club bigger than ever.

“The Literary Club,” Ms. Allen said, “is a group of students who meets every Thursday after school in my classroom, and we write, we talk about our writing, and then we also collect writing from students all over school.”

She explained the products of the literary club for this school year.

“This year we wanted to expand (the anthology) to an online literary magazine in the fall as well, and we’re trying to collaborate with the art department and the photojournalism department to be able to include more artwork and more photography as well as original student writing.”

She also explained why she created the club in the first place.

“Last year was my first year at McKinney High School,” Ms. Allen said. “I was just blown away by the immense talent and creativity that so many of my students had in their writing, and after talking to students I realized there wasn’t really a place for them to share their writing with a larger audience.”

And this desire for an outlet of expression has been the driving force of the club from the start.

“Our goal was simple: to create an anthology of student writing and art to share with the world,” Ms. Allen said in The Lost Art Anthology Introduction from last year.

Check out the Literary Club Thursdays after school in room E104 and the Club’s first anthology at this link.