Author Andy Darcy Theo Inspires Years 7 and 8

On Wednesday 15 and Thursday 16 October 2025, Beacon Academy was delighted to welcome bestselling YA author, Andy Darcy Theo, to the school to deliver 10 interactive workshops across two days to our Year 7 and 8 students.

All students in both year groups took part in a one-hour workshop with Andy, which included a talk about Andy's writing and publishing journey (including how he started writing his first book at the age of 13 as part of an English project at school); hints and tips on how students could write their own stories and get published; an interactive personality quiz (linked to the characters in his bestselling books); a Q&A with the author; and a book signing.

Reflecting on his visit, Andy Darcy Theo shared:

“It was such a pleasure visiting Beacon Academy to provide my author talk to Years 7 and 8. They were such an enthusiastic and respectful group of students, and it was great to see how engaged they were during the interactive elemental quiz. Many students asked such great questions about writing and publishing and we sold out of copies of The Light That Blinds Us, which was so lovely to see students so excited about reading. This was one of my favourite school visits so far and I would love to come back again!”

Student feedback:

Following the workshops, students shared what they found most inspiring about Andy’s visit:

• "That anyone no matter what age can follow their dreams."
• "That he started to write the first book when he was my age."
• "When writing a story you don't need it to be perfect because writing is unique to you and you only."
• "There are lots of steps to becoming an author."
• "How confident he is."

Feedback from staff:

• "I thought he was fab! A great role model for kids, too - confident yet with a gentle manner."
• "It was really great! It was pitched perfectly for the year groups and they were so engaged. Such a great role model for our students and to ignite their enthusiasm around their own writing. Definitely felt the students were comfortable to share ideas and questions. Really brilliant."

Katie Sherry, Head of Key Stage 3 English, said:

"It was wonderful to welcome Andy Darcy Theo to Beacon. We were so impressed with his engaging presenting style and the way in which he ignited our students' enthusiasm for writing and reading stories. He was incredibly personable and made the students feel at ease when sharing their own ideas. Several students have already approached me to say they are excited to begin writing their own novels following Andy's talk, which is amazing. Hopefully, some of our students will be delivering similar talks to Andy's in the future!"

About the author:

Andy Darcy Theo is the bestselling author of the BookTok sensation, The Light That Blinds Us - an epic, fast-paced YA romantasy.

Andy trained in clinical psychology and is a qualified teacher of psychology. He is also a prominent content creator on TikTok and Instagram, documenting his author journey and posting about book-related content.

For Andy, reading was never just a hobby. It was the most beautiful form of escapism, allowing him to live a hundred lives and experience a thousand things all from the comfort of his own room. Andy’s love for reading soon translated into a love for writing and he started writing his elemental fantasy series from age 13 as an English project at school. Inspired by psychology, diverse representation in literature and education of young adults, his books intertwine these in a joyful, thrilling way.