Mahir Majid: Lawrence's Latest Student Author

Milan Naropanth ('23)

A remarkable feat

The average teenager placed into a NJDOE-certified English & Language Arts class will write a couple essays for their instructor to grade; the star student will perhaps write upwards of 10 pages to solidify their A+, while the honor student will suffice the constraints of any given assignment with the typical 5-paragraph essay. However, some students—namely Mahir Majid—will decide to go above and beyond the school curriculum and write their very own creative book.

How did you become interested in the idea of writing a novel at such a young age?

I always loved reading books in my childhood and my favorite reads were from the Harry

Potter series. Books have always fascinated me; in fact, in middle school, I read a novel series called the Michael Vey Series, and that served as my main inspiration in writing my book The Interstellar Tree. Once I read that specific series, I began writing short stories on random pieces of paper and that, in the long term, led to the development of the final copy of my book.

How did your personal experiences have an effect on the content of the novel?

Honestly, I didn’t include much of my personal experiences into the content of my novel and it was mostly drawn from the Michael Vey Series and me adding elements from my own imagination. Some of the character names and places were just me making me up random ideas from my own head. But I think that is what creativity is all about, so I guess my entire life led up to the random character names and places in The Interstellar Tree.

What was the actual process of writing the novel like?

Overall, it was a very complicated and tough process because oftentimes I would experience writing blocks where I couldn’t think of anything to write for days, but it was definitely a fun and enjoyable experience. I loved writing my book and creating my own world through it.

Do you plan on writing another novel anytime soon?

At the moment, no. I’m kind of worked up trying to prepare for college over the summer and other activities, so I feel that I wouldn’t have the time to do so. However, I will consider starting my second novel late into senior year or even in college.

The Interstellar Tree is available for purchase on Amazon here. Outside of writing, Mahir is an athlete and co-founder of the SAT Preparation club at Lawrence High School. He is hoping to continue a life of writing and creativity in his future.

Mahir Majid (shown to the right) presenting his published novel at Lawrence High School's library for other students