Most people haven’t read “Dear Mama,” a short story written about a doctor who writes letters to his dead mother in the middle of a post apocalyptic desert. That’s because “Dear Mama” is written by Park senior Ryan McCanna, who’s just beginning to gain attention due to her recent and first publishing deal.

Last year, Verona Publishing held a contest allowing Park students to submit their own short stories for a chance at winning monetary prizes and be featured in its newest book.

The result of the contest is “The Lantern of Truth,” a book composed of ten short stories with genres ranging from fantasy to suspenseful sci-fi to magical fantasy.

The projects’ main founder is Verona Publishing’s operator Jerry Wilson, who said his main focus was to give local teens a chance to show their work and encourage them to write in the future.

“The goal was to give students a chance to be published and to give them a platform for their writing careers,” Wilson said. “I hope I can install motivation for young people to continue writing.”

McCanna said the book contract has been a big first step for her and her classmates who hope to continue writing.

“I’m really proud of my friends and I for getting our first book contract,” McCanna said. “It’s really cool to say you’re a published author before you’re even out of high school.”

Another student who will be featured in the book is senior Leah Seal-Gray, who said she is glad she can finally hold the work she created.

“The best part is the satisfaction from having been thoroughly published,” Seal-Gray said. “It’s a very tangible accomplishment to be able to hold the book myself and nine other very talented writers created.”

The authors will sign their book from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. this Saturday at the St. Louis Park Public Library. Wilson said he hopes the community will be able to enjoy the work that the writers produced.

“I’m looking forward to the students telling their stories and listening to what the readers say about the book they produced,” Wilson said.