Before Altarious was even a concept, I was working as a substitute teacher at Harmony Science Academy in Austin, Texas. I had a 4th grade student that I was working with who was given an assignment to create a short story for her English class. However, she didn't know where she wanted to begin or how to write a story. In an effort to show her how to write a short story while helping her create her own short story, we discussed the type of stories she liked to read: mystical, mystery, family-oriented. We also discussed the types of characters she liked to read about. I then began penning "Our Family's Thanksgiving", with one of the main characters in the story, being based on her. I wanted to do something special for this student to encourage her love of reading and encourage her as a writer. Based on our conversation, I penned the three short-stories in this book, "Our Family's Thanksgiving", "Whodunnit?" and "Altarious: The Dreamland". Once the book was completed, I gifted her the very first copy (and special edition) of this book just before Thanksgiving Break. After the students returned from Thanksgiving break, she found me on campus and let me know how much she and her brothers loved the book, especially the story "Our Family's Thanksgiving." She thought it was amazing that someone had not only taken an interest in helping her academically, but also worked to create a project that was not only specifically made for her but also created to be a tool of encouragement.
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