Summer Reading Thing 2009

LDS Publisher is hosting a Summer Reading Thing. Since I do so much reading in the summer I decided to take part. The rules are simple. You make a list of books to read during the summer - as many or as few as you want. They have to be by LDS authors. You also have to post at least one review on your blog. The rest of the rules can be found here.

This list is just the beginning. I'm sure I'll add to it as the summer progresses.

1. Agent in Old Lace by Tristi Pinkston
2. Lemon Tart by Josi Kilpack
3. The Hourglass Door by Lisa Mangum
4. The Hunt for Dark Infinity by James Dashner
5. The Golden Verses by Barbara Miller
6. Recovering Charles by Jason F. Wright
7. Eyes of a Stranger by Rachel Ann Nunes
8. Princess at the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George

LDStorymakers Conference and Whitney 2009

The registration for the LDStorymakers conference opened up in December. It's a great writer's conference and one I try not to miss. I remember the first time I attended, feeling a little like an imposter - a writer wanna be. Being one of those classic introverts who doesn't handle crowds well I worried about whether I would even get anything out of the conference since I knew my tendency to fade into the woodwork and observe rather than take part. But I wanted to reach my dreams bad enough so I swallowed the fears and went - although I did have to talk my sister-in-law into coming with me for moral support.

That first conference I attended was amazing. I've never felt more at home in a crowd of strangers than I did in that room full of people who understood the way I think. They understood the feeling of having a character wake you up in the night just so their story could be told. They understood the frustration of trying to decide which book to write next. They understood the absolute drive to put pen to paper and rewrite until the words flow in exactly the right way.

Since then I've looked forward to the conference every year. I've met incredible people, received encouragement and advice from authors I admire, and discovered many I call friends. Really I just went to learn a little more about how to be better at what I do, but the benefits that came on the side have changed my life. So if you're a writer and haven't attended the LDStorymakers conference, I encourage you to go. I'll be getting my registration in this week.

Last year the experience became even more incredible as they added the Whitney Awards Gala to the two day conference. It was amazing to attend the first ever awards and see wonderful LDS writers being honoured by their peers. As much as I enjoyed the Whitney Gala last year and would love to go this year, I've decided not to purchase a ticket, in the interest of saving money, since the drive from Canada to Utah eats up a large portion of my budget, and money's tight this time around. But I'll be watching online that night to finally hear who the winners are.

Meanwhile, I'm waiting impatiently for the finalists for the 2008 Whitney Awards to be announced. I know those responsible for putting the list together are hard at work and will announce the titles as soon as possible. Even though the finalists for the 2008 year aren't out yet, there are already a few books to add to the list for the 2009 awards. I love keeping a list here as it helps me keep up with what's new and I love trying to read as many as I can. So once again, I'm planning on keeping a list of books eligible for the 2009 awards.

I do have one question for you. Which type of list do you prefer - alphabetical by author, or alphabetical by title? I'm also asking for the names and authors of any books you know of, written by an LDS author and published in 2009 that need to be placed on the list.

The LDS Fiction Debate

There is lots of discussion over the last few days about LDS fiction and what is acceptable and unacceptable under that label. Being the highly opinionated person I am, of course I had to weigh in.

There is a whole range of church activity and levels of testimony. There are people in the church who use bad language. There are those in the church who push modesty in dress as far as they can. I know people who accept church callings when they are convenient and even then give the bishop stipulations on their acceptance. There are LDS writers who write for the national market and put explicit sex scenes in their work. I’m not here to pass judgment on them. We all have to live with our own conscience and we will all have to answer to our choices someday.

But when we write under the umbrella of LDS fiction, shouldn’t we try to use powerful words and ideas rather than appeal to people’s baser instincts? Shouldn’t we as LDS people strive to write fiction that is powerful and life changing without bowing to the standards of the rest of the world?

I don’t think that means we leave out possible offensive content. Some people do swear, abuse and sexual indiscretions happen, and there are many other terrible things taking place around us. But I have read many books where these things are dealt with in a tasteful and powerful manner. I don’t need to have every detail of every event spelled out for me.

At the same time, I don’t want to return to the days of what my mother used to call “sappy” LDS books. You know, the ones where everyone is converted by the end of the story and all the problems are answered by using enough prayer and love. The real world just doesn’t always work that way. So where does that line get drawn? Different people will be offended by different things and no writer or publisher will ever be able to please everyone.

For me it comes down to the impression I want to leave with my readers. I want my LDS readers to feel comfortable reading my work, knowing that I try not to put things in my books that would offend the average member of the LDS church. I want my non-LDS readers to have a good story to read and if they find out I am LDS, I want them to be able to match the writing in my stories with the standards and public image the church has.

I believe work under the LDS fiction umbrella should be held to a higher standard. I think on some level the work should portray LDS values – whether through the actions of the characters or the way sensitive subject matter is dealt with. If LDS writers want to write books that push the boundaries and are “edgy”, they should try publishing nationally. Orson Scott Card is a good example of this. He writes what he wants. He is LDS. And he has offended some LDS people with his writing. At the same time, he never claimed to write LDS fiction.

So what do you think? As a writer or a reader, what do you look for in books and where should the line be drawn for offensive material in an “LDS” book?

What Do You Read and Why?

"What do you read and why do you read it?

It has been reported that less and less people are reading. Over on Murderati they've talked about letting your characters say and do whatever they want, even if it's intensely graphic. This is what writers have been doing. So, is this why you read less or does it have nothing to do with it?"

Candace Salima asked this question of those of us who belong to LDS blogs. First, I have to say that if I read less than I used to, it is mainly a time issue. That said, I do find it much harder to find good books, and I tend to put more and more books down after a chapter or two.

As a teenager, I loved books by Victoria Holt, Phyllis A. Whitney, Mary Higgins Clark, and Robin Cook. They always provided a great suspenseful story as well as the right dose of romance. Over the last several years, the trend I have noticed in similar books is that there is more bad language, more violence and explicit sex. I personally don't find any of this adds to the story. I always remember being told as a kid that people who resorted to using bad language and talking of crude things, weren't smart enough to think of a better way speak. I understand the argument that there are people in the world who speak that way and do those things. But I have also read books where you get the feeling of the character and worldly things happening without being graphic about it.

In the last two years, I have started reading less fiction published by the big publishing houses, and more LDS and Christian fiction. When I turned to these options, I found I was still getting great stories without all the bad language and graphic scenes that make me throw the book away. So I don't read less, I read different. I refuse to read books with bad language or graphic scenes. I don't think any story is good enough to make me sacrifice my standards. And there is a lot out there that is worth my time.

Whitney Award at Book Club

I received a phone call yesterday asking me me if the Relief Society book club could be held at my house in September. Of course I said yes. I love our book club. The ladies are fun to be with and we have some good discussions. But sometimes I have a hard time with the books they choose. Often they pick books that are a little far out in the attempt to try new things. Funny thing is, most of the time few of them actually enjoy the books. We do have good discussions though. It is almost like they feel that fiction isn't quality unless we don't enjoy it.

Anyway, I think at our next meeting I would like to introduce the Whitney Awards. I believe because we are an LDS book club we should do something to support LDS fiction. Most of the time when I mention this, people roll their eyes and change the subject to talk about "real" writing. I hope that by encouraging them to read some current novels written by LDS authors, we might find some books to nominate for the Whitney awards and develop increased appreciation for the stories that stem from our own culture.

I have a few books that were published this year that I will recommend they read. My selection might be somewhat limited, though. If anyone has any other suggestions of the best books eligible for the Whitneys this year, I would appreciate hearing what they are. I am determined to get at least some of these ladies converted to LDS fiction and maybe even read some great stories in the process. And authors, feel free to recommend your own books :)

Supporting LDS Fiction

I have been reading LDS fiction since my teenage years. Many of these books are memorable and touched me in some positive way. There are also many that aren’t so well written. That has been the problem with the LDS market for some time. So many of my friends and family brush off LDS fiction as not worth their time or energy. They say the stories are sappy, the writing poor and they get tired of the preaching. I agree with everything they say, to a point.

As an avid reader of just about anything I can get my hands on, I have seen the improvement over the years and know that LDS fiction is so much more than it used to be. Yes, there is still bad writing out there, and there are still stories that are preachy. But there are also well-written, exciting books that explore the human side of life with an LDS perspective. There are books facing the reality that even though we are LDS we are not perfect and we still struggle with the same issues that plague the rest of the world.

Over the last few years it has become harder and harder to find a book published on the national market that is worth my time. I don’t like to wade through bad language, explicit violence or sex. I am finding this problem even in the books marketed nationally for my teenagers. I am reading more and more YA fiction just to screen it for my children.

This is the beauty of the LDS market. I feel confident that I can buy the books they publish without fear of what I may find inside. They do tackle some tough issues, but they do it with sensitivity and without the need to offend. For those of you who read LDS fiction years ago and haven’t touched it since, give it another try. The writing is always improving, the topics are thought provoking and there is something in every genre.

The best way to see LDS fiction improve is to support the industry. Buy the books you like and recommend them to your friends and family. Let your local LDS bookstore know what kind of books you would like to read. The word will get back to the publishers and authors.