Category Archives: Community Voices

Reader’s Corner: That One Story…

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Scott Parkin

I want to ask you to tell me about that one story—whether novel, TV show, song lyric, short story, poem, oral tradition, folk tale, or true-life experience—that has stuck with you far beyond its telling, that fired your imagination and made you either want to read or write more.

It’s often not the best told or generally approved story you’ve read or heard, but it is the one that simply won’t leave your head. The powerful ur-story that changed the way you thought most profoundly. It may be inspirational or banal, famous or obscure, true or fantastic, uplifting or condemning. Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Storytelling and Community | Tagged | 13 Comments

An Interview with Johnny Townsend

Posted on December 3, 2012 by Guest

by Gerald S. Argetsinger Gerald Argetsinger is an Associate Professor in the Department of Cultural and Creative Studies, Rochester Institute of Technology. He has published extensively on Scandinavian Theatre, dramatic literature, and magic. He also founder of the Gay Mormon … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Mormon LitCrit, The Writer's Desk | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

Discussion: Your take on the Four Centuries contest stories

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Scott Parkin

James Goldberg’s Four Centuries of Mormon Stories contest was a fantastic opportunity to get a look at twelve excellent visions on Mormon short-short stories told from a wide variety of viewpoints and structures. Each story was posted online, and open … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Storytelling and Community | Tagged , | 20 Comments

Conversations and Invitations: My 2013 Vision for the AML Blog

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Jonathan Langford

I’ve always liked a good conversation with smart and insightful people. It almost doesn’t matter what the topic is. All the better, though, when we share interests and concerns that are near and dear to my heart — such as … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Electronic Age | 9 Comments

Observations: The Challenge of Recasting

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Scott Parkin

As we age and learn, we often recast the things we experienced in earlier life in light of that new knowledge. We intentionally re-contextualize and re-index. We discover and formulate a larger—and hopefully more complete—story of that experience. Sadly, in the process we also tend to rob much of the vital essence from those experiences. Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Personal Narratives | 7 Comments

Windmill Variations: In Defense of Message-Driven Fiction

Posted on October 15, 2012 by Scott Parkin

I suspect inopportune literalism is the primary limiting factor in my confusion as to why good fiction must not, dare not, shall not contain a message. I read the books that others tell me are “good” and I see messages aplenty, and more often than not I see aggressive arguments for particular viewpoints. Scout may pretend to be unformed and open-minded, but “To Kill A Mockingbird” leaves no doubts about what the author believes are better (and lesser) moral conclusions through her voice. Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Storytelling and Community, The Populist's Soapbox, The Writer's Desk | Tagged | 3 Comments

Publishers Corner: Write the Story that Matters

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Chris Bigelow

Guest post by Christopher Loke, executive editor of Jolly Fish Press When I was first approached to join Jolly Fish Press (JFP) as executive editor, my first question was, why Utah. After all, all of the houses I’ve been involved … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Voices, Publishers Corner | Tagged | 1 Comment

Modern Romance for the Modern Mormon Woman

Posted on October 3, 2012 by Jessie Christensen

I started hearing about Melanie Jacobson early last year when her first book, The List, was published by Covenant. It sounded interesting, but I didn’t read either of that book or her second, Not My Type, until both books became … Continue reading →

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Richard Cracroft: Go Gentle

Posted on October 1, 2012 by Margaret Blair Young

I knew him first as a presence: an unbearded Santa Claus with thin lips, glasses, and a good pate of gray hair parted on the side. He could tell funny stories until his audience was slap-laugh-crying. I remember him imitating … Continue reading →

Posted in Announcements, Community Voices | Tagged | 3 Comments

Death of Richard Cracroft

Posted on September 21, 2012 by Jonathan Langford

Everyone in the world of Mormon letters will be saddened to hear of the death of Richard Cracroft yesterday, September 20, 2012. A giant has left us. For more details, see the Deseret News obituary.

Posted in Announcements, Community Voices | 13 Comments