writing and reading sci-fi, fantasy, and nonfiction
Author: Liz Busby
Liz Busby is a writer of creative non-fiction, technical writing, and speculative fiction. She loves reading science fiction, fantasy, history, science writing, and self help, as well as pretty much anything that holds still for long enough.
I’m back! A two-week vacation in DC with my husband for our 15th anniversary plus a short family vacation with my parents and siblings was just what I needed after the hecticness of June. Though vacations have their own special brand of hecticness, the packing and unpacking, the chaos of not having any sort of routine or rhythm. Now there’s less than a week until the kids start school again (assuming they can all stay healthy, which given what’s been happening here the past few weeks is in doubt).
And I got a piece of good news last night: my short story “Birthright” received an Honorable Mention in the Writers of the Future contest for volume 39, quarter 2. It’s not one of the top spots, but it does put me in the top 500 or so out of the thousands of entries they received. This was my first time entering, so this result makes me optimistic about my future chances–and my fiction-writing in general. I had almost talked myself out of fiction writing, having decided that I’m more of an academic and want to get an MA rather than an MFA. But now I’m all excited to start writing stories again.
Speaking of stories, this month’s book reviews include DNFs (that’s “did not finish”) and a lot of extra vacation reading. Nine books in all, which is pretty high for me. Check them out after the jump.
This month I was the ending of a lot of things: my speculative fiction class at BYU (which convinced me to apply to grad programs next year), my Under the Banner of Heaven analysis for Public Square Magazine, and my presentation on colonialism in the Stormlight Archive for the Mormon History Association. We’ve also put the podcast on summer break.
I am kind of exhausted and looking forward to a summer break and maybe getting back into some fiction writing of my own after all this academic and nonfiction writing. I’m going to just try to relax for the whole month of July, then jump back into the mix in August as the kids go back to school. (Did I mention my youngest is starting first grade?! It feels both so long in coming and too soon at the same time.) I will certainly be doing a lot of reading during the break, trying to catch up on a few books people sent to me for review as well as books that I bought at LTUE and MHA. A reader’s work is never done!
Earlier this year, I heard that a TV series adaptation of Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer was coming to Hulu. The book title sounded familiar: I knew it was about Mormons, but I had never read it. I reached out to a couple Twitter friends to ask if the book was worth reading and if I should watch the show. After a couple conversations, I learned that Krakauer’s book was a flashpoint: though the book is generally scorned by historians, it’s been one of the top sellers in Amazon’s Mormonism category since it released in 2003. (In fact, the top 8 books as of this writing are all polygamy exposes of one stripe or another; #9 is the inimitable Rough Stone Rolling, so there’s that.)
A #Mormoninthe80s Twitter campaign I started because of the “pioneer dress gambit” in ep 1
I ended up volunteering to write reviews of each episode for Public Square Magazine. As I am not a historian (either of the Lafferty murders or of Mormon history as portrayed in the series), the perspective I decided to take was of a writer, and particularly a writer of Mormon fiction and nonfiction. (You can read an explanation of this perspective in the introduction to the series.) Again, as I’m not a member of the fundamentalist community, I tried to generally set aside the show’s portrayal of those parts of our tradition. But I do consider myself an expert on the mainstream LDS church, especially of the “Utah Mormon” variety, having grown up only a few miles down the highway from where the murders took place, though admittedly a few years later. My coverage resulted in me taking part in an interview with the LA Times about Mormon reactions to the show.
You can hear more of my overall thoughts tomorrow when the Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree episode on the series releases. (Subscribe so you don’t miss it!) But in general, I was really disappointed with the show. There is definitely a need for Mormon literature and film which isn’t one of the two extremes (faith-promoting perfection or anger-filled exposes). If this show had been more like Murder Among the Mormons, Educated, or Brigham City, there could have been more interesting discussions to be had about power dynamics in the church and the limitations of revelation. As McKay Coppins wrote in his piece in the Atlantic today, the show isn’t there for a complex conversation; it’s there “to serve a stereotype, to exoticize a people and flatten their faith tradition.” It’s a thesis driven show, not a conversation starter; and the thesis is one that every religious person in the world should be offended by, even if they don’t particularly like Mormons.
I’ve been having a blast in the “fairy tales and other speculative fictions” class I’ve been taking at BYU this term. In fact, it’s almost over! Most of my reading this month was for the class. I have a good stack of books I’m halfway through but can’t seem to make progress in because of all the assigned reading. I forgot how much time college courses absorb. But no regrets, because I’ve also done of lot of reading on theories of speculative fiction, which doesn’t show up here, as it’s mostly articles, but will no doubt help me in future research.
Writing updates: I didn’t make the cut for the Mormon Lit Blitz this time, but I’m very intrigued by the titles of the finalists. If you’re reading along, join me on social media to chat about the entries. For my class’s final project, I’m working on a paper about Piranesi and the power of stories in the pandemic. And this weekend I’m presenting at the Mormon History Association conference about Mormon colonialism in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive. This builds off of last year’s paper on Mormon theology in the series. If you missed it, also make sure to check out the latest episode of Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree about films and faith crisis based on an essay by Chris Wei. I think it’s our best episode yet!
It’s a speculative fiction blitz this month with only four book read. I’m a little surpri My nonfiction reading has been tied up with a couple projects including finishing my presentation for the Mormon History Association conference in June. I’m going to be talking about Mormon colonialism in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive, which has been fun but exhausting to research. I also started my reading for the graduate class in speculative fiction I’m taking on a post-baccalaureate basis. This is one of my goals for 2022; I’m hoping it will help me decide whether I really want to go back for an MA or MFA in the next few years.
I’ve also squeezed a little fiction writing in, submitting to a couple flash fiction contests. I didn’t make the cut for the Mormon Lit Blitz, but I’m excited by the titles of this year’s semifinalists. Tune in on May 30 to start reading with me!
