What I Read: May 2022

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!

Book reviews after the cut.

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What I Read: April 2022

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!

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What I Read: March 2022

opened book in hands of person against floral background on sunny day
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March was a busy month with the launch of Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree (subscribe please!), and now I’m entering a really busy time for writing in April, which is why this review post is late. I’ve also got several pieces out on submission that I’m hoping to hear back from soon, so cross your fingers for me.

When I started compiling this list, I felt like I hadn’t been reading a lot recently because of all this busy-ness. But pulling in all these reviews reminded me of the great stuff I’ve actually read. Yet another advantage to looking back on things.

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Introducing Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree: A New Podcast Taking A Mormon Perspective on Pop Culture

As you may remember from my Writer in Review post, one of my goals this year was to start a podcast. Well, I’m happy to announce that Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree is now ready for your listening pleasure! It’s a podcast where I have on a group of guests and we discuss a film or movie (maybe books some day!) from an LDS perspective. My co-hosts and I talk about gospel lessons and moral implications through story with that “Mormons ruin everything you love” twist. Ha ha.

What’s that you say? “Why a podcast?”

Well for one, I’m a huge fan of podcasts. I’ve listened to podcasts from the very beginning, before smartphones back when you had to manually download the file and upload it to your phone on a cable. Some of my early favorite podcasts were Pottercast and Grammar Girl.

Nowadays, I have almost 60 podcasts on my subscription list. I enjoy the comradery of the podcast format, listening to some knowledgeable, friendly people discuss something interesting that they know way too much about. It’s ideal small talk for introverts!

I’ve idly kicked around the idea of starting a podcast for a few years, but could never really settle on something. All the topics I could think of felt too heavy with too much research involved when my primary focus would always be on writing.

Then, this November when I was pointedly avoiding doing my writing for NaNoWriMo by poking around on Twitter. I stumbled across a podcast where Meg Conley discussed the movie Arrival from a Mormon perspective. This discussion mashing up LDS theology with science fiction was exactly the kind of thing that gets me excited, though I didn’t agree entirely with Meg’s perspective. I shared my thoughts on the podcast on an LDS Slack group I had recently joined. Someone idly suggested that a few of us should start a podcast “Mormonizing” pop culture.

One several-hour-long group-brainstorming session later, we had a 10-page document full of ideas and a great title: Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree. I wasn’t sure I was really going to go through with the idea. After all, I was barely finding the time to write. But the idea just wouldn’t leave me alone.

So in January I got together five friends and recorded an initial episode on Encanto. It was so much fun! It barely feels like it’s work at all.

Hopefully there are others out there who want to Mormonize pop culture, or listen to me talk about it! New episodes release every other Thursday. You can watch video episodes on YouTube or subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. Thanks for listening!

What I Read – February 2022

young woman reading book in winter park
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A short month with a lot of great books in it! I also got to attend the Life, the Universe and Everything Symposium for the first time since presenting at it as a student in 2008. I learned a lot from the panels, met up with some online acquaintances, and made some new writing friends who I’m hopefully going to start a critique group with. Lots of writing to do this month, so let’s get on with the reviews!

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