I wonder why Mormon writers in the ’30s and ’40s like Vardis Fisher, Virginia Sorensen and Sam Taylor could publish with mainstream publishers and attract a non-LDS following and why mainstream publishers and audiences ignore LDS writers today.

I’m not sure this is true. Certainly OSC and Stephenie Meyer and Shannon Hale are not ignored, nor is the author that Heather H. referenced. I think if the writing is good enough, the story compelling enough, and the vampires sparkly enough , publishers are willing to go out on a limb for the book, regardless of the religion of the author. It makes me wonder if church members sometimes use the idea that they want to stay faithful as an excuse for mediocre writing.

This local article addresses this a bit. The school wanted to remove all “bullying” from the play. They have a strict “no bullying” policy and apparantly it extends to fictional characters in a school play.

The play’s director: “Bad people do bad things and say bad things. That’s how you recognize them as villains.”

Question 1 – Offense is in the eye of the beholder. If someone feels ostracized because of someone else’s honest story, that’s their problem, not the storyteller’s.

Question 2 – If you leave out the messy parts it will definitely not be captivating non-Mormons, and probably not captivating to Mormons either. Highly edited stories often don’t ring true.

Question 3 – I certainly hope so!

In an interview she stated,
“It’s hard to be true to yourself. I’m not Mormon enough to please most Mormons. I’m not non-Mormon enough to please most people in the comedy world. I don’t know which side I’ll end up on yet, but I’m trying to figure it out on my own time. Either that or straddling two worlds is such great fodder that I’m really just in it for the jokes.”

_______

Anyway, I think the question of how one can be LDS and an artist is one that confuses most people because of what artists typically stand for: breaking the rules, being rebellious, pushing the boundaries. But I’m here to say we aren’t all breaking the rules that will work against our reputations as members of the church, or really keeping in mind a particular audience… some of us are just creating because that is what we do.

If an artist’s body of work illuminates truth – that can be outside of a mormon audience and speak to people regardless of their religious standing I love the potential that the mix (of being mormon and being an artist) you have the great opportunity to let the spirit guide you, which can radiate in your work. The greatest confidence I’ve experienced in my work has come from that connection, afterall, who knows better about creativity than that One who created all?

And, a little side thought: If you are an LDS artist, that could mean an entirely different thing than being an artist who happens to be LDS. Sometimes it depends on the audience one is intending to be recognized by and that may change an artist’s voice… may not.

Such a good post = I feel like I could go on this topic forever!

In the arena of film, (and this is sounding like a lot of complaining, gulp!) I also didn’t like the movie about the bishop, “One Good Man.” Filled to the brim with happy-go-lucky Mormon experiences. FHE ice skating, heart-to-hearts with the wise grandpa, Mission farewells, Temple Marriages, Bishop befriending a dying widow, Bishop’s rebel daughter who (tah dah) repents. It was just too much. I’m guessing the conservative crowd loved it, but as a movie it was blah–painfully dull and rose-colored.

In contrast, the movie “Forever Strong” about the Highland High School rugby team was on the other end of the spectrum completely as far as I’m concerned. It was a quality piece of art, good acting, dramatic, well-written, great message. But it wasn’t “LDS” and so it has, I think, universal appeal. And there were drug references and other things that conservative members might not like. It was the better movie though.

I will admit here that I’ve always disliked driving through Utah where billboards display something Mormon company-owner-guy is selling to Joe Mormon. Mormons breeding off Mormons. Leaves a nasty taste in my mouth. I’d tell LDS artists to get out there and tell your story to the world. Life is filled with drama both in and out of the Church. When done well, it reflects well. When the difficulties of life are intentionally left out in order to create a “perfect” light, the leftover fluff doesn’t make for good art.

Hopefully nobody was offended in the reading of this comment, just one gal’s opinions. Cheers to all of you creative people, one especially to Melinda and the Jello Belt. LOVE YOUR BLOG NOVEL!!!!!!!!

As a Mormon musician, I actually found myself frustrated and offended by much of this talk (sorry…that probably says more about me than about the talk.) The assumption that many trained musicians are trying to glorify themselves in church meetings…I just don’t agree with it. And not only that, but I feel like the talk has guilt-maker written all over it. If you’re a Mormon artist and are NOT Shakespeare yet (and let’s face it…none of us are), I think the rhetoric here is that you’re just not trying hard enough.

I have volumes to say about this, apparently, and this isn’t even topic appropriate, so I’ll shut up now. Angela T., thanks for posting it…I actually think I’ll be trying to work through my frustrations to figure out what I need to learn from it. In general, when I have a strong reaction to a talk (Mothers Who Know…), it’s because I need to learn something.

One of my favorite articles by Elder Boyd K. Packer talks about LDS potential in the arts:
http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=dc83fd758096b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

“Is it possible to share an honest story that questions your own faith without ostracizing faithful members as part of your audience?”

Some fragment of the LDS community will always have issues with art that leaves unanswered questions. Despite the fact that we have been told by GAs that questions are good, some feel their testimony and faith threatened when there isn’t a faith-promoting answer for every question. Many great works of art ask questions for which there is no pat answer because life is complicated and imperfect.

I am getting used to the fact that not every situation in life has a solution or answer. My 7 year old is going to be fidgety in school, I refuse to put him on meds as a “solution”. My house is going to be messy because I have 4 kids, I refuse to spend inordinate amounts of time to make it appear otherwise. My faith, though strong, will not be perfect in this life so there will always be unanswered questions. Leaving them unasked aloud or in art does no one any favors. Approaching them with trust in God is another story, I believe there will one day be answers, so I am willing to live with questions, and I allow those who create art to do the same.

Another issue is realistic consequences in fiction. Recently in a discussion at AML
http://blog.mormonletters.org/post/2010/01/28/Whate28099s-Up-With-YA-Literature.aspx
several people felt that one reason YA fiction (and fiction in general) is so objectionable is it’s lack of realistic consequences. This is one of the great lacks in non-Mormon fiction. Can Mormon fiction writers rise to the call and create fiction that non-Mormon readers want to read while at the same time portraying realistic consequences? Or has the reading style of the modern world been so molded by unrealistic consequences that “real reality” no longer entertains? That is a challenge for Mormon fiction writers to rise to.

Many more thoughts on this (Isn’t judging art what we’re supposed to do? Compare our beliefs & ideals with the artists’ to see their truth and clarify our own? Even if we don’t agree, going through the analysis process is helpful.), but I won’t bore by rambling on.

Also, I spoke with an author recently who said the publisher has refused to tour one of his LDS friends because of the Prop 8 situation in California. So perhaps there are other (and very real) reasons to downplay the Mormon-ness, if you’re hoping to be published.

On the other hand, my husband recently created an LDS-themed web series called The Book of Jeremiah (www.jer3miahcom). It is set (ostensibly) at BYU and brandishes all kinds of cultural stand-bys as well as some uniquely Mormon lexicon, but it has been widely loved for its great storytelling and unique plot twists. Ironically, most of the people who struggle with the show’s content are LDS. It was picked up and given rave reviews by Salon.com and the New York Times, and seems to appeal to a very broad audience (both Mormon and non) despite its very strong LDS content.