I found this post by Editorial Anonymous about a “Mormon Mafia” in publishing rather hilarious, for reasons I’ll explain in a moment. First, click here to read the post.

Now that you’ve stopped puzzling over why I found it so funny, I’ll share this secret tidbit of information about myself: I am a BYU graduate from Utah who writes young adult fiction! I only need to find me a husband and pop out a few kids before my multi-million dollar contract will arrive in the mail.

All joking aside, the letter writer has stumbled upon an interesting phenomenon at the moment, and I was curious when the talk would really start. Well, here it is, and now I think it’s time to explain:

Mormons have been given an ultrasupersecret mission to take over the world by writing young adult fiction with a scifi/fantasy bent. You may want to lock up your children.

Aw, shoot. I shouldn’t have said that. But honestly, anyone who thinks it’s some big conspiracy or divine mandate is reading too many paranormal romances and should lay off them for a few months.

What I see as the common thread with all of the popular and successful Mormon writers has to do more with cultural influence. Let me explain.

Members of the Mormon or LDS church (full name The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), have always been proponents of the arts, including music and dance from the church’s inception in 1830. The first, and probably most prominent, artistic endeavor was the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, formed in 1847.

Literary endeavors came later, near the turn of the twentieth century, with the admonition to write faith-promoting stories. For many years, those were the kind of books LDS authors wrote. I still remember all of the LDS books that were written when I was younger. I’d honestly say it was about this time (the late 70s to early 80s), that LDS fiction really began to develop and grow, as well as LDS authors turning to mainstream fiction with Orson Scott Card at the forefront.

In addition to Stephenie Meyer and Ally Condie, other popular LDS young adult fantasy authors include James Dashner, Shannon Hale, Aprilynne Pike, Brandon Mull, Brandon Sanderson, Jessica Day George, Mette Ivie Harrison, and Julie Berry.

An interesting article from The Boston Globe (click here to read) posits that the influx of Mormon writers in young adult fiction is due to the more wholesome nature of children’s and young adult stories. Members of the church are, on the whole, very conservative when it comes to sex, drugs, and violence. In adult literature, the progressing trend is to include one or all of those elements in great doses. It gets harder and harder to find well-written books with wonderful stories that don’t include graphic sex or violence. I readily admit that as one reason I prefer young adult books.

As for the fantasy aspect, author Shannon Hale says it best in the Boston Globe article: Mormonism and its tenets can seem pretty fantastic by others, so we’ve never really had issues with thinking imaginatively or outside commonly accepted ideas. Plus the fact that fantasy generally has clear concepts of good versus evil, right and wrong directly corresponds with church teachings on the same.

BYU, or Brigham Young University, is a church-sponsored university where members from around the world attend. It has an incredible atmosphere of diversity and learning. It has excellent programs in the arts, especially English, theater and film, music, and dance. I participated at one time or another in each of these (with the exception of theater). Each program is well supported and encouraged at BYU.

Finally, I see the influx of Mormon writers as a growing trend for Mormon artists in all areas. If you don’t believe me, I’ll offer a smattering of actors/singers/musicians/directors who are taking to the world stage (and I’m not even talking about the Osmonds).

Music:

David Archuleta

Brandon Flowers (The Killers)

SheDaisy

Brendon Urie (Panic! At the Disco)

Film:

Amy Adams (raised LDS)

Katherine Heigl (raised LDS)

Aaron Eckhart (BYU grad)

Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse, raised LDS)

John Heder (Napoleon Dynamite)

Jared Hess (wrote/directed Napoleon Dynamite)

Paul Walker (raised LDS)

Dance:

Julianne Hough (Dancing with the Stars)

In conclusion, there isn’t anything in the water or in the church doctrines that says we should write children’s or young adult literature. It’s a combination of cultural and other influences. Plus, there is a strong and supportive community of LDS writers, especially in Utah. I’ve met most of the writers I’ve listed above (no, I haven’t met Stephenie Meyer, but if I do, I’ll tell her hi) at various literary and cultural events. They are a down-to-earth group that encourages other would-be writers and accepts them into the fold whether they be famous or not. I’ve learned a lot about writing from them, especially what it means to give back and support others.

It is vital that authors get to know their characters, especially the main characters. I’ve compiled a list of questions that will help authors create complete personalities and histories for their characters.

These are frequently referred to as character bibles because they will be the go-to resource for information on your character. While it is important to know some of this information for minor characters (especially physical description), their bibles don’t need to be nearly as extensive. Not all points will require answers, but it is still beneficial to consider each of them. It is most helpful when the answers are written down for later reference.

This list is still evolving, so if you have suggestions for more questions to add, please include them in the comments.

Character:

Physical

Physical appearance

Age:

Height:

Weight:

Body type:

Shape of mouth/nose:

Shape of face:

Color/quality of eyes:

Color/texture/length of hair:

Shade/texture of skin:

Birthmarks:

Size/condition of hands:

Manner of dress:

Illness:

Voice and speech

Tone/pitch of voice:

Soft-spoken or loud:

Accent:

Odd rhythms of speech:

Nature of character’s vocabulary:

Grammatical or ungrammatical speech:

Curse words:

Slang:

Multilingual:

Movement and gestures

Hyperactive or slothful:

Awkward or graceful:

Expressive with hands or body:

Poor or good posture:

Ticks:

Agile or not:

Emotional

Personality

Bad:

Good:

Flaws:

Raison d’etre:

Fears:

Pleasures:

Joys:

Ideals:

Regrets:

Defeats:

Triumphs:

General likes/dislikes:

Sense of humor:

Dreams:

Plans for the future:

Attitudes toward children:

Attitudes toward money:

Attitudes toward life:

Grudges:

Revenge:

Personal history

Date of birth:

Place of birth:

Parents rich, poor/middle class:

Parents good, bad/indifferent:

Father’s occupation:

Mother’s occupation:

Ethnic background:

Childhood traumas:

Mental illness:

Brothers/sisters:

Most influential person in character’s childhood and why:

Spiritual

Belief System

Attitude toward sin/evil:

Attitude toward virtue/good:

Attitudes toward death:

Deities:

Atheist/agnostic:

Involvement of deities:

Religion:

How often attend services:

Devoutly or casually faithful:

Attitudes toward liquor/drugs:

Forbidden acts:

Virtues:

Vices:

Sexuality

Marital status:

Sexual preference:

Virgin, well-experienced or promiscuous:

Likes sex or not:

Good or bad lover:

Guilt-ridden or guilt-free:

Attitudes toward opposite sex:

Attitudes toward love:

Intellectual

Education

High school:

College:

Higher degrees:

Course of study:

Completed education:

Success in school:

Reading habits:

Politics:

Literacy:

Vocation

Job history:

Nature of career:

Has character changed career:

Performs job well or not:

Likes the work:

What boss/co-workers think of character:

Skills and talents

Skills

Talents

Hobbies:

Childhood hobbies:

Sports:

Supernatural

Magic

Ability:

Strength:

Weakness:

Physical appearance:

Rules:

Laws:

Consequences:

Societal perception:

Personal perception:

Harm/heal:

Redemption:

Weapons

Trademark weapon:

Special weapon:

Who made them:

Proficiency:

Appearance:

Markings:

Special abilities:

Species

Human/nonhuman:

Intermarry:

How many in world:

Shapeshift:

Procreation:

Death:

Age at death:

Feuds:

Mortal/immortal:

World of Origin

Family:

Society:

Procreation:

Social position:

Dependence:

Social class:

Birth rites:

Death rites:

Resources:

Friends:

Enemies:

This is why I work in publishing:

The author of Pocketdoodles for Girls* was so excited when I handed her an advance copy of the book, she started screaming, and then began crying. Seeing her so excited made me so happy for her and so excited that we’d produced such an adorable and wonderful book. I absolutely adore this book, and I’m not just saying that because I was the editor. I plan on buying a copy for myself to doodle in, and then giving it (and the boy book) out to every kid I know as gifts.

*The book doesn’t come out until March, but you can pre-order several copies now on Amazon. There is also a sibling book called Pocketdoodles for Boys that is awesome. So whether you know boys or girls, giving them these books will guarantee you the title of Coolest Person Ever.

With all of the talk of Best Books of the Year, Best Books of the Decade, Best Books of the Century, I thought it would be interesting to reflect on publishing as it was ten years ago. I’ll refrain from analyzing for the moment and instead let you see how much things have changed in a decade and (arguably) a century.

Below are various topics that have had a large impact on publishing over the last decade. Visit the links to see just how much some of these areas have changed since 1999.

Harry Potter

Twilight

Oprah Book Club

e-books

electronic rights/royalties

e-book readers

drm

iPhone

POD

Scribd

Amazon

Google Book Settlement

IndieBound [Number of ABA members: 5,200 (1991) -> 3,300 (1998) -> 1,200 (2009)]

newspaper book sections

Twitter

book trailers

How have changes in the publishing industry affected you and your work?

(I’ll chime in with my thoughts next week.)

Good fiction is, at its heart, about truth. Some may disagree with this statement, but think about it for a moment. The books and characters that resonate with us most deeply as readers and humans speak to us on a level that is hard to describe. They tell us something about ourselves and the world around us.

Some of the things they tell us aren’t nice. They can be unpleasant and downright uncomfortable. But if the writer is being true to the story and characters, she is writing exactly what those characters would do and say.

There’s a saying common among writers: Write what you know. Okay, so if I followed this strictly, I could only write realistic fiction about a 28-year-old single Mormon woman. That would be fine if I were writing a memoir. But I’m not.

The thing about writers—the best ones, the ones who create the most believable worlds, whether realistic or fantasy—is that they imagine. Their minds are filled with what-ifs. They see a situation, hear a story, notice a person, and their mind takes them down a long road of “what if this person … ”

Now these writers, they imagine a lot of things. Some of those things continue the story and keep it moving forward. But sometimes writers must stop and ask themselves deeper questions. If I write this, people may get upset and ban my book. Am I willing to accept that? Should I tone this down and write it so no one would get upset? Would my character really, honestly, truly act this way?

Swinging around to where we started, we have to stick to truth when we write, truth at its most basic. We have to accurately portray the world of these characters and write them honestly.

My biggest frustration with books is when a heroine does something so completely out of character that the entire story feels false. When a story ends in a way that doesn’t feel right. I’m not referring to “right” in the moral sense of the word, but “right” in the sense that the story doesn’t ring true, isn’t true to the people in it. The book could have been absolutely perfect up to that point, but then that moment comes when the writer messes it all up. The character says or does something alien to their nature, so the entire book feels false and unrealistic.

I see this happening when the writer doesn’t really know who her characters are. She hasn’t delved enough into their psyche. But this can also happen with the writer comes to that point in the story—that pivotal moment when one action or word changes everything—and they take the easy way out. They back off, pull back, and make everything better. Or they throw in violence, sex, something so sensational that it’s sure to cause tongues to wag. In either case, they have committed the fatal error of not being true to the characters or the story. They took the easy way out.

Now let me explain what precipitated this entire thought process.

I don’t swear. I don’t drink, do drugs, sleep around. I’m the quintessential “good girl.” I don’t say this to brag in any way, but to explain. I don’t do any of those things, but some of the characters I write do. In the book I’m currently writing, none of the characters would be considered “good” girls.

These girls, well, they swear. I shied away from it for quite a while, tried to phrase things in a way that would tiptoe around it. Then I realized that I wasn’t being true to these girls I’m writing. Their lives are so different from my experience and my life, but when I imagine these girls, I can see and hear and know them. They are in difficult situations and they don’t always keep their language clean. They have made choices and taken actions I would never even consider. But they have.

Some people may well be disappointed in my choice to write about characters in these situations without lambasting them and their actions. I’m neither condoning nor condemning them, but whatever my personal views, I have to be true to these girls or I would be the one lying.

Everything is not clean and easy with this book. I’ve already bawled my eyes out while writing, and I’m only a third of the way into the manuscript. I’ve had to confront some really tough emotions and thoughts because these girls do. I wanted to take the easy way with this story, but the girls wouldn’t let me. I was lying to them and myself. Now that I’ve realized this, I understand these girls so much better. Now I can tell their story honestly and truly.

Yes, publishers are pushing more of the publicity efforts on authors. There are several reasons for this:

1) Shrinking publicity and advertising budgets (plus they generally focus on the “sure wins,” so midlist and new authors have a harder time getting any of the advertising pie).

2) In the past, publishers had several steps removing them from their readers.

Publisher -> Sales reps -> Buyers for bookstores -> Booksellers/Librarians -> Reader (and somewhere floating in there are professional book reviewers)

That’s still the basic format for publishing, but it is swiftly changing. People are buying their books from Amazon, often based on recommendations from friends or ratings ordinary people post on the site. That cuts out the three middle steps. Amazon stocks just about everything in print, so there’s no need for sales reps to decide which books to push on bookstore buyers, no need for bookstore buyers to select which books the store purchases, and no need for booksellers to hand sell or reviewers to review because readers are choosing their purchases based on recommendations from friends and strangers online.

4) Getting a great review in The New York Times does not guarantee a large increase in sales—not anymore. Press attention does not have the persuasive buying influence it once did. Media attention is nice, of course, and should be sought, but it isn’t a golden ticket. What does help is getting great buzz in online communities, great reviews on Amazon and similar sites, and high sales rankings on Amazon. The reason for this is because it creates buzz and word of mouth.

The biggest example of this in recent years is Twilight. I realize everyone and their poodle has been talking about Twilight lately, but that is precisely it—people are talking about it. When the first book came out, it was relatively unknown. When the second book appeared on the market, I started hearing a more about it. I was attending the same university that Meyer graduated from, so we heard word of the books a little earlier than many. By the time the third book pubbed, teenage girls and middle-aged moms were shouting its praises. Now, I’m not sure if there’s anyone on the planet who hasn’t heard of these books. (This may be a slight exaggeration, but still.) What got this momentum going was word of mouth. Girls telling friends, their moms, their hairdressers, their teachers about these books. Now it’s an international phenomenon.