From: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com (aml-list-digest) To: aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: aml-list-digest V1 #216 Reply-To: aml-list Sender: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk aml-list-digest Thursday, December 7 2000 Volume 01 : Number 216 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2000 14:51:12 -0500 From: "Debra L. Brown" Subject: Re: [AML] DUTCHER, _God's Army_--PG Rating > Debra asked: > > "His one question was why [_God's Army_] was rated > PG?" > > It was language, pure and simple. My ears are still > ringing from the "flips", "fetches," and "Oh My > Hecks." OH! Is that why my Molly Mormon virgin ears were still ringing after the final credits rolled? He left out "for fun" and "dumber than a box of hair" though. Those are my two personal favorites from living in Ut. > When I saw the movie here in Georgia (it took forever > to get here) I thought I was in Sacrament Meeting. > Little kids where rustling about. People audibly said > "amen" periodically. Somebody in front of me snuck in > a Tuperware stuffed full of Cheerios. And then a guy > next to me fell asleep. No one remembered to bring > tissues. To top it all off, one "sister" allowed her 2 > year old to run around the theater screaming, up and > down the aisles, till someone got up and hailed an > usher. (What ever happened to ushers in the church > anyway? Anybody remember the "Usher" pins?) LOL You are tooooo funny! > For me, _God's Army_ was wonderful, in spite of the > weird feeling I had wandered into a "Rocky Mountain > Picture Show." I was thoroughly disappointed that the mourners didn't not break into _The Spirit of God_ as they were carrying off the casket. That would have been the crowning moment of the whole film. Well, that, and the last toilet picture taking scene. Debbie - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Dec 2000 13:05:47 -0700 From: Jacob Proffitt Subject: Re: [AML] _Savior of the World_ (Drama) On Wed, 6 Dec 2000 14:27:35 +1100 , Covell, Jason wrote: >I have a wonderful little book at home called _Marxist Aesthetics_. = You'd >think so just from the title, right? [Hey, I love the density of = "serious" >marxist writing (that's a little micro-aesthetic in itself, but not in = fact >what the book's about), although this book is relatively straightforward= in >tone. Translated from a French original, I think.] > >Anyway, one thing I've been meaning to do is to quote slabs of it to = some of >the most conservative Church members I know, only substituting "gospel" = for >"marxism", "missionary work" for "promoting class struggle" etc etc. I = can >almost guarantee that the reaction would be nods, approving noises. Speaking as one of the most conservative Church members *I* know, I = venture to say that I think you might be surprised if you actually tried it. Conservatives in the church get a bum rap from our artists sometimes. = Too often, 'conservative' is equated to 'unthinking cultural drone'. Such comparison does a disservice to faithful members honestly striving to = learn and grow. Just because I don't agree with the currently popular meme = from artistic circles doesn't mean that I disagree because I misunderstand the meme, or because I don't know enough about it, or because I'm dead set on disagreeing with 'those people' (any class of 'those' people). I just disagree with it. My recent statements about faith in literature, for example, don't stem from an inability to understand complex themes, = types, or theory. They don't stem from an unreasoning desire for closure or = Sunday School answers made real. I just don't like certain kinds of stories and= no amount of reeducation will alter that. Specific to your example above, I think you would have to translate too = many terms that are important, even essential, to Marxism to get the agreement you want. It's a nice idea to compare the institutional attitudes about art, but I doubt you can make as straightforward a translation as you suggest. Personally, I think that Eric Samuelsen pegged it pretty well = in his original post. He recognized the similarities and I think he did a great job describing the reasons behind those similarities without having= to attribute the cause to conservatism. Additionally, I think that we run a very real risk when we try to break = each other up into camps. It puts a divide between us that is artificial and = not very useful. A lot of scripture is dedicated to breaking down exactly = this kind of superficial division. Painting someone into a group and then showing them how similar they are to a different, hated group isn't going= to have the desired effect of showing how groups are bad... Jacob Proffitt - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Dec 2000 13:30:04 -0700 From: Jacob Proffitt Subject: Re: [AML] DUTCHER, _God's Army_--PG Rating On Tue, 5 Dec 2000 19:17:36 -0800 (PST), Ed Snow wrote: >For me, _God's Army_ was wonderful, in spite of the >weird feeling I had wandered into a "Rocky Mountain >Picture Show."=20 Oh my! If that didn't elicit the biggest laugh of my day... Thanks Ed! Jacob Proffitt - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Dec 2000 15:47:55 -0500 From: Tony Markham Subject: Re: [AML] Orgazmo (was: DUTCHER, _God's Army_) Like D.M.Martindale, I too waited for Orgazmo to appear on cable before seeing it. I found it boring and sleep-inducing (re: stupor of thought). But the portrayal of Young's stay-at-home and ever-faithful fiancee made me laugh. She's a wonderfully satired Molly Mormon. Tony Markham - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Dec 2000 09:49:14 +1100 From: "Covell, Jason" Subject: RE: [AML] _Savior of the World_ (Drama) > On Wed, 6 Dec 2000 14:27:35 +1100 , Covell, Jason wrote: > > >I have a wonderful little book at home called _Marxist Aesthetics_... > >Anyway, one thing I've been meaning to do is to quote slabs of it to some of > >the most conservative Church members I know, only substituting "gospel" for > >"marxism", "missionary work" for "promoting class struggle" etc etc. I can > >almost guarantee that the reaction would be nods, approving noises. > > Speaking as one of the most conservative Church members *I* > know, I venture > to say that I think you might be surprised if you actually tried it. > Conservatives in the church get a bum rap from our artists > sometimes. Too > often, 'conservative' is equated to 'unthinking cultural drone'. Such > comparison does a disservice to faithful members honestly > striving to learn > and grow. I just realised the cultural differences at work here. I'm from Australia, where simply being Mormon is at once to be considered conservative, if not ultra-conservative. And personally, I don't feel any need to fight that perception - hey, my family already thinks I'm a lost cause. I grew up in an artistic/intellectual home which was also outspokenly atheistic. My only memory of my eighth birthday is not my baptism (that took another 19 years), but getting Mao's _Little Red Book_ from my sister! I have a very good friend in the Church who is probably one of the most conservative members I know on matters of faith, doctrine and morality. He's certainly one of the most valiant and spiritual people I know, whose greatest weakness is his barely-concealed irritation at those members who pretend to be conservative but pay only lip service to fulfilling their callings. He's also a marxist. Anyway, my point is not to talk about marxism vs the gospel (or in support of it). I hadn't thought that my comments would be taken as an attack on "conservatives" in the sense that you mean - indeed, that word in the Utah context doesn't mean a lot to me in terms of the members I know, and it hadn't occurred that my comments would be taken that way. I only wanted to discuss an interesting little side-issue. > Specific to your example above, I think you would have to > translate too many > terms that are important, even essential, to Marxism to get > the agreement > you want. It's a nice idea to compare the institutional > attitudes about > art, but I doubt you can make as straightforward a translation as you > suggest. Personally, I think that Eric Samuelsen pegged it > pretty well in > his original post. He recognized the similarities and I > think he did a > great job describing the reasons behind those similarities > without having to > attribute the cause to conservatism. > Although I was making point rather glibly (and perhaps a little mischievously as well), my reaction to the particular book I mentioned ran much deeper. I kept reading and expecting to find the point of divergence, and while there may have been a few small dissonances (we are talking about a materialist philosophy here), I really thought much of the book was uncannily familiar. And not just from reading Mao as an impressionable eight-year-old. To do it justice, I'll have to go back and do a bit of a potted summary for the list. Yep, I'll do that. > Additionally, I think that we run a very real risk when we > try to break each > other up into camps. It puts a divide between us that is > artificial and not > very useful. A lot of scripture is dedicated to breaking > down exactly this > kind of superficial division. Painting someone into a group and then > showing them how similar they are to a different, hated group > isn't going to > have the desired effect of showing how groups are bad... > > Jacob Proffitt > Jason Covell - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2000 15:05:33 -0700 From: "Scott Tarbet" Subject: Re: [AML] _Savior of the World_ (Drama) > At first Scott says that he has no problem with _directors_ telling him, > the actor, what tool to use, or that he doesn't feel bad as a _director_ > telling actors what tool to use. Then he goes on to say that the Church > Brethren should have the same right as _producers_ to do the same thing. > > But a producer is not a director. The director is a professional, > therefore presumably knows what he's doing. The producer is an artistic > professional only by chance--many of them aren't. The only requirement > to become a producer is to be able to fork over the money. Sure, the > producer may have an artistic vision and want it to be realized. But > that doesn't mean he has a clue how to accomplish that realization. > Sure, he as the paying boss can insist that things be done a certain > way. But that doesn't mean he's wise to do so. IMO an artist is anyone who sets out to make art. That makes producers like the Brethren artists, even if only tangentially, and even if they wouldn't like the label much. What the Brethren did in this case was to get artists together to put together a premiere event for the new venue, and anybody who went anywhere near that project without realizing that their hand would be heavy wasn't thinking it through. > I haven't seen the play, so I have no idea what my critique of it would > be. But if I accept the critiques that have been given and speak > hypothetically, I would have to say that the Brethren's vision was _not_ > realized, even though they may think it was, because they who don't > understand the tools of theater dictated how things should be done. They > may get sold-out performances, teary-eyed audiences, and obligatory Utah > standing ovations, but are they converting anyone--changing people's > lives? Or are they merely preaching to the choir? Is that the result > they wanted? I doubt it. I have often waged a Sysiphian battle with my own attitude about the Brethren (particularly and repeatedly Elder Packer) and their public and private stances regarding art, going clear back to my BYU days in the 70's. It has often been difficult for me to reconcile my own desire to support the Brethren fully and my desire to see good art done for all the right reasons, irrespective of its correlatability. In the case of SOTW I am keeping firmly in mind that their clear goal is "perfecting the Saints", and that that is a result very much to be striven for. I don't know that it's their only criteria, but they showed by the way they set the whole thing up and followed through to the end that that was their primary one. Given that that's where they're coming from, and my ongoing struggle to support them fully as as prophets, seers, and revelators, with responsibility for the perfection of the Saints, I can't see my way clear to seriously question their judgement in how they discharge that responsibility. I remind myself that those who understand the tools shouldn't necessarily dictate the architecture. - -- Scott Tarbet - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2000 15:05:40 -0700 From: "Scott Tarbet" Subject: RE: [AML] _Savior of the World_ (Drama) > -----Original Message----- > From: D. Michael Martindale > I would assume when the Brethren make recommendations on how to change a > play to make it more spiritually inviting, they are doing so based on > what _they_ think is inspiring. But what inspires an apostle of Christ > is bound to be radically different from what inspires a person in need > of conversion. Therefore, when the Brethren attempt to tweak a work of > art to make it more inspiring, I fear they may actually be making it > unrelatable to those most in need of inspiration. I wouldn't make that assumption. I may be just one of those "the glass is half full" kind of guys, but my assumption would be that they are a tad wiser than that, and realize that they are making choices for a lower denominator than their own experience. Otherwise wouldn't you think that a group of relatively sophisticated, experienced, intelligent men would make some different choices? - -- Scott Tarbet - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Dec 2000 15:45:22 +1000 From: hchester Subject: Re: [AML] Orgazmo Could someone please fill me in on this movie. It doesn't sound like a kosher LDS production, but from this post appears related to LDS lifestyle in some way. Helena [Chester] Tony Markham wrote: > Like D.M.Martindale, I too waited for Orgazmo to appear on cable before seeing > it. I found it boring and sleep-inducing (re: stupor of thought). But the > portrayal of Young's stay-at-home and ever-faithful fiancee made me laugh. She's > a wonderfully satired Molly Mormon. > > Tony Markham > > - > AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature > http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Dec 2000 22:48:06 -0800 From: Jeff Needle Subject: Re: [AML] Orgazmo At 03:47 PM 12/6/2000 -0500, you wrote: >Like D.M.Martindale, I too waited for Orgazmo to appear on cable before seeing >it. I found it boring and sleep-inducing (re: stupor of thought). But the >portrayal of Young's stay-at-home and ever-faithful fiancee made me >laugh. She's >a wonderfully satired Molly Mormon. > >Tony Markham The scene I found funniest was when the protagonist went to pray over whether he should do the movie. He's praying before a statue (what's THAT all about?), asks for a sign, the whole house shakes, and he says something like, "Any sign will do..." Laughed out loud! But on balance, I don't much like these kinds of films. They poke fun at what some consider holy things, and this, to me, can go over the line. - --------------- Jeff Needle jeff.needle@general.com - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Dec 2000 08:34:47 -0700 From: Steve Subject: Re: [AML] _Savior of the World_ (Drama) on 12/6/00 8:11 AM, Scott Tarbet at starbet@timp.net wrote: > Don't you agree it's > time for a new term for this kind of presentation? And aren't you just the > guy to get the ball rolling? If such a term were in use the Church wouldn't > have had to apply the term "musical" to SOTW with the concomitant confusion > and dissatisfaction by those of us who were expecting a real musical. Everything I hear about SOTW (and I've tried to get tickets, but it was sold out) says that it actually is a musical. So why not just stick with that and let each viewer judge it accordingly by whatever standards they walk in with? Steve - -- skperry@mac.com - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Dec 2000 09:49:02 -0600 From: John Bennion (by way of Jonathan Langford ) Subject: [AML] John Bennion, Alan Mitchell Readiong I have a cold and can hardly focus. Could you announce the following (unless it has already been done and I missed it?) This is brief enough it could be given as a reminder. Reading by John Bennion and Alan Mitchel _Falling Toward Heaven_ and _Angel of the Danube_ 7:00 Friday, December 8 Read Leaf Bookstore 164 South Main Springville, Utah ________________ Professor John Bennion 3117 JKHB English Department Brigham Young University Provo, UT 84602-6280 Tel: (801) 378-3419 Fax: (801) 378-4705 - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2000 22:23:31 -0700 From: "veda hale" Subject: [AML] Easter Service in Zion's Park This is a multi-part message in MIME format. - ------=_NextPart_000_000A_01C05FD3.29E22AC0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable >From some research I'm doing..... 1935 and 36 the Zion Park service encouraged an Easter Service in the = park. Springtime in Zion is impressive any way you take it. It seems = like walking into the ambience of Easter where all nature is celebrating = renewal even while most of the surrounding area is still sleepy with = winter. The first two services were very successful and inspirational. Therefore, in 1937 the young Grant Redford instructor of Speech and = English in the then Branch Agricultural college in Cedar sought to do = more with the natural reverence and the surge in the souls of the people = of Southern Utah to celebrate Easter. Before graduating from Utah State = Agricultural college, he had toured the United States for two years with = the European Passion players of Freiburg, Germany. He wrote a pageant. = The C.C.C. boys built an amphitheater in the shadows of the great Alter = of Sacrifice in Zion canyon. The pageant was written to use the natural = setting reminiscent of the hills of Palestine. Scenes were arranged on = natural outcroppings to look natural and the acoustics were such that = artificial amplification wasn't much needed. The audience, minus little = children who wouldn't be able to participate in reverence, was asked to = be there early to find places on the opposite hill. As they took their = places, they listened to an hour of sacred music. D.C. Dix of the Salt = Lake Tribune April 10. 1938 wrote about that years pageant: "As resonant strains of the chorus reverberate from canyon wall to = canyon wall on Easter day at the sunset hour, in humble glorification of = the world's Savior, the last glimmer of sunlight will have faded from = heaven-stretched peaks of Zion national park. High on a ledge, above = the thousands who watch in silent adoration, a flood of lights will = suddenly reveal the spotless white robes of the resurrected Christus. = Powerful notes from the "Hallelujah chorus" from Handel's Messiah, echo = through bright gorges of the canyon to signalize the finale of Zion = park's solemnization of the Easter drama." Some 500 people from the surrounding area, Mormon and nonMormon = participated in the orchestra and chores and in other ways, giving of = their time enthusiastically. 5,000 people attended in 1937 and 10,000 = in 1938. By 1940 it had achieved national attention and was helping Southern = Utah find its place "under the sun". March 11, 1941 from the school paper, The Bucian: "The Zion Easter Pageant, which has achieved national fame during = the last several years, has been discontinued at the request of the = First Presidency of the Latter-Day Saints Church. This request was made to the pageant committee in a letter signed by = J. Reuben Clark and David O. McKay, first and second councilors of te = Church. Reasons given for this move are as follows: The mass exodus from = southern Utah communities breaks the Sabbath and detracts from church = services in those communities, impresonation of the Savior in the = pageant, "with spectators and perhaps participants of various faiths and = degrees of faith would almost inevitably produce an impersonation that = could not receive church approval." The letter concluded, "Finally, the discussion of the Brethren = revealed a feeling that the church must carefully watch giving its = approval of activities which are not strictly church activities . . . = .and there is more and more tendency ...as we more and more mingle with = nonmembers of the church, to take on the activities of nonmembers, = particularly where they have religious character and these accretions = have a tendency to change the simplicity of our ordinances and of our = faith." Because Church sanction was not given to the continuation of the = Pageant it was felt by the committee that it would be unwise to continue = the annual presentation." Well, so it was.... I grew up in Southern Utah. Our tradition was = to picnic on Easter and maybe throw rotten eggs at cars. But we never = got "contaminated" by anyone trying to reach our spirits with "art". Oh = well, I guess the Lord was saving Cedar City for the Shakespeare = festival. What do I know. By the way, does anyone know what happened to Grant Redford? He = left Utah after the pageant was discontinued and taught creative writing = at University of Washington and wrote a number of plays, but that's = about all I know. I need to find out. Veda Hale - ------=_NextPart_000_000A_01C05FD3.29E22AC0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
From some research I'm = doing.....
 
1935 and 36 the Zion Park service = encouraged an=20 Easter Service in the park.  Springtime in Zion is impressive any = way you=20 take it.  It seems like walking into the ambience of Easter where = all=20 nature is celebrating renewal even while most of the surrounding area is = still=20 sleepy with winter.  The first two services were very successful = and=20 inspirational.
Therefore, in 1937 the young Grant = Redford=20 instructor of Speech and English in the then Branch Agricultural college = in=20 Cedar sought to do more with the natural reverence and the surge in the = souls of=20 the people of Southern Utah to celebrate Easter.  Before graduating = from=20 Utah State Agricultural college, he had toured the United States for two = years=20 with the European Passion players of Freiburg, Germany.  He wrote = a =20 pageant.  The C.C.C. boys built an amphitheater in the shadows of = the great=20 Alter of Sacrifice in Zion canyon.  The pageant was written to use = the=20 natural setting reminiscent of the hills of Palestine.  Scenes were = arranged on natural outcroppings to look natural and the acoustics were = such=20 that artificial amplification wasn't much needed.  The audience, = minus=20 little children who wouldn't be able to participate in reverence, was = asked to=20 be there early to find places on the opposite hill.  As they took = their=20 places, they listened to an hour of sacred music.  D.C. Dix of the = Salt=20 Lake Tribune April 10. 1938 wrote about that years pageant:
"As resonant strains of the chorus = reverberate from=20 canyon wall to canyon wall on Easter day at the sunset hour, in humble=20 glorification of the world's Savior, the last glimmer of sunlight will = have=20 faded from heaven-stretched peaks of Zion national park.  High on a = ledge,=20 above the thousands who watch in silent adoration, a flood of lights = will=20 suddenly reveal the spotless white robes of the resurrected = Christus. =20 Powerful notes from the "Hallelujah chorus" from Handel's Messiah, echo = through=20 bright gorges of the canyon to signalize the finale of Zion park's = solemnization=20 of the Easter drama."
    Some 500 people from = the=20 surrounding area, Mormon and nonMormon participated in the orchestra = and chores=20 and in other ways, giving of their time enthusiastically.  5,000 = people=20 attended in 1937 and 10,000 in 1938.
    By 1940 it had = achieved national=20 attention and was helping Southern Utah find its place "under the=20 sun".
  March 11, 1941 from the school = paper, The=20 Bucian:
    "The Zion Easter = Pageant, which=20 has achieved national fame during the last several years, has been = discontinued=20 at the request of the First Presidency of the Latter-Day Saints=20 Church.
    This request was = made to the=20 pageant committee in a letter signed by J. Reuben Clark and David O. = McKay,=20 first and second councilors of te Church.
    Reasons given for = this move are=20 as follows:  The mass exodus from southern Utah communities breaks = the=20 Sabbath and detracts from church services in those communities, = impresonation of=20 the Savior in the pageant, "with spectators and perhaps participants of = various=20 faiths and degrees of faith would almost inevitably produce an = impersonation=20 that could not receive church approval."
    The letter = concluded, "Finally,=20 the discussion of the Brethren revealed a feeling that the church must = carefully=20 watch giving its approval of activities which are not strictly church = activities=20 . . . .and there is more and more tendency ...as we more and more mingle = with=20 nonmembers of the church, to take on the activities of nonmembers, = particularly=20 where they have religious character and these accretions have a tendency = to=20 change the simplicity of our ordinances and of our faith."
    Because Church = sanction was not=20 given to the continuation of the Pageant it was felt by the committee = that it=20 would be unwise to continue the annual presentation."
 
    Well, so it = was....  I grew=20 up in Southern Utah.  Our tradition was to picnic on Easter and = maybe throw=20 rotten eggs at cars.  But we never got "contaminated" by anyone = trying to=20 reach our spirits with "art".  Oh well, I guess the Lord was saving = Cedar=20 City for the Shakespeare festival.  What do I know.
    By the way, does = anyone know=20 what happened to Grant Redford?  He left Utah after the pageant was = discontinued and taught creative writing at University of Washington and = wrote a=20 number of plays, but that's about all I know.  I need to find=20 out.
 
Veda Hale
 
 
 
- ------=_NextPart_000_000A_01C05FD3.29E22AC0-- - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Dec 2000 11:05:38 -0700 From: "Christopher Bigelow" Subject: [AML] National Inroads for Mormon Lit My personal biggest interest in Mormon literature is its prospects for greater national breakthrough. Just on Saturday I mailed out a query letter on my missionary memoir to about 16 agents and 20 editors, and to my surprise I've already had two calls and an e-mail (it hasn't even been a week, and I've never had phone calls before on queries). While I have no idea if my ms. will make the grade, I thought I'd tell you about some responses so far and keep you posted. If we are to break out nationally more, we should compare notes and strategies. Does anyone know Elizabeth Wales at LEVANT & WALES, LITERARY AGENCY, INC.? She used to be an editor at Viking Penguin. She called and asked for the first few chapters of the manuscript and said something like, "We have been expecting some good writing to come out of Mormonism, because it has such extreme dogma." What do you think she meant? Kate Niedzwiecki, an editor at the Villard imprint of Random House, e-mailed: "I received your query letter today, and of the 20 query letters I've read this week, this one caught my attention. I'd be happy to take a look at the full manuscript, if you could send it to me as a Word attachment at your convenience." I queried her because I saw her name in Daily Variety as an editor who is working with "personal narratives of unconventional lives." Mark Ryan at the NEW BRAND AGENCY GROUP called to ask for the whole ms. He said the topic wouldn't have interested him except for the way the query letter was stated with many different levels and what he called good writing (although I can see additional changes I would make). We had an interesting chat about how publishers didn't used to take many autobiographies except for celebrities but now are taking many highly interesting memoirs from yahoos. Who do we have to thank for that, Frank McCourt? So anyway, I'm going to mail these mss. out on Monday, and I'll keep you posted on interesting responses (I don't mind being open even if the news is bad--my wife and I always tell everyone as soon as the pregnancy test is positive, even though things could fail to pan out that early--and yes, the pregnancy test was positive this last weekend). What's most interesting to me and perhaps to you is any evidence of national openness to and interest in Mormon topics. Ruth Starkman told us of some interesting comments she got--anyone else trying to break down national bulwarks with Mormon-themed works? Following is my query letter, which I don't mind if you pick apart and which I could tell you more about my strategy on, if you're interested (for instance, I believe national publishers need to almost be tricked --or at least distracted--into accepting material that has any Mormon faith embedded in it; the decoys in my query letter will be quite evident). I can anticipate some Mormon uncomfortableness with my query and might like to try to defend my approach. Query letters are extremely important, so it might be good to hash out some approaches for Mormon work and find out what you've already learned and what you think, whether you're an active writer or not. Most everyone has seen the boys in dark suits pedaling their bikes and knocking on doors--but what's it really like to be a Mormon missionary? As Mormon novelist John Bennion wrote, "God makes men peak in sexual energy in their late teens and early twenties and calls them to celibate missions. They either translate libido into religious fervor or go crazy." I'm writing to offer you a look at A Southern Cross to Bear: Confessions of a Mormon Missionary, my recently completed memoir made up of three parts craziness to one part fervor. After devoting my adolescence to Dungeons & Dragons and Salt Lake City's underground punk scene, I was scared into a two-year spiritual exile to Melbourne, Australia, by an encounter--perhaps real, perhaps imagined--with dark spiritual forces. My Down Under door-knocking ordeal offered experiences as varied as skirmishing in the street with Jehovah's Witnesses, overhearing a supposed convert extinguish a cigarette in the chapel toilet, being surrounded by wild, hungry kangaroos in the Australian bush, and relieving boredom with illicit movies and Stephen King novels. My struggle to relate to the world as a Mormon missionary from 1986-88 was heightened by all-too-human coworkers, Aussies who responded to the Mormon gospel in unpredictable ways, impossibly strict mission rules and bureaucratic inflexibility, and my own personality and character flaws. As I negotiated intense psychological, social, and cultural conflicts during this rite of passage, I was further troubled by glimpses of my fiancee's spiritual struggles back home. During my final weeks in Melbourne, her revelations of sexual promiscuity spun me into a crisis. Wasn't she supposed to be my reward for serving a mission? Unfolding in real time through my actual journal entries and letters--which I've condensed, edited, and rewritten considerably--my 140,000-word memoir details how a Mormon mission at times resembles an Amway distributorship, the military, and Lord of the Flies. More a chronicle of foibles than of faith--including the foibles of faith--my revealing, intimate account yields insights not only into the modern Mormon mindset and experience but also into what it means to be human in the closing years of the twentieth century. With the Olympics coming to Salt Lake City in 2002, public curiosity about the Mormon culture will only increase (for an example of recent media interest in Mormon missionaries, see www.salon.com/people/feature/2000/11/20/mormons/index.html). At your request, I will immediately send you part or all of A Southern Cross to Bear: Confessions of a Mormon Missionary. Please be advised that this is a simultaneous submission to a handful of other agents and editors. Chris Bigelow - - AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature http://www.xmission.com/~aml/aml-list.htm ------------------------------ End of aml-list-digest V1 #216 ******************************