This year’s Association for Mormon Letters annual conference was at BYU on Saturday, March 8. The theme of the conference was “Literature as Scripture and Literature in the Scriptures,” and there were some great presentations. I would have to say my favorite was Harlow Clark’s discussion of depictions of the Atonement in LDS literature. The number of sources he pulled from and the connections he made were fabulous. I had a difficult time keeping up. In the same session, previous to Harlow’s comments, David Hulet talked about “Creating Mormon Narrative,” and Harlow’s discussion showed how Mormon writers have done just that, which made me think of the ongoing discussion we’ve had at Mormon Renaissance about a Mormon aesthetic and how our own particular doctrines and history contribute to that aesthetic. One example Harlow gave as a distinct Mormon doctrine was that, while other Christians tend to believe that God is the one necessary being and all other beings are contingent on God’s existence, Mormons believe that men and women are co-eternal with God. Harlow then went on to describe how this shows up in Mormon writing (I regret that I was so engrossed in his discussion that I didn’t write down the examples he gave).

Along with some lovely sessions, the AML Awards luncheon was pretty great. Next to the reception in the evening after the conference, the luncheon is my favorite part (other than the sessions). Where else can you find a gathering of the most influential and involved people in Mormon letters? This year’s luncheon was highlighted by Eric Samuelsen’s presidential address. It was not only deeply profound, it was riotously funny. Eric first spent considerable breath scathingly condemning the concept of mission statements. He’s never relished the idea of writing a mission statement for AML, but at the same time, he recognizes a need to discuss why exactly AML aims to promote Mormon letters. While he never got around to actually writing a specific mission statement, his address characterized the need for inclusiveness in Mormon literature. He said, “It takes courage to write even a bad book, courage and determination and invention. Even writers who aren’t very skilled do something astonishingly revelatory. We can even see the face of God in bad novels.” He then went on to explain that in the Mormon literature community, we need everyone. We can’t dismiss writers (and their readerships) that we don’t like, though we can read them critically and discuss what about them works and what doesn’t work quite as well. It was an inspiring speech, and I highly recommend reading it. I also recommend perusing the list of Mormon authors who won awards this year (thank you, Patricia Karamesines, for posting the winners). Among the winners were Coke Newell for On the Road to Heaven (novel), AnnDee Ellis for This is What I Did (YA novel), and Carol Lynn Pearson for “Facing East” (drama). Segullah and the BYU Studies special “Mormons and Film” issue both won special awards.

As mentioned, one of the loveliest parts of the AML conference–and the one that’s least attended–is the reception at Charlotte England’s (widow of Eugene England) home. The England home is a delightful red brick house North of the BYU campus that, with its exotic furniture, original Brian Kershisnik and James C. Christensen paintings, and numerous overflowing bookshelves (many of which house works by Mormon authors), provides an elegant and cozy atmosphere conducive to mingling and discussion. Many of the AML Award winners (as well as other LDS writers who attended) read from their works: Carol Cornwall Madsen introduced us to some of Emmeline B. Wells’ more radical feminist writings in An Advocate for Women: The Public Life of Emmeline B. Wells, Todd Petersen entertained us with the exploits of the small-town central-Utah natives in his novel Rift, Harold K. Moon brought to life the trials of a plural wife being forced to relocate to Mexico with her husband in The Leah Shadow, and Michael Collings read from of the earthy, LDS-themed poems in his Elementals. Other readers included the editors of Segullah and winners of the Irreantum short fiction contest.

The AML conference, I have to say, provided much food for thought. I gained some insights about Mormon letters that I hope to be posting about over the next couple of weeks. I encourage others to share their experiences at the AML conference. For another overview of the conference, see Darlene Young’s (AML secretary) discussion at her blog.