Carol Lynch Williams | |
---|---|
Born | 1959 (age 64–65) Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S. |
Occupation | Novelist |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | Vermont College of Fine Arts |
Academic work | |
Institutions | Brigham Young University |
Carol Lynch Williams is an author of Young Adult and Middle Grade novels. As of 2016,Williams is the conference director for Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers (WIFYR) conference [1] and is a professor of creative writing at Brigham Young University (BYU). [2] She graduated in 2008 from Vermont College of Fine Arts with a degree in Writing for Children and Young Adults. [3] [4]
Williams has six daughters and a son. Williams grew up in Florida but currently lives in Utah. [5]
Williams read as part of the English Department reading series in the fall of 2008. John Bennion noted about that her characters "return love for cruelty." [6] Williams' characters have to deal with abuse,aging,death,suicide,and other difficult challenges,yet rise above all of these difficulties. Bennion remarked,"we identify with her young women adults because they come out independent,relying on themselves." [7] Williams' work has also been praised as "Intensely gripping and grippingly intense", [8] "absorbing", [9] "outstanding", [10] and "stunning,gut-punching,heart-wrenching,heart-healing." [11]
A complete list of Williams' awards can be found on her blog.
Mormon fiction is generally fiction by or about members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,who are also referred to as Latter-day Saints or Mormons. Its history is commonly divided into four sections as first organized by Eugene England:foundations,home literature,the "lost" generation,and faithful realism. During the first fifty years of the church's existence,1830–1880,fiction was not popular,though Parley P. Pratt wrote a fictional Dialogue between Joseph Smith and the Devil. With the emergence of the novel and short stories as popular reading material,Orson F. Whitney called on fellow members to write inspirational stories. During this "home literature" movement,church-published magazines published many didactic stories and Nephi Anderson wrote the novel Added Upon. The generation of writers after the home literature movement produced fiction that was recognized nationally but was seen as rebelling against home literature's outward moralization. Vardis Fisher's Children of God and Maurine Whipple's The Giant Joshua were prominent novels from this time period. In the 1970s and 1980s,authors started writing realistic fiction as faithful members of the LDS Church. Acclaimed examples include Levi S. Peterson's The Backslider and Linda Sillitoe's Sideways to the Sun. Home literature experienced a resurgence in popularity in the 1980s and 1990s when church-owned Deseret Book started to publish more fiction,including Gerald Lund's historical fiction series The Work and the Glory and Jack Weyland's novels.
Shannon Hale is an American author primarily of young adult fantasy,including the Newbery Honor book Princess Academy and The Goose Girl. Her first novel for adults,Austenland,was adapted into a film in 2013. She is a graduate of the University of Utah and the University of Montana. She has also co-written with her husband,Dean.
Neal Shusterman is an American writer of young-adult fiction. He won the 2015 National Book Award for Young People's Literature for his book Challenger Deep and his novel,Scythe,was a 2017 Michael L. Printz Honor book.
Marcus Sedgwick was a British writer and illustrator. He authored several young adult and children's books and picture books,a work of nonfiction and several novels for adults,and illustrated a collection of myths and a book of folk tales for adults. According to School Library Journal his "most acclaimed titles" were those for young adults.
Dean Hughes is an American author of historical novels and children's books. He has written 105 books as well as various poems and short stories. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,Hughes is a prominent author of LDS fiction for children and juveniles. Many of Hughes's books are sports or war themed. Hughes is most well known for his historical World War II era Children of the Promise series for adults. His novel Midway to Heaven was adapted into a feature-length film in 2011. Before he became a full-time author,Hughes taught English at Central Missouri State University. He taught creative writing at Brigham Young University.
Princess Academy is a fantasy novel exploring themes of families,relationships,and education by Shannon Hale published on June 16,2005,by Bloomsbury. It tells the story of fourteen-year-old Miri who attends a princess academy that will determine who wins the hand of the prince. The book was named a 2006 Newbery Honor winner as well as a New York Times Bestseller. It is the first in the Princess Academy series,followed by Princess Academy:Palace of Stone and Princess Academy:The Forgotten Sisters.
Douglas H. Thayer was a prominent author in the "faithful realism" movement of Mormon fiction. He has been called the "Mormon Hemingway" for his straightforward style and powerful prose. Eugene England called him the "father of contemporary Mormon fiction."
Brigham Young University Press was the university press of Brigham Young University (BYU).
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Christopher Everett Crowe is an American professor of English and English education at Brigham Young University (BYU) specializing in young adult literature. In addition to his academic work,Crowe also writes books for the young-adult market,including Mississippi Trial,1955.
Jeffrey Scott Savage is an American author of fantasy,horror,mystery,and suspense. As of 2020,he has published 19 novels,including the FarWorld fantasy series,the Case File 13 series,the Mysteries of Cove series,and the Shandra Covington series,as well as several stand-alone titles. Savage was born and raised in northern California and studied computer science at Sierra College and West Valley College in California and Utah Valley University in Utah. He worked in the software industry before deciding to write full-time. He writes middle grade and young adult fiction under the pen name J. Scott Savage and works intended for adult readers as Jeffrey S. Savage. He won the 2013 Whitney Award for Best Speculative Novel for Dark Memories.
Steven L. Peck is an American evolutionary biologist,poet,and novelist. His literary work is influential in Mormon literature circles. He is a professor of biology at Brigham Young University (BYU). He grew up in Moab,Utah and lives in Pleasant Grove,Utah.
Eric Roy Samuelsen was an American playwright and emeritus professor of theatre at Brigham Young University in Provo,Utah. He is considered one of the most important Mormon playwrights. He won the Association for Mormon Letters (AML) drama award in 1994,1997,and 1999,and was AML president from 2007 to 2009. In 2012 he received the Smith–Pettit Foundation Award for Outstanding Contribution to Mormon Letters.
Allyson Braithwaite Condie is an author of young adult and middle grade fiction. Her novel Matched was a #1 New York Times and international bestseller,and spent over a year on the New York Times Bestseller List. The sequels are also New York Times bestsellers. Matched was chosen as one of YALSA's 2011 Teens' Top Ten and named as one of Publishers Weekly's Best Children's Books of 2010. All three books are available in 30+ languages.
Jessica Day George is an American author who lives in Utah. She is a New York Times bestselling author of Young Adult fantasy novels,and she received the 2007 Whitney Award for Best Book by a New Author for Dragon Slippers. Having attended Brigham Young University (BYU),George is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Mette Ivie Harrison is an American novelist. She writes young adult fiction and in 2014 began publishing an adult mystery series. Her background as a Mormon has influenced her topics of interest as a writer,especially in the A Linda Wallheim Mystery series which focuses on a Mormon woman within her religious community. Her novel,Mira,Mirror won the Utah Letters About Literature award in 2006,and three other novels were finalists for the AML Awards in 2007,2014 and 2015.
Charlie Nicholes Holmberg is an American fantasy writer best known for The Paper Magician series. She is from Salt Lake City,Utah,and graduated from Brigham Young University with a bachelor's degree in English in 2010. Her first novel,The Paper Magician,was released in 2014. Holmberg expanded the book into a series,the film rights for which were purchased by Disney in 2016. In addition to her other book series,Holmberg has published six standalone novels with her seventh to be released July 1,2024. She is a multi-Whitney Award recipient for The Fifth Doll (2017),The Will and the Wilds (2020) and Star Mother (2021). The Hanging City was a 2023 Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist. Many of her other works have been nominated for literary awards as well. In addition to writing,Holmberg cohosts the podcast Your Mom Writes Books.
Dendō:One Year and One Half in Tokyo:A Missionary Memoir is a graphic novel missionary diary written by Brittany Long Olsen while she was a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Japan. It is the first published missionary diary in graphic novel form,and won the Association for Mormon Letters (AML) award in 2015 for comics. After returning from her mission,she scanned and edited it,before self-publishing it after being rejected by traditional publishers. Dendō received good reviews,praising Olsen for her wit and spirituality. It was purchased and displayed by the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at Brigham Young University (BYU).
Stamped from the Beginning:The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America is a non-fiction book about race in the United States by the American historian Ibram X. Kendi,published April 12,2016 by Bold Type Books,an imprint of PublicAffairs. The book won the National Book Award for Nonfiction.
Jack Aaron Harrell is an American fiction writer,essayist,and English professor at Brigham Young University–Idaho.