Carol Lynn Pearson, AML Lifetime Achievement Award

The Association for Mormon Letters will present Carol Lynn Pearson with the AML Lifetime Achievement Award in the evening of March 29, at the AML Conference, held in Berkeley, California. There will be a special panel that evening to honor Carol Lynn, and she will do a reading of some of her work.

A full award citation will be announced on March 29. Below is am introduction of Carol Lynn’s contributions, based on information from her website.

Carol Lynn Pearson is one of the best-known and best-loved Latter-day Saint literary authors. She writes in a wide variety of genres, including poetry, theater, novel, and non-fiction. She graduated from Brigham Young University with an MA in theatre, taught for a time at Snow College and BYU, and was then hired by the BYU motion picture studio to write educational and religious screenplays. Borrowing two thousand dollars, her husband Gerald created a company called “Trilogy Arts” and published her first book of poetry, called Beginnings in 1968. This work was a great success, and led to a series of poetry collections, including The Search, The Growing Season, A Widening View, I Can’t Stop Smiling, and Women I Have Known and Been.  

She numerous educational motion pictures, including the well-known Cipher in the Snow (1973), as well as many plays and musicals, two of which were commissioned by Sundance Theater. The musicals include the frontier-era The Order is Love (1971), the Godspell-like My Turn on Earth (1977), and The Dance (1981), which was later adapted into a feature film. She both wrote and performed over 300 times a one-woman play, Mother Wove the Morning (1989), and wrote Facing East (2007), which tells the story of a Mormon couple dealing with the suicide of their gay son. After premiering in Salt Lake City, it had runs Off-Broadway and in San Francisco, and was awarded an AML Drama Award and was named by the Deseret News the “Best play of the year.”

In 1986 Random House published Carol Lynn’s memoir Goodbye, I Love You. It centered on the story of her marriage to Gerald, his homosexuality, their divorce, and his tragic death from AIDS some years later. Carol Lynn has continued to write about the subject of homosexuality, including No More Goodbyes: Circling the Wagons around Our Gay Loved Ones (2007).

Carol Lynn has also written dozens of other books, including novels, diary excerpts, humor, non-fiction, and a series of inspirational books under the series title Fables for Our Times. She was given an AML “Special Award” in 1984. Her most recent book is the non-fiction The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy,which critically examines the impact of LDS ideas about polygamy. It was a finalist for an AML Religious Non-Fiction Award.

Carol Lynn is the mother of four grown children, and lives in Walnut Creek, California

Bibliography

1966

• “Pegora the Witch,”children’s play, Children’s Theatre Press (subsequently Anchorage Press Plays, now with Dramatic Publishing)

1968

• “Beginnings,”poetry, Trilogy Arts, (1974 Doubleday, 1985 Bookcraft; 1984 German paperback)
• “Martyr-In-Waiting,”one-act play in “The M.I.A. Book of Plays,” The General Boards of the Mutual Improvement Associations of the LDS Church (2013 Zion Theatricals)

1969

• “Think Your Way to a Million,”play, The Dramatic Publishing Co.

1970

• “The Search,”poetry, Trilogy Arts (1974 Doubleday; 1985 Bookcraft; 1985 combined with “Beginnings”)

1971

 “The Order Is Love,” musical play with Lex deAzevedo, Trilogy Arts (now with Zion Theatricals). The tale of Orderville, Utah—1875-1885—where over 700 Saints lived and worked and played and prayed together in the United Order, a version of the Law of Consecration, seeking Zion, learning tolerance and patience, expanding “love” towards “charity.” We see our own foibles and failings in those of the residents of Orderville as they learn the hard lessons of sharing, giving, getting along, and wondering how can I love my neighbor even when I can’t even stand him and after all I work harder than he does and my skilled work is worth more than his lowly weed-pulling. Premiered by Brigham Young University in 1971.

1973

• “Daughters of Light,”Mormon women’s history, Trilogy Arts (1974 Bookcraft)

1974

• “Sound and Shhhhh,”children’s picture book, Trilogy Arts
• “Poetry of Carol Lynn Pearson,”read by the author,” LP sound recording, Trilogy Arts
• “Move On,”play, Embryo Music (subsequently Encore Performance Publishing which is now Zion Theatricals).The play is based on journal entries, diary accounts, and folk songs of the Mormon pioneers crossing the plains to create their new home, their Zion in the Rocky Mountains. Through stirring historical scenes and monologues, folk songs and hymns of the era, the Saints’ journey comes vividly to life. Title song composed by Marvin Payne, along with all the other songs, can be played by the cast on guitars and other pioneer instruments.

1975

• “The Flight and the Nest,”Mormon women’s history, Bookcraft

1976

• “The Growing Season,”poetry, Bookcraft
• “The Busy Bishop’s Notebook,”humor, Bookcraft
• “Don’t Count Your Chickens Until They Cry Wolf,”children’s play with J.A.C. Redford, Children’s Theatre Press (subsequently Anchorage Press Plays, now with Dramatic Publishing)

1977

• “My Turn on Earth,”musical play with Lex deAzevedo, storybook, songbook, Embryo Music (subsequently Excel, then Deseret Book, now with Zion Theatricals)
• “Lullaby Song,”collection of lullabies with Lex deAzevedo, LP album, cassette and songbook, Embryo Music
• “Model Mormon Mother’s Notebook,”humor, Bookcraft (2005 adapted by Cedar Fort Press)
• “Marriageable Mormon Maiden’s Notebook,”humor, Bookcraft
• “I Believe in Make Believe,”children’s play with J.A.C. Redford, Children’s Theatre Press (subsequently Anchorage Press Plays, now with Dramatic Publishing)

1978

• “Model Mormon Missionary’s Notebook,”humor, Bookcraft
• “Marriageable Mormon Male’s Notebook,”humor, Bookcraft

1979

• “Call It Mother,”Mother’s Day gift book, Bookcraft
• “Faithful Mormon Father’s Notebook,”humor,  Bookcraft

1980

• “Will I Ever Forget This Day?”diary excerpts, edited by Elouise Bell, Bookcraft
• “Letters to Missionaries,”humor, Bookcraft
• “Letters from Missionaries,”humor, Bookcraft
• “Ready Relief Society Sister’s Notebook,”humor, Bookcraft

1981

• “The Dance,”musical play with J.A.C. Redford, script, cassette recording of music, Plough Down Sillion Music (2003 Encore Performance Publishing, which is now Zion Theatricals).
• “Overheard at the Dance”novel, adapted from musical play, Bookcraft (2007 published as “The Dance,” Cedar Fort Press; 2007 basis for movie “The Dance”)

1983

• “A Widening View,”poetry, Bookcraft
• “Stepping Stones and Stumbling Blocks,”game, Bookcraft
• “A Lasting Peace,”young adult novel, Randall Press (1989 Deseret Book, 2007 as “Summer of Truth,” Cedar Fort Press)
• “Today, Tomorrow and Four Weeks from Tuesday,”novel, Bookcraft
• “A Widening View,”poetry sound recording read by the author, Bookcraft
• “The Growing Season,”poetry sound recording read by the author, Bookcraft

1984

• “I Can’t Stop Smiling,”love poems, Bookcraft (2007 as “In Love Again and Always,” Cedar Fort Press)
• “A Stranger For Christmas,”Bookcraft (1996 St. Martin’s Press; 1996 Korean Edition; 1996 Japanese Edition; 1997 German Edition; 1997 Dutch Edition; 2003 Loyola Press; 2006 Cedar Fort Press); 1990s play adaptation, Encore Performance Publishing, now with Eldridge Press

1985

• “Not At All Trivial,”game, Bookcraft
• “Blow Out the Wishbone,”stories about family, Bookcraft (selections published as Priceless Moments, 2008, Cedar Fort Press)

1986

• “Goodbye, I Love You,”memoir, Random House (1987 Columbus Books Ltd. London; 1987 German hardback; 1988 Berkeley paperback; 1989 German paperback; 1995 Gold Leaf; 2007 Cedar Fort Press)
• “Thoughts of the Heart,”journal for women, includes poems, Bookcraft
• “A Time to Love,”musical program with Lex deAzevedo, songbook, VHS performance, cassette of music, CD of music, Embryo Music

1987

• “Couples,”game, Bookcraft

1988

• “One on the Seesaw: The Ups and Downs of a Single-Parent Family”non-fiction, Random House.
• “Heroes and Villains,”game, Bookcraft
• “It’s My Life!”musical play with Lex deAzevedo, script, demo video, CD of music, Embryo Music

1989

• “Mormon Mother’s Candid Calendar,”humor, Bookcraft

1991

• “Women I Have Known and Been,”poems, Gold Leaf Press
• “Mother Wove the Morning,”one-woman play, DVD and book, sheet music, song tape, Carol Lynn Pearson

1994

• “The Modern Magi,”Christmas tale, Gold Leaf Press (1998 St. Martin’s Press; 2003 Loyola Press, 2007 Cedar Fort Press)

1995

• “A Christmas Thief,” Christmas tale,Gold Leaf Press (2003 Loyola Press, 2008 Cedar Fort Press)

1996

• “Picture Window,” compilation of poems, Gold Leaf Press

1997

• “Morning Glory Mother,”short novel, St. Martin’s Press (1998 German Edition; 1999 Korean Edition)

1998

• “The Lesson,”Gibbs Smith Publisher
• “The Stocking Stuffer’s Story,”Stellar Publishing

1999

• “What Love Is,”Gibbs Smith Publisher

2000

• “Will You Still Be My Daughter?” Gibbs Smith Publisher
• “Girlfriend, You Are the Best!” Gibbs Smith Publisher
• “Fuzzy Red Bathrobe: Questions from the Heart for Mothers and Daughters,” with Emily Pearson, Gibbs Smith Publisher

2001

• “A Strong Man,”Gibbs Smith Publisher
• “Day Old Child and Other Celebrations of Motherhood,” poems from priorbooks, Gibbs Smith Publisher
• “The Gift,”Gibbs Smith Publisher

2002

• “Consider the Butterfly: Transforming Your Life Through Meaningful Coincidence,” Gibbs Smith Publisher (2008 paperback titled “Embracing Coincidence,” Gibbs Smith Publisher; 2012 “Embracing Coincidence” hardback, MJF Books, Fine Communications, with Gibbs Smith Publisher)
• “A Sister,”Gibbs Smith Publisher

2004

• “The Christmas Play,” Loyola Press

2005

• “The Christmas Moment,”Cedar Fort Press
• “Beginnings and Beyond,”anthology of poems, Cedar Fort Press

2006

• “The Runaway Mother,”Mormonization of “Morning Glory Mother,” Cedar Fort Press

2007

• “No More Goodbyes: Circling the Wagons around Our Gay Loved Ones,”Pivot Point Books
• “Facing East,”play, Pivot Point Books. AML Drama Award, 2007. Plan-B Theatre Company, 2006 and 2007.  Off-Broadway and San Francisco, 2007. A stage play that tells the story of a Mormon couple dealing with the suicide of their gay son. The scene is the cemetery directly after the funeral, with Alex and Ruth trying to understand. Suddenly someone arrives whom they have never met, Marcus, their son’s deeply-loved partner. Tension turns into listening, and understanding begins. “Best Play” award by the Deseret News, followed by a limited Off-Broadway run.
• “In Love Again and Always,”revised “I Can’t Stop Smiling,” Cedar Fort Press

2009

• “The Lord Is My Shepherd: Inspiration for Couples,”Gibbs Smith Publisher

2010

• “In Dog Years I’m Dead,”humor, Gibbs Smith Publisher (2010 Korean Edition)

2011

• “The Sweet, Still Waters of Home,”Cedar Fort Press
• “I’m Still a Hot Babe But Now It Comes In Flashes,”humor, Gibbs Smith Publisher

2012

• “The Hero’s Journey of the Gay and Lesbian Mormon,”Pivot Point Books

2016

• “The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy: Haunting the Hearts and Heaven of  Mormon Women and Men,” Pivot Point Books