Declan Hyde introduces his new novella The Resurrection Box: A Tale of Mormon Horror.
I’ve wondered for years about how to incorporate my faith into my fiction writing. As most of the world aren’t members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, any church member looking to write must wrestle with the fact that if they want to write for a predominantly LDS demographic, their target audience will be relatively small, comparatively. There’s probably a way to write a story about an LDS character and have it be marketable to a mainstream audience, but I haven’t figured it out yet.
A few months ago I was scrolling through Twitter and saw an open submission call for a religious horror anthology. If ever there was an opportunity to write an authentically Mormon horror story, this was it. I immediately started brainstorming ideas. During this process I remember asking myself “What’s the most Mormon character I can think of?” The answer I arrived at was a polygamous wife. Everyone has their own opinions about polygamy, but I thought it would be interesting for me personally to write, and to ask an audience to sympathize with, someone who willingly chose to enter a polygamous marriage, especially a female.
The story grew, and I eventually had to accept the fact that I was never going to be able to submit my story to that anthology, as it had surpassed the word count guidelines. And as I couldn’t think of anyone at the time who would be willing to publish a Mormon Horror novella, self publishing seemed the only option. By the time it was finished, I had incorporated other aspects of LDS folklore as well.
The Resurrection Box: A Tale of Mormon Horror was born.
I am not the first member of the Church to try and craft a horror story that incorporates religious themes and speaks to an LDS audience. In fact, the Association of Mormon Letters has recently published an article that explores the rich history of “Mormon Horror.” The crossroads of “Mormon” tradition, history, culture, and faith provide much to be explored.
One might not think initially that horror and religion would make good companions. Christian culture as a whole stereotypically tends to shun horror and those who are drawn to it, and “Mormon” culture is no exception. And yet horror and faith are inextricably linked. In the beginning, before Adam and Eve came to the Garden of Eden, there was a war in Heaven, a war which resulted in the creation of the greatest villain of all time — the devil himself. Many Christian-horror stories tend to center around demonology, but there are other themes and ideas that beg exploring as well. There’s the looming threat of death, a concept that religion seeks to resolve and explain, but in doing so, also creates the looming threat of hell and judgment. In our scripture, we find horrific stories of bloodshed and war, cannibalism, calling up spirits, and “secret combinations.” In our history, “Mormons” have been demonized and attacked by angry mobs. Joseph Smith emerged from a culture rich in folk magic and bizarre cultural beliefs that seem strange to us. Missionary work brings with it a culture entirely its own, and offers a plethora of fear invoking tales ripe for the telling.
Yet at its heart, horror is about attempting to overcome evil in some form. Stories can take the form of cautionary tales and fables, or exultant heroic feats where the protagonist succeeds in overcoming their demons against all odds. And isn’t that something we can all relate to? Death is a part of our reality, whether we’d like to accept that or not. We all must wrestle with our place in the universe, and we all must face hardships and in our own way attempt to “overcome evil.”
Specifically, for members of the Church, they’ve seen a series of antagonistic media productions recently which seek to critique our faith and its members, rather than portray them in a sympathetic light. My hope with The Resurrection Box is that members can see themselves in its characters, and have a faithful “Mormon” protagonist for whom they can root. This is a tale that is designed to uplift, and depict characters who must battle against formidable dark forces, in a climactic effort of light against darkness — and in the end [spoiler alert], light wins.
Declan Hyde is a lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He is an avid horror fan, and author The Resurrection Box: A Tale of Mormon Horror, available now on Amazon. He lives in Utah.