I have a hard time writing paragraphs and an even harder time writing chapters so most of my manuscripts end up being puzzles. Most of it came during the writing process. How much of that occurred to you during the writing process and how much came together during the editing and publishing process? The voice, format, and graphics in the novel all give it a distinct appeal and make it a unique reading experience. And sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I think we all wish we didn’t have to deal with hard things but we do. I just wrote about a boy who doesn’t know how to fit in, who doesn’t know what to say and when to say it, and who wishes he didn’t have to deal with hard things. My agent describes it as emotionally graphic and I guess that works. I guess I’d go with “a real book.” It’s definitely not an easy book–definitely not escapism. How would you categorize/describe your book?ĪDE: Good question. LC: This is What I Did: has been categorized blandly (as a plain-Jane young adult novel) and thrillingly (as a psychological drama). This is What I Did: is Logan’s notebook–filled with quirky dialogue, drawings, and notes–and through it the reader accompanies him on his journey of understanding and reconciliation. But instead of the clean start they were hoping for, what Logan gets is a firestorm of gossip, bullying, and depression–until a therapist hands him a notebook and tells him to write down what he did. His well-intentioned parents have tried everything: they moved, enrolled him in a new school, enlisted the aid of the neighborhood boys to be nice to him, and even signed him up for Boy Scouts. “Something horrific” happened to his best friend, Zyler, and since then Logan has refused to attend school or even talk to anyone. Logan is the new kid in town with a past.
This is What I Did: by LDS novelist, Ann Dee Ellis, is one of the good ones. Others, however, open our minds to new points of view and provide much needed catharsis. Some of these novels turn out distastefully didactic. The aim of these novels seems to be to bring awareness to an issue and to help those dealing with it do so in a faithful manner. Whether they are out to take on drug abuse, polygamy, suicide, racism, or even date rape, issue novels pick a socially difficult topic and discuss it. The world of LDS literature is rife with can only be termed “issue novels”. And imagine if you hadn’t done anything to help.” Imagine if it had happened to your friend. “Imagine if you had witnessed something horrific.
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