August 28, 2013
Mormon Authors Back Gay Writer Over Canceled Book
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
A gay author whose book was dropped from a publishing company when he demanded his bio contained a sentence mentioning his boyfriend has received a mountain of support from an unlikely ally: Mormons.
According to Towleroad, Cedar Fort Publishing, based out of Utah, decided to nix Michael Jensen and David Powers King's young-adult fantasy novel "Woven" when Jensen demanded his dust jacket bio contained the sentence, "He lives in Salt Lake City with his boyfriend and their four dogs."
The publishing group had told the author the book would sell better with its Latter-Day Saints-affiliated distributors with an amended biography omitting the "boyfriend" reference.
When the Mormons in the publishing community found out about this, they decided to write a letter urging publishers to base decisions on "content, quality, and commercial viability, not on any other factor." Forty-one Mormon authors in total have signed the letter.
"It's very odd," said Mormon author Ryan Rapier said, "because they had chosen to take a risk with my book."
Rapier said Cedar Fort had no problems with a gay character in his book, "The Reluctant Blogger."
The Salt Lake Tribune writes that the publishing group has not replied to requests for comment.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
