How does your religion affect how you are perceived as a writer? Do people in the industry think of you as “an LDS writer”? Do Mormons adopt you as one of our own and support you as a co-religionist? Is it a non-issue? Is it ever a negative issue?
This is a tough one to answer because the honest truth is, I don’t know. Without seeing into the minds of others, I can’t really decide how I’m perceived. From what I’ve seen on blogs, and from what people have said to me, I THINK it’s seen as a non-issue to most outside of LDS culture. Inside the culture, I think I pick up a few sales because people are curious what a fellow LDS guy is doing.
I’m not ashamed of it at all. My books DO tend to deal with religious topics, and my BYU connection is made in the bio on the flap of every book. However, my books aren’t LDS except that my own background shapes my views on ethics and the nature of the universe.
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