The Whitney Awards are awards given annually for novels by

LDS LDS may refer to: Organizations * LDS Hospital, Salt Lake City, Utah, US Religion * Latter Day Saint movement (LDS movement), a collection of independent church groups **The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the largest group within t ...

authors. Established in 2007, they are named after

Orson F. Whitney Orson Ferguson Whitney (1 July 1855 – 16 May 1931), born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1906 until his death. Early life ...

, a prominent early member of the LDS Church. There are several categories for which novels may be nominated. The Whitney Awards are a semi-independent

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organization affiliated with the LDStorymakers, a guild for

LDS authors Mormon fiction is generally fiction by or about members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), who are also referred to as Latter-day Saints or Mormons. Its history is commonly divided into four sections as first organize ...

Process

To be eligible, a novel must be written by an LDS author during the award year, and be at least 50,000 words long. Any reader can nominate a book. Once a book has received five or more nominations, it becomes an official nominee. The official nominees are presented to the Whitney Awards Committee which checks for eligibility and acts as a preliminary judging panel, reducing the number of nominees to no more than five per category. Finally, ballots are sent to the Whitney Awards Academy, an invitation-only group consisting of authors, bookstore owners/managers, distributors, critics, and other industry professionals. By a popular vote, they decide on the winners. The awards are presented at a dinner held at the conclusion of the annual LDStorymakers conference and writing "boot camp." Until the 2010 awards (presented 2011), books were not allowed to win in more than one category.

Name

The awards are named after

, a member of the

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

as well as a poet and writer. In 1888, Elder Whitney delivered a speech entitled " Home Literature" in which he stated:

We will yet have Miltons and Shakespeares of our own. God's ammunition is not exhausted. His brightest spirits are held in reserve for the latter times. In God's name and by his help we will build up a literature whose top shall touch heaven, though its foundations may now be low in earth.

The phrase "We will yet have Miltons and Shakespeares of our own" has been adopted as the slogan of the Whitney Awards, and is printed on the trophy.

Winners and finalists 2007 - present

Committee

The Whitney Awards Committee acts as both the organizers and the preliminary judges of the Whitney Awards. Rules stipulate that the committee be made up of at least four members of LDStorymakers. Their positions are temporary, by invitation of the Whitney Awards Committee president (who is appointed by the LDStorymakers executive committee). The 2009 committee included: *

Robison Wells Robison Wells (born April 4, 1978) is an American novelist and blogger. Personal life Robison Wells, the brother of author Dan Wells, was a reluctant reader as a child. He did not become interested in writing until he was in college. He gradu ...

, president * Julie Coulter Bellon * Danyelle Ferguson * John Ferguson * Crystal Leichty * Sheila Staley * Jaime Theler The 2011 committee included: *

Josi S. Kilpack Josi S. Kilpack (born May 26, 1974) is an American novelist. She has authored 26 books, including a 13 book culinary mystery series. She is the recipient of a Whitney Award from LDStorymakers, a guild for authors who are members of the Church of ...

, president *

Annette Lyon Annette Lyon (born December 18, 1973) is a ''USA Today'' bestselling author. She has written in many different genres, but focuses on women's fiction, with her target audience including members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ...

* Heather B. Moore * Jana Parkin *

Sarah M. Eden Sarah (born Sarai) is a Patriarchs (Bible)#Matriarchs, biblical matriarch and Prophet, prophetess, a major figure in Abrahamic religions. While different Abrahamic faiths portray her differently, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all depict her ...

* Luisa Perkins The 2015 committee were: * Jaime Theler, president * Kaylee Baldwin *

Marion Jensen Marion may refer to: People *Marion (given name) *Marion (surname) *Marion Silva Fernandes, Brazilian footballer known simply as "Marion" *Marion (singer), Filipino singer-songwriter and pianist Marion Aunor (born 1992) Places Antarctica * Mario ...

* Nancy Campbell Allen * Heather Justesen * Deborah Talmadge-Bickmore * Kimberly Vanderhorst The 2017 committee: *Peggy Eddleman, president *Janet Sumner Johnson *

*Monique Luetkemeyer *Jeremy Maughan *E.B. Wheeler *Michelle Wilson *

Jared Garrett Jared is a given name of Bible, Biblical derivation. Origin In the Book of Genesis, the Jared (biblical figure), biblical patriarch Jared (יֶרֶד) was the sixth in the ten pre-Noah's Ark, flood generations between Adam and Noah; he was the ...

Although Kerry Blair had been a member of the Whitney Awards Committee for two years, the other members of the committee "went behind her back" to name her the winner of a Lifetime Achievement Award for 2008.

Reception

One

Mormon literature Mormon literature is generally considered to have begun a few years before the March 1830 publication of the Book of Mormon. Since then, Mormon literature has grown to include more scripture, as well as histories, fiction, biographies, poetry, ...

critic initially raised concerns with the heavy involvement of authors published by

Covenant Communications Deseret Book () is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), the ...

in the awards process. However, when the finalists for 2007 were announced, this same commenter noted both that there was a wide spectrum of publishers represented, and that "Covenant publishes the lion's share of Mormon market fiction." This same critic later described the awards as "at best a reductive form of validation and criticism. Although let's be honest: The Whitneys have way more credibility than the Grammys." After the 2011 nominations, criticism of the nomination process was common, though appreciation of the Whitney Awards themselves was also common.

Notes

References

* * * *

External links

Official website
of the Whitney Awards
Storymakers Conference
organizing body for the Whitney Awards * {{cite web , url= http://www.librarything.com/bookaward/Whitney+Award+Nominee , title= Book awards: Whitney Award Nominee , publisher=

LibraryThing LibraryThing is a social cataloging web application for storing and sharing book catalogs and various types of book metadata. It is used by authors, individuals, libraries, and publishers. Based in Portland, Maine, LibraryThing was developed by ...

, access-date= 30 July 2009 American literary awards Whitney Awards Whitney Awards Mormon literature

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