posted
I'm in the ITT Tech computer drafting and design program, and have English Comp atm...I'm doing EG for the book and the teacher wanted an author bio...here it is, thought you guys might be interested...
P.S. Any corrections would be good for my own knowledge, although the paper has already been turned in.
P.P.S. I'll let you guys know the grade I get for it when I find out.
Orson Scott Card was born on August 24, 1951 in Richland, Washington and has written over 60 books, mostly Science Fiction and Fantasy, as well as non-fiction books on how to write and numerous plays. His first book, Capital, was published in 1978, while his most popular and acclaimed book, Ender’s Game was novelized from his short story in 1985. He continues to write to this day. Orson Scott Card holds the distinction of being the only author to win both the Hugo and the Nebula back to back, for Ender’s Game and its stand alone sequel, Speaker for the Dead. While other others have won both of the highest awards for Sci-fi literature, no other author has done it in consecutive years. Orson Scott Card is a Mormon, or a member of the Church of Latter-Day Saints. Many of his moral beliefs and religious concepts have made their way into his writing but, more interestingly, Card’s writing is frank, often bleak in its truthfulness, a combination that doesn’t always see eye to eye. While Card has written and currently writes for the LDS church, be it books, plays or screen plays, he reportedly suffers a negative reputation in LDS church because of the outspokenness of his writing. Card’s writing style leaves little room for politeness as he aggressively tackles the difficult issues of being human. Card’s stories are character driven, and further, character development driven. I would have to say that Card’s books mostly deal with interesting people in more interesting circumstances, having to figure out not only what to do, but what is the right thing to do. Often Card’s characters find themselves on a journey, both literal and figurative. In “questing” for something, the characters learn more about themselves and the world they thought they knew. I find such symbolism a good parallel for life. One gets comfortable in their little niche and then some circumstance forces them into change and on a voyage of discovery. Card started his education as a theater major at Brigham Young University, but soon evolved into a playwright. After returning from a church mission to Brazil, Scott (as he is most called) got involved with the Utah Valley Repertory Theatre Company while working for BYU press as a copy editor. Card continued to write and act, this time for the LDS church and switched jobs to Ensign, the official LDS magazine as an assistant editor. It was at this time that Orson Scott Card wrote the short story version of Ender’s Game. The story was picked up by Ben Bova, then editor of Analog, for the August 1979 issue. It was Ben Bova who later started up Tor, who has published the vast majority of Card’s books. Card has thanked Ben and his wife more than once in his books introductions and dedications. With a blossoming writing career started, Card left Ensign. He started to eek out a living as a freelance writer with some audio plays for the church, editing work and received contracts for the novels Hotsleep and A Planet Called Treason. In 1981 he completed his Master’s degree in English from the University of Utah, but could not continue for his doctorate as money became tight. Soon after Card moved to Greensboro, North Carolina, as a full time editor of Compute! Magazine. In his book Lost Boys, he borrows from his life for his character’s career and describes his time at Compute! Magazine, although he renames the magazine, probably to avoid being sued. Greensboro has remained his home since he moved there, and has appeared as a setting in several of his books. Card’s scrambling for money to survive ended soon after when he received a contract to write the Alvin Maker trilogy, which is now up to six, soon to be seven books. Combining two of his loves, American history, and magic, the Alvin Maker series takes a new approach to fiction, modifying actual events and historic persons into a fantasy setting. While Orson Scott Card has written many novels, short story collections, plays, etc, what he is most known for is Ender’s Game. The sequel, Speaker for the Dead is set in the distant future, which is made possible by the relativity of time while in faster than light travel. There is also a consecutive novel to Ender’s Game, Ender’s Shadow, and while it takes place at the same time as the original book, it is from a different character’s point of view. Both “sequels” have spawned their own series of books. From Speaker for the Dead, comes Xenocide and Children of the Mind. From Ender’s Shadow comes Shadow of the Hedgemon, Shadow Puppets, Shadow of the Giant, and the forthcoming Shadows in Flight. There is also a short story collection called First Meetings in the Enderverse, and a movie version of Ender’s Game has been in and out of production for years. Since 2005 Card has been splitting his time writing and teaching writing as a "distinguished professor" at Southern Virginia University in Buena Vista, Virginia.
Posts: 6683 | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
I think its pretty good. I only have two critiques (I'm Mormon, so you may think this is nit-picking). A) I would have clarified that the LDS Church hasn't taken a stance on his writing positive or negative. But that others in his religion sometimes have issues with his writing. (Me not being one of them.) B) You refer to the church magazine a couple of times. In each reference you should have referred to it as "The Ensign".
And thanks for the post, I learned a thing or two! ;-)
Posts: 176 | Registered: Sep 2006
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"he reportedly suffers a negative reputation in LDS church because of the outspokenness of his writing"
His reputation among church members is actually mostly positive. And he's called upon often enough by the church heirarchy to do special projects for the church that he doesn't seem to have a negative reputation there either. Of course, there are some members who don't like what he writes, but my experience is that that group is rather small. The majority of Latter-day Saints in the world never heard of him
"got involved with the Utah Valley Repertory Theatre Company"
He actually started the UVRTC.
Posts: 780 | Registered: Jul 1999
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How about..."he reportedly suffers a negative reputation with some of the LDS church goers because of the outspokenness of his writing"
I was hoping that by starting it with " While Card has written and currently writes for the LDS church, be it books, plays or screen plays..." would imply that it was not any kind of offical thing. But by saying "in LDS church" it makes it kinda vauge.
Durn, I just spotted a word used twice in a row! "While other others have won both of the highest awards for Sci-fi literature,..."
Shoulda posted it on here -before- I turned it in.
Saying he has a negative reputation in the LDS church might lead one to believe that the Church leadership feels he's not a Latter-day Saint in good standing ... which I'm sure is not true.
And as for the membership, I've only ever met one Latter-day Saint who didn't like him; I've met many for whom he is their favorite author.
I've actually heard a whole lot more about his negative reputation in the Church from him than from any members. Which means, of course, that he gets letters from angry members and takes them to heart - but maybe doesn't realize how many members quietly buy his books and love them.
ETA: Oops ... you beat me. I think your revised line sounds better.
Posts: 1522 | Registered: Nov 2005
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posted
Also, Capitol is spelled with an O, not an A. But that's the copy editor in me - can't let it go unmentioned.
I know precisely which groups within the LDS Church regard me as just this side of Satan - and some of them are in annoyingly influential positions in the Church bureaucracy, though NOT among the General Authorities. However, I must say the people who hate me most are bureaucrats who have been offended by my refusal to be lied to or dictated to by pinheads while working on Church projects, NOT people who disapprove of my writing per se.
Posts: 2005 | Registered: Jul 1999
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OSC, is it weird to have so many people talking about you?
All throughout high school I tried to find a way to put something of one of OSC's books into any paper I wrote. I failed until senior year. In 10th grade we were supposed to do an extended project on an American auther. Only... the auther had to be dead... (thankfully OSC is still alive and writing great books!) In 11th grade we wrote lots of essays on specific books about existentialism. In 12th grade we were supposed to choose any leader (fictional or real) and analyze them through Machiavelli's "The Prince". Of course I analyzed Ender in Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow. That was a great essay to write.
Posts: 33 | Registered: Jun 2006
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