March 2026 Newsblotter
Publications, news, and events from around the LDS speculative fiction community
As part of Further Light’s mission to gather together a community who is interested in the conversation about LDS speculative fiction, we publish a free monthly-ish roundup of news, events, and interesting publications. If we missed something that you think should be included, please drop us a note!
Further Light News
Thank you to everyone who sent in submissions for issue 2! We’ve had so much fun over the last few weeks reading your stories, essays, and poems. Our editors met last night to make decisions on which submissions to include, so keep an eye on your inbox for decisions coming soon. And of course, our submissions box is currently open for issue 3, so keep sending us your work that combines the speculative with the sacred.
Thanks to Theric Jepson for this great review of issue 1 for the Association for Mormon Letters. Our subscribers and contributors have already received their print copies of issue 1. Want your own copy? Check out our list of retailers where you can find Further Light. Want to buy a copy in person? We’re going to have a booth at the Storymakers conference on May 14-16. Come check out our print issue or pitch us on your essay or story idea. We’d love to chat with you!
Interesting Publications
Some updates from our Further Light authors:
We are looking forward to the release of the final volume of Orson Scott Card’s Alvin Maker trilogy, Master Alvin, on April 28th. Meanwhile, we’re enjoying this wide-ranging interview about the series, writing, and life with Youtuber iSamwise.
Congratulations to DC Wynters who was part of a successful Kickstarter for Ruins: A Space Opera Anthology.
Theric Jepson has a new poem out called “Glitter sifts from sky, sifts hell from beauty or beauty” in the latest issue of the engine(idling.
JS Absher published several poems including “Mystic Neighborhood,” an honorable mention in the 2025 James Applewhite Poetry Prize, and “A Flower for the Scrapper” in the latest issue of LDS literary magazine Irreantum.
Here’s a different kind of religious speculation: Ethan Unklesbay asks, “What if the restoration was Catholic?”
Check out this article about Anthony Bourdain in Narnia, possibly the weirdest but most endearing fan fiction I’ve ever stumbled upon.
Have you seen the film Eternity yet? It’s not a Latter-day Saint production, but the premise sure feels like it: a woman dies and has to choose whether to spend her afterlife with her first husband who died young in the Korean War or the man she raised a family with. We were pretty positive about it over on Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree, but Henry Sorensen deals with some of the negative aspects of the worldbuilding from an LDS perspective in his Substack review. Definitely put this movie on your watchlist and let us know your opinion.
Of course, we love Tyler Johnson’s essay in Wayfare about how the world needs more of the childlike optimism embodied by Harry Potter in an age where we all think the worst of each other.
Has anyone else been watching Starfleet Academy? We’d love to see something written about the LDS implications of episode 7, in which the couple is not married but “sealed” in an intimate ceremony for family, which leads to them becoming king and queen, because of course ruling is a two person job. The concept is so Mormon-coded we want to know if someone LDS was involved.
Read something great that we should know about? Send links to editor@furtherlightmag.com with the subject line “Interesting Publications.”
Community Events
May 14-16 - Storymakers Conference - Storymakers, held in Provo, is a great opportunity to hone your writing craft and network with fellow writers. And of course we also love the Whitney Awards that promote great LDS writing. If you’re attending, please come visit our booth and chat with us!
June 17-18 - Writers Cantina - Join local Utah authors for a casual and inexpensive event in West Valley City.
Got an event we missed? Send information to editor@furtherlightmag.com with the subject line “Community Events.”
Submissions & Deadlines
Ongoing - Submit to Bountiful Journal - There’s a new LDS literary journal hoping to promote the works of students and emerging authors. Check out their wishlist which includes personal essays, fiction, and poetry.
Mar 29 - Submit a poem to Wayfare’s Behold the Man! - Only five days left to submit your poem “about or related to Jesus of Nazareth.” See this page for more details. Winners will be honored at Wayfare’s summer festival. And yes, we checked: your poem may include speculative elements.
Apr 26 - Get your art into The Compass Gallery - This one is for our artist friends: The Compass Gallery is hosting another exhibit of fantasy art this summer titled Lore: The Power of Stories! After visiting their Fantastically Human exhibit last year, we know this one’s gonna be great. Submit your art to be exhibited alongside Steve Argyle and Howard Lyon.
July 20 - Write a review of a fake piece of LDS art - Irreantum is collecting new pieces for a special themed issue of reviews of LDS art. The catch is that these works don’t exist yet. Check out this fake review of a (speculative?) novel written by Brigham Young as an example. I’m hoping for a review of a magical installation or perhaps some space-based performance art.
August 31 - Submit to Further Light issue 3 - Though we’re just starting to nail down issue 2, we’re already collecting some great submissions for issue 3. We hope yours will be among them!
Got an opportunity we missed? Send information to editor@furtherlightmag.com with the subject line “Submissions & Deadlines.”