ear-ee-an’-tum: 1 Nephi 17:5. And we beheld the sea, which we called Irreantum, which, being interpreted, is many waters.

Irreantum: a Review of Mormon Literature and Film is a refereed journal, published twice annually (Fall/Winter, Spring/Summer) by the Association for Mormon Letters.

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Irreantum Contest Winners

Irreantum Fiction Contest Winners

The Association for Mormon Letters is pleased to announce the winners of the eighth annual Irreantum fiction contest. This year, our committee of eight judges felt that two stories were worthy first place; therefore, two first place cash prizes and a third place cash prize have been awarded, as well as one honorable mention.

First place (tie--$250): "The Path of Antelope, Pelican, and Moon," by Larry Menlove of Payson, Utah

First place (tie--$250): "The Treading of Lesser Cattle," by Darin Cozzens of Dobson, North Carolina

Third place ($100): "Outside," by Shawn P. Bailey of Logan, Utah

Honorable mention: "Cheddar," Joshua Foster of Tuscon, Arizona.

Next year's fiction contest will be announced in early 2009. With no official connection to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Irreantum and the Irreantum fiction contest are supported by a grant from the Utah Arts Council.

Irreantum 2008 Charlotte and Eugene England Personal Essay Contest Winners

The Association for Mormon Letters is pleased to announce the winners of the 2008 Charlotte and Eugene England Personal Essay contest. Irreantum’s editors chose ten semifinalists, and the winners were selected by guest judge Brandon R. Schrand, author of The Enders Hotel: A Memoir and director of the MFA program at the University of Idaho.

First place ($200): "Psalm of a Heretic," by Darren M. Edwards of Logan, UT

Second place ($150): "Long in the Tooth," by Joshua Foster of Tuscon, AZ

Third place ($100): "Confessions of a Secular Mormon," by Ryan McIlvain of Florham Park, NJ.

Judge Brandon Schrand’s Comments:

First Place: “Psalm of a Heretic.”
Comment: I was drawn to this essay for the same reasons I am drawn to any well-crafted, beautifully imagined essay. There is a special care given to language and music which are nearly as important—and in rare cases even more important—than the subject matter at hand. I’m also drawn to essays that demonstrate complexity and an intellectual capacity on the writer’s part to negotiate that complexity effectively and evocatively. Last, I admire essays that cast out from that lonely island of the singular first person experience as a method of engaging the larger world. In “Psalm of a Heretic,” we are treated to an interwoven rumination on the life of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, the French philosopher, Jesuit priest, and scientist. This rumination serves as the jumping off point for the essay as well as a context that allows the writer to make the leap from “What does all this mean to me?” to “What does all this mean to all of us?” That kind of broader awareness, coupled with a rigorous, imaginative prose, makes this essay a delightful, thoroughly engaging read.

Second Place: “Long in the Tooth.”
Comment: There is much to admire in this essay, not the least of which is the examination of a marginal, indifferent, and often unforgiving landscape, and the utter fragility of life that resides there—both animal and human. There is a haunting beauty to this essay, and the prose, in its search for meaning, calls to mind some of our greatest western storytellers like Wallace Stegner, William Kittredge, and Mary Clearman Blew.

Third Place: “Confessions of a Secular Mormon.”
Comment: This essay was a pleasure to read for its voice and its intellectual prowess. I admire it too, because there’s an element of sure-footed humor at work here that wins over the audience. But most of all, I was compelled by the close and sharp observations that resonated on both the personal and social levels. If you can imagine a conflation of Will Bagley and David Foster Wallace, you might get a sense of the richness, insight, and intellectual play at work in this piece.

The Charlotte and Eugene England Personal Essay Contest is funded through the estate of Eugene England. With no official connection to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Irreantum, the literary magazine of the Association for Mormon Letters, is supported by a grant from the Utah Arts Council.

Congratulations to all the winners!