Our Origin Story

By Devan Jensen

Every superhero has an origin story about gaining powers, overcoming daunting obstacles, or maybe even assembling a team to help save the world. Want to hear our origin story? 

Publishing can be a lonely profession. Steve Piersanti of Berrett-Koehler Publishers in Oakland, California, decided to reach out to a tiny group of Latter-day Saint authors and publishers, believing that he could find strength in numbers. This tiny group decided to organize a network of publishing professionals to reinforce shared values and improve career possibilities, hone communication skills, and use skills to bring healing to the world. 

Piersanti recruited publishers in a 2014 survey to brainstorm names. That initial committee of Sue Bergin, Brad Farmer, David Miles, Josh Piersanti, and Christopher Robbins narrowed the choices to two top contenders: the Latter-day Saint Publishing Professionals (LDSPPA) and the Association for Mormon Publishing Professionals (AMPP). In a survey, some noted that Mormon was a problematic adjective, so they chose the former option. 

They gathered a larger group of publishing professionals—both young and old—at an organizing event at the Salt Lake Public Library on April 3, 2015. That group included Sue Bergin, Brad Farmer, Kimball Fisher, Devan Jensen, David Miles, Bryce Mortimer, Steven Piersanti, Christopher Robbins, Eric Smith, Kathryn Thompson, Amy White, Erin Willder, and younger professionals such as Aleesha Bass. Our tiny band of heroes assembled to conquer the world! ☺

Revisiting Our Name

Since that initial meeting, we adjusted our name to address two concerns. First, some aspiring authors resisted joining because they felt daunted by not being established “publishing professionals.” Second, media influencers felt the focus was too strong on traditional print publishers. So we brainstormed options and sought survey results. The winning name? The Latter-day Saint Publishing and Media Association (LDSPMA). 

As part of our growing pains, we continue to question to use “LDS” in our logo even though “Latter-day Saint” is officially our name. We wondered if “PMA” might confuse people that we have “positive mental attitude”—that’s not the worst thing Latter-day Saints are accused of! So we’re constantly discussing our name and logo—leading to fascinating debates! 

Our Goals

We identified three goals that have remained stable: (1) to improve professional skills, (2) to network and broaden our publishing connections, and (3) to play an increasingly vital role in disseminating ideas to make the world a better place for all. Our annual conference became the most visible way to hone our skills and network with each other. As Christopher Robbins expressed, “Meeting each other and networking could provide a much richer opportunity for those of us who wish to work internationally or outside the Rocky Mountains but want to stay in publishing. Exploring each other’s networks can provide a rich field to harvest the very best Latter-day Saint talent available.” He added, “We all obviously understand the importance of networking. But as the world deviates from truth and religious moorings, the need is stronger than ever for Latter-day Saint publishing professionals to be connected, to help each other, to stand together in a world and industry that is increasingly more hostile to what we believe to be true and valuable. For years the church has grown one of a family and two of a city. Latter-day Saint publishing professionals should consciously resist being separated and silenced. There is strength in numbers.”

Our Mission

Although the names and faces of our team of heroes have changed over the years, our basic mission remains the same: We are “an international organization for members and friends of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who work in media and publishing or seek to do so. We provide online and in-person opportunities for our members to learn, network, share and refine their work, and support one another in magnifying and marketing praiseworthy works that bring light into the world. The media represented by LDSPMA members include books, blogs, articles, songs, poetry, videos, films, audio programs, podcasts, and others.”

To all you authors, bloggers, editors, designers, filmmakers, or storytellers in any medium, we invite you to join in our quest to use the power of the word to fill the world with light and truth.

Devan Jensen is a writer and editor who is shaping a better, kinder, more sustainable community, nation, and world. He loves telling stories to bring history to life.