BCC Shines A Light on: Shaun Manning
BCC Shines a Light On:
Shaun Manning
Name of the piece published by BCC:
When/where was it originally published:
Roanoke Review
Tell us more about your piece! What is the background of the piece? What led you to write it? What’s your process?
“Conversion” is not especially autobiographical, but it is heavily influenced by my experiences with a Christian group at my high school. I am not a religious person now, and have not been for most of my life, but I have always been fascinated both by the stories in holy texts and the influence faith plays in people’s lives. And I think because of my background and perspective, I’m not coming at these themes from the dismissive or mocking perspective that many atheists hold, and I’m not coming at it from the Christian perspective of celebrating faith, either. But I’ve seen firsthand how belief in God has shaped the lives of many of my friends, and it’s not always what you’d expect. That’s the kind of story I’m interested in.
How did you feel when it was first published and how have your thoughts or feelings on the piece changed from then to now?
I was thrilled when it was published. It’s quite a personal story, so I was a bit shy about it. But also, at the time it wasn’t really available online, so I couldn’t share it too broadly anyway. Now I’m a bit less shy. I think that, probably, there are things I would do differently if I wrote it now, but it’s still very my kind of angst-y story. Full of music. Friendship. Touches of mental illness.
Is there a specific message you would like readers to take away from reading this piece?
I think there is value in the ways that people find connections with each other, whatever the root of that connection is. Of course, in the years since I wrote this piece I’ve seen pretty extensively how that can be used for evil, as well – I could not have predicted in 2009 what Facebook would become, or Twitter. But even social media, for all its many catastrophes, I’ll basically defend it to the death. I think it comes down to the fact that, though I often despair of the state of the world and have bottomless frustration with certain folks, in the end I really do love people. And I think finding your community (-ies) can be one of the most rewarding things in life.
What else would you like to tell readers about your writing? (Doesn’t have to refer only to your BCC piece)
I enjoy telling stories in all sorts of genres and media, but a lot of my work has been in the comics and graphic novels space. Always keen to do more, and I have a few things I’m working on at various stages. Always looking to try new things!
Also, in 2021 my wife and I opened Booksweet, an independent bookstore in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I’ve enjoyed meeting our communities of readers, hearing what folks are excited about and sharing some of my favorites.
Where can readers find more of your work? (Website/social media, etc)
shaunmanning.com
shopbooksweet.com
@fasterthanshaun on Instagram, Bluesky, and Twitter (dormant)
