Connections: Flannery O'Connor Meets Sufjan Stevens

Indie rock darling Sufjan Stevens is among the most literary minded musicians you'll ever find. Before his music career soared to nearly universal praise, Stevens earned an MFA in creative writing from NYC's New School. Many contemporary musicians probably don't know who Saul Bellow was. Stevens, on the other hand, named a song after him.

Like the great short story writer Flannery O'Connor, Stevens often expresses and explores his Christian faith through his art. In fact, a couple songs on Stevens' album Seven Swans, "In the Devil's Territory" and "A Good Man Is Hard to Find," are based on an O'Connor essay and short story respectively. O'Connor's "Good Man" is a haunting tale of moral choice. It's one of the most famous stories of the 20th century and rightfully so. Steven's song addresses the work from the perspective of evil incarnate, the character called The Misfit.