ALA Gothic Symposium CFP

Call for Papers (PDF)
American Literature Association Symposium
“Fear and Form:
Aspects of the Gothic in American Culture”

Keynote Speakers:
Teresa A. Goddu, Vanderbilt University
Eric Savoy, University of Montreal
February 21-23, 2013

ALA symposia provide opportunities for scholars to meet in pleasant settings, present papers, and share ideas and resources. The February 2013 symposium will meet in the self-proclaimed “most haunted city in America” and focus on the role of the Gothic in American literary culture. We welcome proposals for presentations on the place of the Gothic in the writings of both popular and canonical American authors (Brown, Poe, Hawthorne, Faulkner, O’Connor, Wright, Morrison, and others). We are particularly interested in studies relating Gothic modes to other forms, including the historical novel, poetry, the graphic novel, and detective fiction. In addition, we welcome studies exploring the roles of ghosts, vampires, demons, zombies, haunted houses, ancestral curses in American literary culture, including film. Proposals for panels and roundtable discussions are also encouraged.
Location: Hyatt Regency Savannah
Two W. Bay Street
Savannah, Georgia 31401

Hotel Rate: The Hyatt is offering a special rate of $150 (plus tax) per night for a single or double room.
Conference Fee: $150 (includes two meals and two receptions)
Conference Directors:
Alfred Bendixen, Texas A & M University
Rene H. Trevino, Texas A & M University
Please email all proposals to Rene Trevino
trevinreo@tamu.edu
Before October 1, 2012


Conference Details: The American Literature Association will meet in the Hyatt Regency in Savannah for a symposium on the Gothic in American Culture, February 21-23, 2013.
Please plan to stay in the conference hotel as this helps us meet our commitment to the hotel and keeps our rates low. The Hyatt is ideally located on the waterfront and right next to the largest historic district in the United States.

Sessions run Friday and Saturday, February 22-23. On Friday September 22rd, there will be a luncheon as well as an evening reception featuring a key note speaker. The second luncheon will be Saturday February 24, with a closing keynote and reception scheduled for the evening. Meal preferences will be sent to conference participants at a later date. The conference fee of $150 includes two lunches and two receptions.

Individuals may propose papers or panels by emailing the conference director, Rene Trevino, at trevinreo@tamu.edu no later than October 1, 2012. The proposal should include the title of the presentation or panel, an abstract that provides the conference director with a clear idea of the material that will be covered, a brief vita or description of the presenter’s qualifications, and complete emails for all participants. The proposal should be both pasted into an email and sent as an attachment (preferably in WORD). All emails will be acknowledged in a timely manner. The conference directors welcome proposals for roundtables and panels that deal with the development of important genres and literary movements.
Please note that no audiovisual equipment will be available for the symposium.

Those proposing papers and/or panels will be informed of acceptances in mid October Participants will be asked to make their hotel reservations immediately and to pre-register using the material posted at the end of this announcement. A program will be placed on the website prior to the conference and printed programs will be available at the symposium.

ALA Guidelines: The most common ALA format is a time slot of one hour and twenty minutes with three papers and a chair. This permits time for discussion and three papers of approximately 20 minutes (or nine typed double-spaced pages). Organizers of panels are free to use other formats provided they respect the time limits. Furthermore, the ALA encourages panel organizers to experiment with innovative formats including discussion groups and panels featuring more speakers and briefer papers. Chairs will make sure that the panels start and end on time and that no speaker goes beyond the allotted time limit. We prefer that chairs not present papers on the panels that they are moderating, and no one may present more than one paper at an ALA symposium.

The conference fee covers the costs of the conference including two meals and two receptions. We encourage all of those who are on the program to pre-register. The conference fee is $150 for all participants. We regret that we are unable to offer a lower rate for graduate students and independent scholars for this symposium.

ALA Membership: Membership in the ALA is not required in order to propose or present a paper. In fact, technically the members of the American Literature Association are the various author societies. Individuals may keep informed about the activities of the ALA by checking our website (www.americanliterature.org), which is the primary source for information about ALA activities

The easiest way to find out about the conference and all ALA activities is by consulting our website: www.americanliterature.org

Please note that the American Literature Association maintains the lowest conference fees of any major scholarly organization because it operates without a paid staff. If you have any questions that are not answered by this announcement, please contact the conference director or Alfred Bendixen, Executive Director of the ALA, at abendixen@tamu.edu.