Arisia 2018 Panel Schedule

For those of you attending Arisia (at the Westin Boston Waterfront from January 12 through 15, 2018), here is my panel schedule. Hope to see you there!

Friday, January 12

Time: 5:30pm

Room: Marina 2 (2E)

Panel: If You Didn’t Know, Now You Know: SFF Divination

SFF Authors use foreknowledge of events, whether predictive models, visions, or prophecy, to give characters future knowledge, often to solve story problems. In this panel, we’ll look at the problems this foreknowledge creates, for the characters, for the author, and for the reader.

 

Saturday, January 13

Time: 1pm

Room: Hale (3W)

Panel: Conning for Spoonies

Conventions can take a lot of energy to attend, something those of us dealing with chronic illnesses – both physical and mental – can have in short supply. Listen to our panelists discuss tips and tools for getting the most out of a convention while also managing our personal needs, and coping mechanisms for when we find out we’ve gone too far and suddenly find ourselves with no more spoons.

 

Time: 2:30pm

Room: Faneuil (3W)

Panel: Yoga & Juicing isn’t Fixing This

Disability and chronic illness doesn’t just “get better.” At some point, we accept that we live with this for the rest of our lives, and figure out how to cope and enjoy what we have. We’ll tell stories about the amusing and surprising things we see, and how we deal with it all.

 

Time: 8:30pm

Room: Marina 1 (2E)

Panel: When the Panel Goes Rogue…

An off topic panelist. An audience member who seems to think they’re on the panel. An ineffective moderator. How do you address these situations when they arise? What is the role of the moderator, other panelists, and the audience itself?

 

Sunday, January 14

Time: 4pm

Room: Marina 1 (2E)

Panel: Star Wars, 2018 Edition: The Last Jedi and More

Our annual discussion of all things Star Wars rolls around again, focusing on December’s The Last Jedi, looking at it within the framework of the franchise as a whole, with an eye towards this year’s Han Solo movie. We’ll also take a look at Rebels, Forces of Destiny, comics, games, and more!

 

Time: 5:30pm

Room: Faneuil (3W)

Panel: Wonder Woman: All the World Was Waiting For You

2017’s long-anticipated Wonder Woman, the first major theatrical motion picture adaptation of a female superhero in over a decade, instantly connected with audiences who had been waiting years to finally see a hero with whom they could identify. Come share your insights on what the film meant to you, where you’d like to see the story go, and just be amazed at the idea that it turns out they can make good, fun movies about DC properties after all.

 

Monday, January 15

Time: 11:30am

Room: Burroughs (3E)

Panel: Disney’s Second Renaissance

From 1989-1999, The Walt Disney Company experienced a period of creative resurgence known as the Disney Renaissance; The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King were artistic and financial wins for a studio coming out of a long slump. Recently, Frozen, Moana and others have led some to declare that the company is in the middle of a new success streak. We’ll discuss what we’ve seen in the past few years from this animation powerhouse, and look ahead to what’s to come.

 

Time: 2:30pm

Room: Douglas (3W)

Panel: Just the Facts: Superfoods

“Just the Facts” panels address topics where many people believe they know what’s going on, but what “everybody knows” can be inaccurate or contradictory. From kale to açai berries to coffee, we’ve had many foodstuffs pitched to us as “superfoods”. But what makes them “super”? And, for that matter, are any of them “super”?

CFP: Panel on Resisting Language as Weapon (open until 9/30/17)

Calling #teamrhetoric!

With a little less than a month of “official” summer left, I wanted to let everyone know about a panel I’ll be running at the 49th NeMLA Annual Convention that will take place in Pittsburgh from April 12-15, 2018 at the Omni William Penn.

Resisting the Weaponization of Language: A Panel (https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/17008)

As specialists in language studies, we have a particular affinity for and accompanying responsibility to use language in ethical ways. We embrace the power of language to change the world and ourselves for “good,” but are rightfully hesitant to focus on the potential for language to cause harm out of concerns regarding silencing and censorship. Yet, there can be no doubt that language can and does cause harm. Abstracts are encouraged that examine such weaponization of language from a variety of perspectives including, but not limited to, “grammar” as cudgel, misgendering and/or dead naming transgender individuals, and dehumanizing language in public discourse.

Follow the link above to submit a 300-word abstract before the September 30th deadline. Members and non-members of NeMLA may submit to as many sessions as they want, although they may present on only one paper presentation panel and only one other type of session (a roundtable or a creative session).

CFP: Roundtable on Chronic Illness in Academia

Calling all spoonies, zebras, and other scholars with disabilities and/or chronic illnesses!

With a little less than a month of “official” summer left, I wanted to let everyone know about a roundtable I’ll be running at the 49th NeMLA Annual Convention that will take place in Pittsburgh from April 12-15, 2018 at the Omni William Penn.

Chronic Illness in Academia: A Roundtable (https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/17006)

The academic space we inhabit–as scholars and as teachers–is very much a domain for the able-bodied. Yet, as more and more academics are acknowledging, invisible disabilities like chronic illness are more common than the academy seems to realize.

This roundtable invites proposals from a variety of perspectives and professional experiences navigating an academic space where the opportunities, guidelines, expectations and accommodations are based nearly entirely on imagined ideals of what it means to be “healthy.” Those who self-identify as chronically ill or otherwise disabled are especially invited to submit proposals, though such self-disclosure will not be required.

 
Follow the link above to submit a 300-word abstract before the September 30th deadline. Members and non-members of NeMLA may submit to as many sessions as they want, although they may present on only one paper presentation panel and only one other type of session (a roundtable or a creative session).

 

If it’s January, it must be time for Arisia…

For those of you attending Arisia (at the Westin Boston Waterfront from January 13 through 16, 2017), here is my panel schedule. Hope to see you there!

And if you have any ideas for questions we can discuss during the panels I’m moderating, go ahead and share them in the comments or send them to me via Twitter (@drurbanski).
Friday, January 13

DC Movie Universe: Crisis on Infinite Screens

Time: 5:30pm – 6:45pm

Room: Adams (3W)

Tracks: Media

I am moderating this panel with Ed Fuqua, Bob Chipman, and Dan Toland as panelists.

With three movies under its belt, the DC Cinematic Universe is proving to be a creative cesspit, with bad stories, creative miscues, and a complete lack of a moral center. It’s easy to point at Zack Snyder as the problem, but with studio backing and decent box office, clearly the issue goes further. What’s gone wrong with DC on the big screen, and is there any hope to be had from future movies?

 

On Shaming, Bullying, and Public Humiliation

Time: 8:30pm – 9:45pm

Room: Marina 3 (2E)

Tracks: Fan Interest

I am participating on this panel along with Andy Hicks, Mark Oshiro, TheoNerd, and Inanna Arthen.

SF/F fans are no stranger to bullying — many of us who were picked on for being different at a young age found refuge and escape in the other worldliness of fantastical books, movies, and newer media. The internet age of un-moderated twitter, 4chan, and Gawker has made bullying and harassment easier. The behavior surrounding GamerGate has practically normalized it. What can this teach us about forms of public humiliation and bullying, and what we can do to push back against it?

 

Saturday, January 14

Another Look at the Bad Old Days

Time: 7pm – 8:15pm

Room: Hale (3W)

Tracks: Literature

I am participating on this panel along with Jonathan Woodward, James Hailer, Sarah Lynn Weintraub, and John G. McDaid.

A lot of SF has aged very badly. A lot of it bore appalling elements even for its time. There’s some usual suspects, but let’s look at the older works of SF with awful elements as a whole. Is there anything worth looking for in those stories? Who deserves to make problematic fave among the problematic horde? Are there lessons that are relevant to modern readers and authors to be found among the stories that make us wince?

 

Musicals as Fantasy

Time: 8:30pm – 9:45pm

Room: Bulfinch (3W)

Tracks: Fan Interest

Types: Panel

I am participating on this panel along with Chris Brathwaite, Brian Liberge, Victoria Queeno, and Jesi Pershing

Musical Theater is an art form that has a very passionate and committed fan culture. Many musicals have a lot in common with classical fantasy, both in concept and in form. So why aren’t musicals celebrated in the same spheres as Science Fiction and Fantasy literature or media? This panel will challenge the status quo as we entertain and explore arguments for and against including musicals under the umbrella of our love for all things SF/F genre!

 

Sunday, January 15

Beyond Physics: Many Sciences of Science Fiction

Time: 7pm – 8:15pm

Room: Burroughs (3E)

Tracks: Literature

I am participating on this panel along with Andrea Hairston (moderator), Heather Urbanski, Walt Williams, Dr. Pamela Gay, Dash

While a lot of speculative fiction is still very focused on physics, speculation can come from any field of study including anthropology, computer science, psychology, and history. A discussion of some of the more unusual ways that science fiction has chosen to examine the human condition.

 

Star Wars, 2017 Edition: Rogue One and More

Time: 8:30pm – 9:45pm

Room: Marina 2 (2E)

Tracks: Media

Types: Panel

I am moderating this panel with Mario Di Giacomo, Frank Wu, Kevin Cafferty, and Mink Rose as panelists.

Our annual discussion of all things Star Wars will focus on December’s *Rogue One*, but we’ll also spend some time looking at *The Force Awakens* now that the hype has settled down, and talk about future releases in the franchise.

 

Monday, January 16

Routing Around Cognitive Biases

Time: 10am – 11:15am

Room: Alcott (3W)

Tracks: Science

I am moderating this panel with Ruthanna Emrys, David G. Shaw, Stephen R Balzac, and Andrea Hairston as panelists.

Most of us have a friend who always plays the same lottery numbers, refuses to travel by airplane “because they’re not safe,” and thinks music was better when they were a kid. Your friend – indeed, most people – suffers from multiple cognitive biases. How do you make people aware of the flaws in their thinking so that they have the critical tools to avoid such biases in the future? What about the more difficult task of identifying your own biases?

 

Fan Etiquette: How Not to Be *That* Fan

Time: 2:30pm – 3:45pm

Room: Bulfinch (3W)

Tracks: Fan Interest

 

I am moderating this panel with Mark Oshiro, Eric Zuckerman, Justine Graykin, and William Frank as panelists.

Have you ever been embarrassed by your fellow fans when meeting actors, musicians, and other people of note? How can you control your emotions and come across as a fan, not a stalker? Even at movies, some fans are yelling at the screen distracting other viewers from enjoying the film. This panel would give some insight as to what is the best way to present yourself and your fandom in a favorable light.

Off to WorldCon I go…

Where to find me at MidAmeriConII (WorldCon) in Kansas City

I’ve got a great schedule of programming this week at MidAmeriConII (the 2016 World Science Fiction Convention). I hope to see you there!

 

Panel title: The Interstices of Historical and Fanfiction

Day/Time: Wednesday Aug 17 at 07:00 PM to 08:00 PM

Location: Kansas City Convention Center – 2204
Historical fiction is a work of literature, comic, film, or television program set in the past. Fanfiction is a work of fiction produced by fans for fans, using famous people or source texts as their inspiration. Frequently the worlds overlap. Let’s discuss the overlaps, benefits, and pitfalls of working in these genres. The overlaps include writing fanfiction about historical fiction, setting fanfiction in an alternative universe by placing the narrative in a different historical era, fanworks about real-life historical figures (Historical RPF), or historical fanworks — any fanwork set in the past.

With Lyda Morehouse; Ms Sumana Harihareswara; Teresa Nielsen Hayden

 

Panel title: Joyful Disruption: Narratology and the SF/F Franchise (Solo presentation)

Day/Time: Thursday Aug 18 at 09:00 AM to 10:00 AM

Location: Kansas City Convention Center – 2201

Despite familiar complaints about the lack of creativity, interlocking franchise stories like those in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Star Wars saga rely on complex narrative functions that I weave together into a cohesive theory involving disruption among layers of narrative; the role of canon, and other forms of cultural memory; and textual boundaries. My overall goal is to identify what it is about these franchise stories that creates “built-in” loyal audiences in the first place. In other words, I’m working to answer the question, what are the narrative features of these franchises that keep bringing audiences back time and again?

 

Panel title: Science Fiction at Universities: Creating the Canon

Day/Time:Thursday Aug 18   06:00 PM to 07:00 PM

Location: Kansas City Convention Center – 2204

Different universities including Dundee, Liverpool and the local Kansas City University run science fiction courses. The reading material they cite as foundational varies considerably, with some including very few women, PoC or otherwise diverse SF while others start from a basis that SF began with Mary Shelley and includes works such as Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s Herland (1915) and Yevgeny Zamyatin’s, We (1921). What influence do university courses have on canon formation and what responsibilities do they have in representing and encouraging awareness of the diversity of material that is published?

With Dr. Paul Booth; Ms. Lynne M. Thomas; Gary Wolfe

 

Panel title: I Don’t Believe in Science

Day/Time: Sunday Aug 21   01:00 PM to 02:00 PM

Location: Kansas City Convention Center – 2204

All too often we hear about people who “Don’t Believe in Science”, but science isn’t about belief.  A discussion about why talking about science in terms of belief does science, and faith, a disservice.

Moderating this discussion with panelists Renée Sieber, Brother Guy Consolmagno SJ, Carl Fink, and Benjamin C. Kinney.

2017 NEMLA CFP: Roundtable on Ableism in the Classroom

With a little less than a month of “official” summer left, I wanted to let everyone know about a roundtable I’ll be running at the 48th NeMLA Annual Convention that will take place in Baltimore from March 23-26, 2017 at the Marriott Baltimore Waterfront.

I am relatively new to Disability Studies and have learned much over the past couple of years, but know there is still much to learn. Please consider submitting an abstract for this session.

 

Ableism in the Classroom: A Roundtable (https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/16431)

This roundtable will focus on the ways we address ableism in the literature, language, and writing classrooms. Perspectives are sought on the incorporation and adaptation of course content, class policies, and teaching activities. Both success stories and failure narratives are welcome.

 

Follow the link above to submit a 300-word abstract before the September 30th deadline. Members and non-members of NeMLA may submit to as many sessions as they want, although they may present on only one paper presentation panel and only one other type of session (a roundtable or a creative session).

Friday at NeMLA2016: Evaluating Writing Roundtable

I’m excited to be chairing a roundtable on evaluating student writing today, Friday March 18 at 1:15pm, for the Northeast Modern Language Association Conference in Hartford. We have a great line-up of presentations and hope to see you in Capital 3!

7.17 Evaluating Student Writing I (Roundtable)

• “Using Genre Studies and Rhetorical Analysis to Evaluate Student Writing” by Whitney James
• “Feedback in the Electronic Writing Classroom” by Joseph Gansrow
• “Training the Student to be Editor-in-Chief”  by Jayanti Tamm
• “In-Conference Writing Assessment” by Maureen McVeigh

• “Terms of Assessment” by Lisa Blansett (@Prof_Blansett)

• “Numberless Ways: Dialogue and Reflection for Developing Writers” by Paul Graves
  

If you can’t make it to the panel, here is a copy of the take-away we created that covers the key points and reminders: NeMLA_2016_Eval_Writing_Takeaway

 

Friday at NEMLA2016: The Student as Writer

I’m proud to be chairing a panel on embodiment and disability in the college writing classroom today, Friday March 18 at 11:45am, for the Northeast Modern Language Association Conference in Hartford. We have a great line-up of papers and hope to see you in Marriott A!

The Student as Writer: Embodiment, Mindfulness, and Disability in the Composition Classroom (Panel 6.21)

In this session, we review ways to approach the First Year Composition and other writing classrooms by focusing on the students as embodied writers, taking student-centered pedagogy to a new level. A combination of theoretical and practical perspectives will be employed to locate the student as embodied writer within the disciplinary tradition.

• “In Body and Mind: Re-embodying Reading in the Composition Classroom” by Carolyne King, University of Delaware.

• “Embodied Pedagogy: Silence, Energy, and Everything in Between” by Hilarie Ashton (@HilarieAshton), Graduate Center-CUNY.

• “Ableism and Attendance: Making the Writing Classroom Accessible to all Students” by Catherine Prendergast (@cjprender), University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign.

 

If you can’t make it to the panel, here is a copy of the take-away we created that covers the key points and reminders: NEMLA2016_Embodied_Writing_Takeaway_Cover

My Arisia 2016 Schedule

For those of you attending Arisia (at the Westin Boston Waterfront from January 15 through 18, 2016), here is my panel schedule. Because of other commitments, I won’t be arriving until Sunday but am looking forward to fitting in as much con as I can. Hope to see you there!

 

Sunday, January 17

Time: 4:00 pm

Panel #473: Beauty and the Best at 25

Location: Marina 2

Description: Disney’s Beauty and the Beast remains the only animated feature to get a Best Picture Oscar nomination during the five-nominee era, and is one of Disney’s modern masterpieces. It’s got gorgeous songs, wonderful animation, and great acting, but also has some incredibly uncomfortable issues revolving around gender roles and abuse. How well has this Disney classic aged, how much has it influenced contemporary animation, and where does it rank amongst Disney films?

 

Time: 5:30 pm

Panel #480: Lesser Known Tropes v. Women in SF/F

Location: Faneuil

Description: We’ve had enough of the tropes of woman-as-accessory, sexual assault, and fridging. We debate what makes a Strong Female Character. But there are other tropes that crop up in stories around women characters that deserve discussion, many of which deserve to be retired. This is the panel to talk about these lesser-discussed tropes and what to do with them.

 

Time: 8:30 pm

Panel #460: The Hunger Games

Location: Burroughs

Description: With part two of Mockingjay, the big-screen adaptation of The Hunger Games has finished its run. We’ll look back on the series as a whole, evaluating it both as it relates to the books of Suzanne Collins and as a standalone set of films. How has the range of different directors and writers (as well as the casting choices, which have leaned very heavily towards whitewashing the cast) helped shape the franchise, and what affect has the series had on the state of YA filmmaking?

 

 

Monday, January 18

Time: 10:00 am

Panel #306: Inside Out: Pixar Gets Smart

Location: Marina 4

Description: Pixar’s Inside Out was a huge hit, and received rave reviews even by Pixar standards. Part of this love comes from the surprising depth of insight the movie has into what makes people in general — and young girls in particular — experience emotions, and why “negative” emotions like sadness can be absolutely vital. But beyond the insight, it was also a gloriously entertaining movie, and one that we’ll discuss and celebrate on this panel.

Time: 1:00 pm

Panel #323: I Hate the Hero

Location: Marina 1

Description: Is there a story with a protagonist that you dislike or maybe is just not likeable. I don’t mean, ‘The heavy is cooler than the hero,’ which is common. I mean you loathe the hero, to the point of rooting for the antagonist just to see them fail. What makes a hero likeable and do they have to be likeable for fans to be interested in the story?

 

Time: 2:30 pm

Panel #351: The Story Within the Story

Location: Marina 2

Description: Relatively few SFnal works give narrative the kind of central role within their heroes’ world that it often plays in our own. What works have best created stories within a story, and which are notable for the absence of a literary tradition where you might expect to find one?

More NEMLA Calls for Proposals!

With less than a week left until the September 30 deadline, here are four more, awesome panels scheduled for the Northeast Modern Language Association conference in March. These are all focused on popular culture, including comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (which I’m partial to myself). Check them out!

The 47th meeting of the Northeast Modern Language Association, March 17th to March 20th in Hartford, Connecticut, will host more than 400 sessions, including ones focused on adaptations of literature for film, and the roles of race and gender in comics.

Below are four calls for papers with links for submitting 300-word abstracts before the September 30th deadline. Members and non-members of NeMLA may submit to as many sessions as they want, although they may present on only one paper presentation panel and only one other type of session (a roundtable or a creative session).

If you have any questions, please email the organizers listed with each session.

“Ruined!” On Failed Adaptations from Page to Screen

https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/15658

Contact: Emily Lauer (lauere@sunysuffolk.edu), Derek McGrath (derek.s.mcgrath@gmail.com)

This session will explore adaptations that fail in some way. Among our goals, we would like to identify what could be productive about failed adaptations. How do such failures identify what not to do, and can an adaptation that fails to be faithful to its source material still produce a valuable, worthwhile text? We are particularly interested in proposals that look at the adaptation of older artistic and literary forms in online and/or interactive content.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe as Literature

https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/15845

Contact: Mary Ellen Iatropoulos (maryiatrop@gmail.com), Derek McGrath (derek.s.mcgrath@gmail.com)

With dynamic individual superhuman characters populating a world of complex, interwoven mythologies and origin stories, the films and television series of Marvel Comics Studios experiment with long-form transmedia storytelling. With twelve films and three television series released in less than a decade, all adhering to the same continuity and fictional universe, how can the Marvel Cinematic Universe reveal or offer fresh insight into the ways in which modern cinematic storytelling functions as literature? Approaches may include analysis of one or more films; storytelling across genre and medium; adaptations of the original Marvel Comics to film and television; and applications of various schools of literary and media theory to MCU properties.

The Monster In The House: Domestic Ideology in Superhero Narratives

https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/15842

Contact: Mary Ellen Iatropoulos (maryiatrop@gmail.com)

In worlds full of superhuman heroes, mythological imaginary creatures and battle narratives of epic scope, what is the role of the domestic? This session seeks proposals investigating the ways in which domestic spaces and domestic ideology function within superhero narratives as sites of union and/or conflict between the human, the subhuman, and the superhuman.

Race and Comics: The Politics of Representation in Sequential Art

https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/15963

Contact: Rafael Ponce-Cordero (rponcecordero@keene.edu)
This panel welcomes papers that examine the treatment of race and racial relations in comic books, whether in superhero narratives, graphic memoirs, web comics, or other forms of sequential art both inside and outside the United States. How are comics used to document and represent racialized identities? How have the medium and its surrounding fan communities adapted earlier content to speak to current topics?