The Eighth International Conference on Popular Romance Studies

Diversity, Inclusion, Innovation

University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria  Canary Islands | June 17-19, 2020

Proposal Deadline: October 20, 2019

Whose love matters in popular romance culture? Who is represented as capable of love, or worthy of it? How do popular romance media—books, films, TV, web series, popular music, comics, etc.—promote and/or resist (neo) imperialism, (neo) colonialism, white supremacy, ethno-nationalism, ableism, and compulsory heterosexuality? How do innovations in publishing and media creation and/or distribution help to diversify popular romance, making it more inclusive, and what innovations are needed in popular romance studies to bring this diversity—or its continuing absence—into our critical discourse?

Celebrating the start of its second decade, the International Association for the Study of Popular Romance calls for papers and posters on the popular culture of romantic love, now and in the past, from anywhere in the world.

Popular Romance Studies is an interdisciplinary field including scholars from literary studies; film, television, and media studies; communication and the social sciences; critical race, feminist, queer and disability studies; audience & fan studies, etc. All theoretical and empirical approaches are welcome, including talks, panels, and workshops on professional development, international collaboration, and pedagogy. Content creators, writers, and professionals from various romance industries are invited to submit proposals as well.

We are open to proposals on any relevant text or topic. This year we are particularly interested in papers, posters, panels, and workshops focused on issues related to diversity, inclusion, and innovation. Possible topics might include:

• Social justice themes and efforts at broadening popular romance media, including issues related to race, sexuality, gender, class, disability, age, religion, etc.
• Love and romance in the context of mass migration and displacement.
• Popular romance in colonial and post-colonial contexts.
• Romance beyond the Anglosphere: traditions, texts, translations (literal and metaphorical).
• Changes in romance genres and innovations in popular romance creation, marketing, and sales.
• Resistance to change in popular romance.
• Popular romance media communities and controversies.
• Panels on individual authors/creators and individual texts (books, series, films, shows, etc.)

Submit abstracts of 250-350 words (plus bibliography of 3-5 items, if appropriate) to conferences@iaspr.org by October 20, 2019. Please specify whether you are proposing a paper, workshop, or poster. Panel submissions (3-4 related papers) are welcome.

Thanks to the generosity of Kathleen Gilles Seidel, a limited number of Seidel Travel Support grants will be awarded to non-tenured presenters, including graduate students and junior scholars. Information about travel support applications will be sent out with acceptance notifications.