CFP “Romanticism, Interrupted” (Spring-Fall 2020)

Romantic Studies cannot, and should not, go on as before. Along with the cessation of face-to-face instruction, the COVID-19 pandemic has seen the cancellation of conferences and disruption of the usual paths to publication. Anti-racist demonstrations in America and around the world sparked by the killing of George Floyd have also interrupted “business as usual” by prompting urgent and necessary action to address and overhaul the inequities that undergird the status quo. If the protests can be deemed an interruption, it is one that we embrace. Therefore, in 2020 Romanticism on the Net is adopting a new, more flexible approach to scholarly publication: one that aims to amplify critical voices and facilitate conversations limited by circumstances both novel and more longstanding.

In this unusual time, our 2020 double issue, “Romanticism, Interrupted“, invites unusual contributions: work that has been interrupted by the pandemic and work that has been stimulated or redirected by anti-racist and anti-authoritarian action. We invite shorter works and telling fragments: scripts for conference presentations undelivered and essays impeded by library closures that have nevertheless discovered new means of proceeding. We seek meditations on information access and communication (behind masks, to muted audiences) and action plans for teaching Romanticism remotely and from anti-racist perspectives. We also seek in-the-moment responses to current social, political, and cultural events, and tracings of relations between the past and present: racism, injustice, and protest; disease, contagion, and medicine; the arts in crisis; and the rhythms of everyday life interrupted and disrupted. We would be very happy to feature work that exploits our digital capacity to support innovative formats, such as mixed-media and video essays, hyperlinked papers, audio interviews, and other media hybrids.

We still invite traditional scholarly articles, but we are keen to open our platform to non-traditional submissions, which will be published on rolling release. Suggested forms are below, but we are happy to receive queries about other ideas:

  • Essays (which should be between 4,000 and 12,000 words in length, including notes and works cited);
  • Reflections on current events and relations between past and present (we’d suggest that reflections be 3,000-5,000 words in length);
  • Contributions to our new Digital Reviews section, which introduces and assesses important online editions, indexes, and tools for scholars of Romanticism (please contact Nick Mason if interested in writing such a review);
  • Audio, visual, and mixed-media essays;
  • Conference-style papers (~2,000-3,500 words), with or without supporting apparatus/overheads;
  • Prepared comments for roundtable discussions (group submissions encouraged);
  • Course descriptions, action plans, and reflections on pedagogical challenges;
  • Recordings of virtually delivered lectures, papers, and presentations;
  • Recordings of virtual class meetings that develop innovative approaches to Romantic material.

Submissions will, as always, be peer reviewed, but according to a modified set of criteria reflecting the nature of this call.

Submission Deadline: submissions are invited from June 29-December 31 and will be published, once evaluated and accepted, on a rolling basis as they are edited. 

Submission address: romanticismonthenet@gmail.com.

The editorial team is happy to correspond about ideas for contributions using the above address.