[Air-L] Call for Papers: Participations special issue: The Fan Studies Network: New Connections, New Research

[Lucy Bennett]

*Apologies for cross-posting*

Call for Papers: Participations special issue: The Fan Studies Network: New Connections, New Research
 
Formed in March 2012, the Fan Studies Network (http://fanstudies.wordpress.com/) was created with the idea of cultivating a space in which scholars of fandom could easily forge connections with other academics in the field, and discuss the latest topics within fan studies. Having attracted close to 200 members, the network is already fostering a sense of community and engendering fruitful debate. We intend to capture this dynamic intersection of scholars working in the field, and present it in a special issue of Participations: Journal of Audience & Reception Studies (http://www.participations.org/).  

Although fandom has been, to a degree, widely studied, the influence of the Internet and social media on fandom is resulting in scholars questioning and ruminating on how these platforms are presenting new challenges and how their influence can be understood. In this issue we will present a snapshot of the current state of the field and the topical themes that are presently being debated within this. 

Thusly, the issue will provide a platform for new scholarly collaborations between FSN members, demonstrating the possibilities for new modes of research. 

We encourage new members to the network and welcome proposals for articles on, but not limited to, the following possible topics:

- Fan use of social media platforms
- Fan practices 
- Activism and fandom
- Producer-audience interactions
- “Underrepresented” fan cultures
- New modes of fan fiction

New collaborations between network members, in addition to individual submissions, are particularly encouraged in order to reflect the FSN’s aims at strengthening the way in which knowledge is shared across the field.

We also invite shorter pieces for a forum section. These will be 2,000 words maximum, non-peer reviewed debates between scholars on particular issues. Aiming for a more conversational mode, we welcome proposals for themes that may include:

- Acafandom
- Fan studies methodologies
- Offline fandoms
- The “next generation” of fan studies
- Defining “fandom”
- The ethics of fan studies
- Fandom and brands

Please submit article proposals or forum provocations of no more than 300 words, along with a 200 word biographical note to both Tom Phillips (T.Phillips at uea.ac.uk) and Lucy Bennett (Bennettlucyk at gmail.com) by 2 July 2012. Please also contact us with any queries or requests for further information. Completed articles will have a submission deadline of 10 December 2012 and you must be a member of the network to participate.  

Please note that Participations operates an open-refereeing policy. For more information see the website (http://www.participations.org/submission_guidelines.htm).