[Commlist] Call For Papers: Edited Collection about YA Media Adaptations, Social Justice, and Empathetic Audiences

CALL FOR PAPERS: Young Adult Media Adaptations, Social Justice, and 
Empathetic Audiences

Co-Editors Amanda Firestone, Leisa A. Clark (/Resist and Persist 
[2020]/, /Harry Potter and Convergence Culture [2018], /and /The Last 
Midnight [2016]/)

Contact Email: (ConvergencePotter /at/ gmail.com) 
<mailto:(ConvergencePotter /at/ gmail.com)>

In 2022, about 35.04 million printed books were sold that classified as 
Young Adult Literature (Curcic 2023). In fact, it’s the fastest growing 
category since 2018, with almost a 50% increase in sales to date (Curcic 
2023). And, if trends hold, the numbers will continue to rise, making 
the YA category a multibillion dollar opportunity for publishers. It’s 
also no surprise that media adaptations of popular Young Adult novels 
have become big business, raking in millions of dollars, skyrocketing 
actors to celebrity status, and providing another mediated experience 
for fans to embrace.

Perhaps more importantly, educators and media critics have long 
recognized YAL’s value in providing readers with outlets to make sense 
of navigating social relationships, processing difficult circumstances, 
and developing a sense of self-identity and self-worth.  Contemporary YA 
authors don’t shy away from representing traumatic, violent, and/or 
emotionally fraught situations, though many temper descriptions and 
character perceptions with a teen audience in mind. Recent popular 
novels and their respective adaptations deal with important and divisive 
(current) events that impact children and teens in ways that many adults 
might like to downplay or ignore. More so, texts like these can also 
provide representations of how to stand against injustice both 
personally and communally; this can also be true when the narrative 
content is humorous or romantic rather than dramatic and dark. YA, even 
when fantastic in its narratives, pushes boundaries and limits to help 
empower audiences and recognize their agency in the world.

We invite essays for a collection that will examine adapted Young Adult 
narratives and their connections to contemporary social issues and 
concerns that are relevant to readers/viewers. Specifically, we are 
looking for essays that explore the cultural implications of these 
narratives and the ways audiences (and critics) negotiate them in a 
post-modern, convergence culture world, potentially accounting for 
multi-mediated and repeat viewings/readings. We would like to include a 
variety of scholarly methods beyond textual analysis.

We welcome a variety of mediums for examination, including but not 
necessarily limited to: films, television series, web series, and 
podcasts. We prefer to forefront texts that have been specifically 
published as YA, as opposed to those re-branded to fit modern category 
expectations.

We anticipate that this collection will include 16-20 essays, and as a 
working guide, the essays should be 4000-4500 words. Essays must adhere 
to the most current MLA format.  McFarland has expressed interest in 
publishing this project.

Submission Guidelines: Please send a 500-word proposal in Word, followed 
by a short bibliography showing the paper's scholarly and theoretical 
context. Please also include a short professional description of yourself.

Submission deadline: May 10, 2023

Direct inquires and proposals to: (ConvergencePotter /at/ gmail.com) 
<mailto:(ConvergencePotter /at/ gmail.com)>

Editors: Amanda Firestone, Leisa A. Clark

Amanda Firestone, Ph. D.
Associate Teaching Professor
Department of Communication
The University of Tampa

Co-Editor of:
Resist and Persist: Essays on Social Revolution in 21st Century 
Narratives 
<https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/1476676674?pf_rd_r=29NW8STY4V8T0CZ3JDKH&pf_rd_p=edaba0ee-c2fe-4124-9f5d-b31d6b1bfbee>

Harry Potter and Convergence Culture: Essays on Fandom and the 
Expanding Potterverse 
<https://smile.amazon.com/Harry-Potter-Convergence-Culture-Potterverse-ebook/dp/B079QMXGMH/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&qid=1595797484&refinements=p_27:Amanda+Firestone&s=books&sr=1-2&text=Amanda+Firestone> 


The Last Midnight: Essays on Apocalyptic Narratives in Millennial Media 
<https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06WD1VB4S&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_PL5mCb336CD5B>

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