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Call for Chapters FROM GIANT TURTLES TO SMALL GODS LITERARY, PHILOSOPHICAL AND MEDIA THEORY APPROACHES TO TERRY PRATCHETT

Terry Pratchett’s death earlier this year brought into sharp relief three things: The depth of his fans’ devotion, the high esteem in which he was held by fellow authors, and the lack of scholarly attention paid to his work so far. This academic oversight is not only surprising in the light of Pratchett’s success – with total sales of over 70 million and translations into 37 languages, he was one of Britain’s bestselling novelists – but, more importantly, due to the richness of his work. A truly postmodern author, Pratchett rejuvenated the fantasy genre with his highly distinctive and influential narrative style, technical and scientific wit, stylistic and narrative creativity, as well as social, political and philosophical commentary. The aim of this collection is to give a broad overview both of the multidimensionality of Pratchett’s work and of the insightful scholarship surrounding it and to provide a solid launching point for future engagement with his work.

From scholars working within or across the disciplines of literature, media theory, sociology and related fields, we invite proposals for chapters that address

  • Pratchett’s narrative style (e.g. parody, pastiche, intertextuality, irony, humour, genre subversion, dialogue, satire, imagery)
  • Content analysis (in terms of e.g. philosophy, technology, death, science, religion, social commentary, moralism, education, gender, race)
  • Biographical aspects of Pratchett’s life and work (e.g. his disability, social activism, reader‐ writer‐approach)
  • Mediality of Pratchett’s work (e.g. franchise, multimediality, use of social media)
  • Terry Pratchett fandom (e.g. gaming, conventions, internet affiliation and impact).

    Interested authors should send a 300‐word abstract, 100‐word biography, and a sample of a previously published chapter or article to Marion Rana (marirana@uni‐mainz.de) by August 1, 2015. Please feel free to contact Marion with any questions regarding this call.