Educators, researchers, writers, and content creators are invited to submit proposals for presentations. Graduate student participation is welcome. Presentation types might include:

• traditional oral readings of papers (15 minutes)
• timed slide presentations
• roundtable presentations
• pre-constituted panels

The conference focus is on literary storytelling and empathy. Multidisciplinary approaches to the overlap of storytelling and empathy are welcome. Projects might explore aspects of empathy, storytelling, and:
• Literary genres
• Verbal, musical, & visual genres
• Character- & world-building
• Community-building
• Rhetorical theory
• Narrative theory
• Literary fandom
• Religious texts & traditions
• Romance
• Literary allusion
• Likable and unlikable characters
• Diversity & inclusion
• Social justice
• Embodiment
• Cultural appropriation & stereotyping
• Human-computer interaction
• Stories in non-literary fields & contexts
• Reading publics & ways of reading
• Culture & the public good
• Franciscan values of compassion, wisdom, & integrity

Also welcomed are proposals for theme-related presentations on the work of Thomas Merton, a 20th-century Roman Catholic writer and activist with links to St. Bonaventure University.
The conference will be held in person on the campus of St. Bonaventure University, 75 miles south of Buffalo in western New York State.
250-word proposal and two-sentence bio due by Thursday, October 1, 2026, to Lauren Matz at empathy@sbu.edu. Please specify the type and duration of the presentation you are proposing.