Call for Papers:

Writing both shorter (forum posts, book reviews, and seminar papers) and longer pieces (dissertations and book-length manuscripts) is an integral part of any graduate program in the Humanities. Yet many candidates find themselves completing these pursuits as an end point, rather than as part of a larger journey. Some, for example, may find the process too focused on traditional methods of publishing, while others may find themselves yearning to submit selected works to academic journals. As a result, researching and writing do not look or feel the same for everyone, and no single mentor can fulfill every need of any single candidate or scholar.

In this 2025 NeMLA seminar, participants have the opportunity to interact with peer scholars at other institutions and to encounter future possibilities in their own and others’ scholarship. As a collective group, the seminar will consider each piece of writing as a point along a trajectory leading into knowledge production and dissemination. This will be accomplished through sharing pre-circulated work with peers and providing an abridged overview of their research argument during the seminar before a feedback session.

Schedule and Format of Session:

• September 30, 2024: CfP abstract and bio submission deadline

• October 2024: Acceptance/Redirection letters to applicants

• Email detailing next steps to participants

• February 20, 2025: Share materials to the seminar’s Google Drive folder, this includes: submitting papers (5000 word max); completing contextualization form; designating type(s) of feedback desired

• March 6-9, 2025: NeMLA annual conference in Philadelphia, PA

• Colloquium set-up:

• 2-min (max) elevator pitch of project by each participant

• Allotment of protected time (dependent on number of participants) for each participant to receive feedback on the circulated draft

• QR code to share materials for seminar attendees

• Post-Colloquium coffee debriefing discussion / meet-up

After each participant presents their 2-minute elevator pitch outlining the argument and aims of their circulated draft, the seminar will generate a collaborative workshop during which panelists will hear feedback from scholarly experts and pinpoint optimal venues for publication and distribution. While providing and receiving feedback are a natural part of the writing and publication process, the organizers will also provide guidelines to participants on how to provide effective feedback to their peers.

In acknowledgement of how much of the writing process registers as personal, and therefore emotionally risky, when circulating and sharing one’s work with others, the organizers plan to offer a debriefing meet-up where participants and session attendees can continue to provide input and commune in a low-stakes environment. The establishment of a community of peers can be a significant, positive influence as one makes their way through graduate school. We hope this debrief will generate professional connections rooted in shared and safe accountability structures (e.g. writing groups, accountability soft deadlines, semester planning, etc.) across institutions.

Professionalization skills developed and exercised through participation:

• Document preparation for feedback

• Detailing the types of feedback desired

• Project management

• Practice in providing effective feedback

• Editorial practice

• Elevator pitch preparation and presentation (pithy presentation of ideas and argument)

• Development on one’s presentational style in a professional setting

• Peer-to-peer community building

Abstract Submission Guidelines:

Interested participants are invited to submit abstracts (maximum 300 words), along with a brief bio (maximum 200 words), via the NeMLA portal at: cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/20971 by September 30, 2024. Please direct any questions about the panel to Prof. Cynthia Porter (porter.506@osu.edu) and Veronica Williamson (vcwill@umich.edu). Please include "NeMLA 2025 Grad Colloquium" in the subject line of your email.

Call for Auditors:

If you are interested in self-/nominating an expert to audit the session (professors, editors, and/or ABD students) and to provide graduate student participants with feedback, advice, and scholarly investment, please provide that person’s name, email, and affiliation, in addition to a few reasons for the nomination to Prof. Cynthia Porter (porter.506@osu.edu) and Veronica Williamson (vcwill@umich.edu) via email. Any self-nominations are also welcome to share their CV to communicate their publication/writing experience. Those with experience serving as journal, manuscript, or developmental editors are particularly encouraged and appreciated. We ask that any auditors commit to reading the pre-circulated materials of all participants.