CALL FOR BOOK CHAPTERS - DEADLINE EXTENDED

 The Final Frontier: Race, Ecology & Colonialism in Space Opera

Edited by Mikail Boz & Cenk Tan

Editors’ Introduction

Space opera, with its metanarratives of interstellar conflict, exploration, and empire, has long been a vehicle for both reflecting and interrogating the social and political concerns of its time. From the optimistic multiculturalism of Star Trek to the neo-feudal dystopias of Dune, the subgenre grapples with fundamental questions of power, identity, and resistance. Yet, despite its popularity and cultural influence, space opera remains an under-examined field for critical discourse on Race, Ecology, and colonialism.

This edited volume, The Final Frontier: Race, Ecology & Colonialism in Space Opera, seeks to bridge that gap by offering a sustained scholarly interrogation of how these themes manifest in space opera film and television. How do these metanarratives reproduce, challenge, or subvert real-world hierarchies? What do they reveal about the enduring legacies of imperialism, the anthropocene, and racial capitalism—even in imagined futures? By bringing together critical race theory, ecocriticism, and postcolonial perspectives, this collection will illuminate the ways in which space opera both reinforces and resists dominant ideologies.

We invite contributions that engage deeply with the subgenre’s political and cultural dimensions, including:

• Race & Representation: How do Star Trek: The Original Series, Foundation, Babylon 5, and Andor negotiate racial politics in ostensibly post-racial futures? Whose stories are centered, and whose are marginalized?
• Environment & Ecocriticism: How do Star Trek: Discovery, The Expanse, Voyager, and The Orville represent ecological crisis, environmental ethics, and humanity’s relationship with nonhuman worlds? Where do these narratives succeed—or fail—in challenging anthropocentrism and envisioning sustainable futures?
• (Post)Colonialism & Empire: What do Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Picard, and Stargate Universe reveal about the persistence of colonial logics, even in interstellar settings? How do they depict resistance, rebellion, and decolonization?
• Cinematic Space Opera: How do films like Star Wars, The Fifth Element, Jupiter Ascending, and Dune engage with these themes in a condensed, visually driven format? What unique possibilities (or limitations) does cinema present for critiquing power structures?

Submission Guidelines:

Abstracts, 300 words and a brief author bio, 150 words should be sent to spaceoperabook@gmail.com by January 1, 2026. Selected contributors will be invited to submit full chapters (6,000 words) by April 30, 2026. Each chapter should strictly abide by the word limit of 6000 words , including the endnotes, and the works cited. Endnotes should be preferred over footnotes. The body of the work should be organized under section titles where appropriate (such as Introduction, Theoretical Background, Case Study, Conclusion, and the like). The chapters are required to follow the MLA 9th edition formatting.

Only contributors who hold PhD degrees and have institutional affiliations will be considered.

The book is under consideration by a major international publisher, which will be announced at a later date.

Contact Email: spaceoperabook@gmail.com

Schedule

Deadline for abstract submission:    February 8, 2026

Notification of Acceptance:              February 11, 2026

Deadline for chapter submission:     April 30, 2026

Anticipated publication date:            Summer 2026

We seek theoretically rigorous essays that move beyond textual analysis to engage with critical race theory, ecocriticism, and postcolonial frameworks. The chapters, hence the works to be scrutinized, have been outlined. Prospective contributors are expected to make a selection from the outline. Contributors are, then, expected to send an abstract of 300 words and a short biographical note of 150 words (written in the 3rd person) by the submission deadline.

WE INVITE YOU TO SUBMIT AN ABSTRACT PROPOSAL FOR ONE OF THE SPECIFIC TITLES THAT ARE CURRENTLY AVAILABLE IN OUR OUTLINE

·         Dune: Part I & II (2021–2024)  (Race, Ecocriticism and/or Postcolonial Theory)  

·         Foundation (TV Series, 2021–2025): Focusing on the recasting of empire, psychohistory, and racial politics. (Race theory)

·         Stargate SG-1 (1997–2007); Stargate Atlantis (2004–2009); Stargate Universe (2009–2011): Examining themes of reluctant colonization, resource exploitation, and survival. (Postcolonial theory) (Please select and focus on one of the above mentioned titles)

          (PLEASE SUBMIT ONLY ONE ABSTRACT)

For All submissions and queries contact: spaceoperabook@gmail.com