This year’s convention theme, “After the Archive,” lends itself well to the study of Religion and Literature. The cultural importance of folklore and sacred stories means that keeping an archive of them for posterity through written and oral storytelling is imperative. However, the nature of that archive is unique in that these stories are ever-changing as they are retold and adapted over the generations.

In keeping with this section’s robust view of religion to include any sacred stories, ritual, belief and/or faith, institutional or otherwise, we invite all proposals that that explore the intersection of religion and literature. Priority will be given to proposals that engage with the convention’s theme. Topics may address, but are not limited to:

• literary reimagining of sacred texts, stories, practices, rituals etc.
• literary reinterpretations of sacred stories and/or folktales
• examinations of power dynamics, supremacy, exclusion, distortion and marginalization within systems and institutions of belief and faith
• loss/destruction (through colonialism, conquest, societal collapse, war etc) and reclamation of sacred story archives

Please submit abstracts of no more than 300 words, a title for your paper, and a 50-word bio to Dr. Seth Johnson at swjohnson3@ua.edu, no later than April 25, 2026.