ALA Boston 2017

The American Literature Association Conference

May 25-28, 2017

The Westin Copley Place in Boston, MA

The Edwidge Danticat Society invites papers for a panel at the 28th Annual American Literature Association conference. We welcome papers that explore the expanse of Danticat’s work across many genres. As a prolific author, she has produced short stories, the collection Krik! Krak! (1996) and novel-in-stories The Dew Breaker (2004); several novels Breath, Eyes, Memory (1994), The Farming of Bones (1998), and Claire of the Sea Light (2013); three young adult novels, Beyond the Mountains (2002) and Anacaona: Golden Flower, Haiti, 1490, which belong to series, and her latest works Untwine (2015); and Mama’s Nightingale (2015), a children’s picture book. She has embraced life writing, producing two memoirs in what might be considered the collective mode, Brother, I’m Dying (2007) and Create Dangerously: The Immigrant Artist at Work (2010). She has edited several anthologies, The Butterfly’s Way: Voices from the Haitian Diaspora (2001), Haiti Noir (2011), and Best American Essays (2011); written a travel narrative, After the Dance: A Walk Through Carnival in Jacmel, Haiti, and is also an essay contributor for The New Yorker. Beyond this, Danticat has written and narrated two films, Poto Mitan (2009) and Girl Rising (2013).

The Edwidge Danticat Society invites proposals for 15-minute presentations, possible topics include:

•          The collective memoir, testimonio, and non-traditional archives in Danticat’s memoirs
•          Danticat’s role as anthology editor, promoting the literature of the Haitian dyaspora
•          The literary in Danticat’s work in film
• Danticat’s op-editorial and essay contributions

By December 20, 2016, please submit a 150-word biography, 300-word abstract (including working title) and any a/v needs to Megan Feifer, megan.feifer@edwidgedanticatsociety.org or Maia Butler, maia.butler@edwidgedanticatsociety.org.

Membership with the Edwidge Danticat Society is required for panelists, but it is not required to submit proposals for consideration. Membership dues to the Edwidge Danticat Society (www.edwidgedanticatsociety.org) must be paid by March 15, 2015.

American Literature Association conference registration (www.americanliteratureassociation.org) must be paid by March 15, 2015, or papers/panels will not appear in the conference program.