The Month of Craziness (and PAMLA Update)

If I thought April was a rough month, May was even more so. It's not over yet, though, which means there's a bit more bracing to be done...

Despite the insanity, there's still business to take care of: The CFP for PAMLA's Asian Literature session is still open, and I must advertise. Because the deadline is...Saturday.

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CFP: Asian Literature (Standing Session) at PAMLA 2014 (Oct. 31–Nov. 2) in Riverside, CA

Papers are sought for additional Asian Literature standing sessions at the 112th Annual Conference of the Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association, to take place from October 31 to November 2 at the Riverside Convention Center in Riverside, CA.

The session is open to papers that address a wide range of issues, including race, gender, sexuality, class, history, language, peace, war, etc.—you name it—in Asian cultural productions. It aims to explore how these issues arise in texts from various regions of Asia while questioning divisions such as Northeast, East, Southeast, and South. Papers from fields such as anthropology, art, history, ethnic studies, music, and sociology are also welcome.

The special theme of this year's conference is "Familiar Spirits". Papers for the Asian Literature session are welcome to (though certainly not required to) explore the ideas of magic, conjuring, spirits, hauntings, Spiritualism, and manifestations, as well as to treat the familiar, familial, and the commonplace in relation to the paranormal, strange, and uncanny.

For more information and to submit proposals, please visit the proposal submission page of PAMLA 2014 at http://www.pamla.org/2014/proposals. The extended deadline for submissions is Saturday, May 31, 2014. Questions can be directed to the presiding officer, whose email address is listed on the Session Topics page at http://www.pamla.org/2014/topic-areas.

Happy proposing!