A Call for Help

To be frank, I've been avoiding repurposing/ rewriting my paper. And here's why: I feel almost like I have to start from scratch.

My first argument: The church's condemnation of the Elizabethan stage was because of Shakespeare's use of powerful folklore (part 1) which is similar to educators' condemnation of "the Internet" because of it's use as a powerful vehicle for folklore (part 2).

But now, I want to focus on the audience of folklorists and aim more for getting them to study folklore on the Internet which is something that is just not common in the field, that prefers to study the weird and archaic over folklore that the majority of people participate in because that feels more like popular culture or something (still trying to understand why people don't study folklore forms on the Internet when they're so obvious). But it's not like anyone is outright condemning or fearing the Internet or even saying that it isn't a valid vehicle for folklore. They're just plain not heeding it. Most of the studies are about folklore transmitted face to face but they're missing out on this rich world of new folklore genres and forms.

American Folklore Society Annual Conference Submission?

I'm looking around for conferences I could submit my paper to. I'm still in the process of redirectioning and repurposing my paper, so I haven't yet written an abstract. I'm just looking for an audience for when I do. 

Missed Opportunities:

I just missed the boat for the Western States Folklore Society annual conference. It's being held the day I graduate (April 20th) in CA, but abstracts were due back in February and it costs a fee just to submit. It's too bad because they were accepting student papers, and I would have loved to aim for something like this. I also just missed the Folk Alliance International conference which took place at the end of February, but I couldn't find any information about paper submissions anyways. There is a Folklore and Fantasy Conference being held in the UK on April 15th. I missed the deadline for that in late January, but I think it would've been a great audience for my subject. I might still write them and see if my topic would've even been interesting to them (just by asking if they take late submissions). Another conference I would've loved to have presented at is WKU's student research conference which seems much less intimidating to me than others, but again the deadline was in February and the conference is this Saturday.  

Major Possibility: The American Folklore Society Annual Conference

I finally found a HUGE conference who's deadline hasn't passed though! The American Folklore Society, or the AFS, produces an annual meeting each October that brings together more than 700 folklorists from around the world to exchange work and ideas, and to create and strengthen friendships and working relationships. This year's conference will be held on October 24-27 at the historic Hotel Monteleone in New Orleans, Louisiana. This year's theme: "The Continuity and Creativity of Culture" is perfect for my paper's topic! I can challenge the assumption implied in the theme's description that the "disruption" of "cultural continuity... threaten[s] well-being and long-standing social interactions" by talking about online culture's ability to enhance and further relationships and social interactions through the transmission of folklore. 

If I choose to submit to this conference, I have till March 31st to solidify my direction, do my social research, finish my paper and make sure that it follows the guidelines set for submissions, write both a 500 word abstract and a 100 word abstract and there is a registration fee of $95 (not to mention, if my paper was actually selected, travel costs to get to New Orleans in October - though there are some grants I could apply for). I would be informed by June 1st, if my paper was accepted. It's a tad intimidating though... Do you guys think I should go for it? 

(Oh and just as a reminder to myself, there are more folklore resources I need to remain aware of here)

Wooden O Symposium - Cedar City, Utah

One of my contacts encouraged me in my thesis and mentioned the possibility of submitting my paper to the Wooden O Symposium in Cedar City this summer as part of the Shakespeare Festival. The call for papers deadline has been extended to May 1st. This is something some of us could totally consider if it appeals to you!