Call for Papers, Narrative Matters 2012: Life and Narrative

Call for Papers, Narrative Matters 2012: Life and Narrative

The American University of Paris

CONFERENCE DATES: May 29th to June 1st 2012

DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING ABSTRACTS: November 15, 2011

The American University of Paris, The University of Paris Diderot-Paris 7, and the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research on Narrative at St. Thomas University, invite scholars from all disciplines to reflect upon the productive interplay between life and narrative.

What is the relationship between life and narrative? As noted by Jerome Bruner in his article on “Life as Narrative” (1987), this is one of the central intellectual questions facing narrative inquiry and narrative practice across multiple disciplines – psychology, narratology and literary theory, digital media, sociology, history, sociolinguistics, philosophy, medicine, education, gerontology, communications, social work, ethics, religious studies, etc. Indeed, there is broad agreement that narrative representations (from novels to histories, biographies, websites, films, museums) and life are essential to each other. Narrative draws upon life for inspiration to create an imagined world that has substance, color, texture, and meaning. Meanwhile, life draws upon narrative for resources to imagine our identity and to interpret others, situations, and the “real” world. Both are involved in an intricate exchange, playing off one another, informing and creating one another. However, the relationship between life and narrative – between experience and story - is not merely theoretical in nature but practical as well. Narrative has a profound impact on our understanding of what it means to be human; of the choices we make as persons; of the nature of health and wellness, teaching and learning; of the meaning of history; of how social groups work through conflict; and of how the cultural and political world is ordered.

Panels and papers
Scholars are invited to organize panel sessions and present papers on various aspects of the broad theme of “Life and Narrative.” Possible questions include:

• What is the relationship between telling and living?
• How can the narrative concept help us to better understand experience, interpretation and action?
• What does literature teach us about aspects of life, experience, mind, and social relationships?
• How can narrative research have a greater impact on the lives of real persons and institutions? How can narrative theory and practice better inform one another?
• Can there be a “true” narrative? What are the boundaries between fact and fiction, between autobiography and autofiction?
• How is identity storied, restoried, even de-storied across the lifespan?
• What is the effect of the media (new and old) on identity?
• What is the relationship between what is archived in individual memories and social institutions and the stories that we tell?

Conversations
Two plenary sessions will ask prominent scholars from different disciplines to present a short paper and discuss a central question related to life and narrative. Time will be given for debate and interaction between the presenters and the audience.

Confirmed Plenary speakers
Mark Freeman, College of The Holy Cross
Alexandra Georgakopoulou-Nunes, Kings College London
James Phelan, Ohio State University

Comparing interpretations
A final plenary will compare and contrast approaches to the study of narrative. Our plenary speakers will discuss approaches to the study of research interviews and literature. The audience will be provided with the texts in advance of the plenary and will be given ample opportunity to exchange ideas with the panelists.

Language
Although the language of the conference will be in English, papers delivered in French are welcome. Scholars presenting papers in French are requested to bring a translated copy of their paper to the conference for distribution to the audience.

Workshops
Preconference workshops will be organized, principally for graduate students and beginning scholars, along the following themes:

1. Translating narrative theory
2. Doing narrative inquiry
3. Digital narratives
4. Narrative and social change

Guidelines for submissions
We welcome proposals for individual papers (20 minutes plus ten minutes for questions) and panels (90 minutes). Submissions should be in the language of presentation (English or French). Please submit your proposal, including an abstract of less than 250 words, on-line at: http://my.aup.edu/conference/narrative-matters-2012

Abstracts are due on November 15, 2011.

Publications
An edited book will be published including the best submissions from the conference. If you would like your paper to be considered, please submit a complete draft no later than May 30, 2012.

Conference website
Coming soon.

Contact information
If you have questions, please email us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Organizing committee
Brian Schiff. The American University of Paris.
Sylvie Patron.The University of Paris Diderot-Paris 7.
Claudia Roda. The American University of Paris.
William Randall. St. Thomas University.
Elizabeth McKim. St. Thomas University.
Andrea Olguin. The American University of Paris.

Bill Cosby Carnegie Mellon Keynote Speech

When Dr. Cosby starts to tell his story about getting started in stand-up comedy you will find that you are along for a ride that is well worth the trip!

Worlds Collide: Storytelling in Art and Business

On June 8, 2011 I gave a talk via teleconference through the Worldwide Story Work group. This blog post contains links to all of the topics discussed, images from the artists mentioned, and a podcast of the actual call.

Worlds Collide: Storytelling in Art and Business Are you an artist or a businessperson? Chances are you’re a bit of both. In this call, I will highlight storytelling patterns, projects, and players from both art and business. We’ll examine why storytelling has gone from bad word to buzzword, discuss interdisciplinary storytelling trends, and envision what’s next for creative and professional story practitioners who dare to let worlds collide.

Download the audio recording: Worlds-Collide.mp3 (1 hour in length, 52.7 MB)

Topics referenced in the talk are listed below:

John Baldessari

John Baldessari website

Yoko Ono

Yoko Ono website

Laurie Anderson

Laurie Anderson website

Miranda July

Miranda July website

Her book website:
No One Belongs Here More Than You

Harrell Fletcher

Harrell Fletcher website

Story Collections

Learning to Love You More

Gold Strong Stories

Social Practice

Social Practice Art on Wikipedia

Broken City Lab

Broken City Lab website

The Yes Men

The Yes Men website
Yes Men Bhopal Story

Open Engagement

Open Engagement Conference

Higher Education

MBA in Design Strategy at California College of the Arts

Oregon College of Art and Craft and Pacific Northwest College of Art | MFA in Applied Craft and Design

Ball State University: Telecommunications (Digital Storytelling)

RISD arms Class of 2011 with Artrepreneur Kits

Kickstarter

ETSY

Jeffery Gitomer

Jeffery Gitomer website

Tom Peters

Tom Peters website

Pomplamoose

Pomplamoose website
Pomplamoose on YouTube

Amanda Hocking

Amanda Hocking on Wikipedia
Amanda Hocking's Blog

Additional Links Mentioned in the Call

Kartoon Kings
A series of ten commercial billboard portraits of people who work on the Berlin U-Bahn at night. U-10 Projekt/NGBK, Berlin, Germany.

The Story Cafe
The Story Café provides an Oasis for busy professionals to relax, reflect and stimulate their thinking away from the common daily round. And for anyone interested in exploring the creative use of storytelling for therapeutic purposes.

Once Upon a Venture
We transform the sagas of entrepreneurs into stories that are real, yet fun; serious yet funny. These are the real words of the not-so-famous man or woman who offers you good solid tips from the gut.

10 Tips for Kickstarter Success

Imagine a website where artists and entrepreneurs can post a page, ask for money, and accept donations. In return, those seeking money offer up prizes and goodies to entice people to contribute. That’s Kickstarter.

It’s fund-raising with a twist: You must reach your goal in order to be paid. If you ask for $100 but only $99 gets pledged, you don’t get anything. If you asked for $100 and got $500 in pledges, good for you! Payments flow through Kickstarter via Paypal or Amazon and each takes a cut. 

I haven’t run my own Kickstarter campaign but I have contributed. In the past week alone, five painters doing a variety of art shows, a radio program, a book author, a theater troupe, and an independent publisher have all asked me to donate money. Here is what I’ve observed:

1. Ask for Less Than You Need.

You did the math. $10,000 would completely fund your dream including the flowers, security, clowns, and a lighting designer. It would even pay for your food, phone, and rent for the next six months so you could devote yourself full-time to the project. Ask for 1/3 or 1/2 of that. If you truly have a fan base, they’ll surprise you.

2. Make a Video.

Part of the fun of Kickstarter is watching the videos and seeing how people sell themselves. If you’re going to run a campaign, watch a bunch of videos before you make your own, and do make your own!

3. Keep the Video Short

Friends might give you three minutes. Half of that time is for your audience to pull out their wallet, register for the site, choose which donation level they want to pay into, and press the submit button. A lengthy video means that your audience will burn out their (short) attention span watching your long-winded video leaving no time for the payment process.

4. Make the Video Fun

You don’t need to have animated graphics and flying robots to show some character in your short video. If you can entertain and educate potential patrons for 1.5 minutes then maybe you deserve their money. Fail to be succinct and the audience will have more time to find holes in your story.

5. Give Good Prizes

Unless you’re Lady Gaga, nobody wants a signed photograph of you as incentive for donating $50 or more (I’ve actually seen that). Be realistic. Ask your brutally honest friends if they would donate to your cause in exchange for a half hour phone call with you as a prize. Take your donation rewards and imagine them on another campaign. Would you pay for those same things if they came from someone else? Do something unique for the people who support you. Make them feel special.

6. Don’t Apologize

“So today I’m here on Kickstarter to ask for money for my project because the amazing thing I’m going to do costs a lot of money, but it’s going to be great…” We know why you’re on Kickstarter! There’s no need to be sorry about trying to make the world a better place. Tell the (short) story and demonstrate how donations to your project will make a positive difference in the world.

7. Have a History of Success

You might have some trouble if nobody has ever heard you sing a song before and suddenly you’re on Kickstarter trying to raise $10,000 for your first album. Build a history of successes before you run a fund raising campaign. Once you have a history of success, your fans and friends will be more likely to offer money in advance.

8. Read the Kickstarter Blog

Take advice from the people who live it everyday. The Kickstarter blog often has suggestions and tips for creating a successful campaign.

9. Thank Everyone Who Pledges

I’ve donated to a few campaigns and was immediately thanked afterwards. That made me feel like they noticed and appreciated my small gesture.

10. Support Others.

Every dollar makes a difference. If someone you know ran or runs a Kickstarter, chances are they know exactly who supported them and who did not.

More Reading:

10 Tips for Funding a Successful Kickstarter Project

10 Crowd-Funding Tips from Kickstarter Filmmakers

My Kickstarter Experience: The Good, Bad, and Ugly

Nancy Duarte’s TEDx Talk: You Can Change the World

Nancy Duarte founded Duarte Design, a presentation design and training company. In this inspiring 18-minute TEDx East talk, Nancy explains how communicating ideas can change the world.

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