All participants who wish to present a scholarly paper at the conference need to submit an abstract for approval by the Program Director and to be prepared to present the paper as scheduled in the program once the conference begins. Participants can present a paper, participate in a panel discussion, or serve as the chair of a particular panel. Regardless of the position, all participants must register in order to be on the program in either capacity.

Anyone wishing to pre-arrange a panel on a given theme or topic must first secure agreement from all members of the suggested panel and then submit a proposal. Most panels have three presenters, although some may have more. Proposals should include a 250-300-word description of the topic and full contact information for all members of the group. The person submitting the proposal is the chair of the session. He or she may also be a presenter, but need not be; however, all presenters, including the chair, must be registered for the conference.   

Paper Abstracts:

All persons wishing to give a paper at the conference, including all members of pre-arranged panels, must submit a 300-500 word abstract for approval. Individual papers should be scheduled for 20 minutes.

Dr. Jay Ruud JRuud@retired.uca.edu, the Program Director, screens all proposals and abstracts, issues acceptances, and arranges the presentations on the program.  He will form panels to accommodate papers not included in pre-arranged groups. Please submit all proposals and abstracts by 10 January 2025, via the online SUBMISSION FORM.

By submitting an abstract, authors give permission for it to be published on the conference web site and in the printed conference booklet.

Only registrants may present papers or organize or moderate panels. Final acceptance hinges on registration.

Submission Topics

Suggested Topics: (Please note that these topics are only suggestions. Participants may submit a topic of their own for use. Also, it is not necessary for the participant to write a paper on the conference theme. The theme is for the overall encumbrance of the conference, not for the major focus. Please check with the Program Director if you have any problems, questions, or concerns.)

• History of the Short Story
• Literary Movements and the Short Story
• Short Fiction Theory
• Short Story Subgenres
• Short Story and the Canon
• Short Story and Psychology
• Short Story and Philosophy 
• Genre Slippage
• Closure in the Short Story
• Short Story Rhetoric
• Short Story and Storytelling
• Short-Short Stories
• Short Story Cycles
• Short Story and Life Writing
• Writing the Short Story
• Flash Fiction
• Translating the Short Story
• Short Story and Culture
• Short Story and Gender Issues
• Western Influence in Eastern Short Stories
• Western Influence on Chinese Short Stories
• Western Influence on Irish Short Stories
• Chinese Short Story Writers in the Western Countries
• Asian-American Short Stories – Definition, History, Issues, Etc.
• Short Stories and Globalization
• Reading short stories in a globalized context
• Realism, naturalism, romanticism in the short story
• The Role of the translator in short stories.
• Non-fiction Short Stories
• Short Story and the Visual Arts/Dance/Music/Theater
• Short Story and the Media/Film/Hypertext/Multimedia
• Short Story and Code Switching
• Short Story and AI (Artificial Intelligence)
• Modernism and the Short Story
• Postcolonialism and the Short Story
• Postmodernism and the Short Story
• Short Story Editing and Anthologizing
• Short Story Publishing
• Short Story Reception
• Short Story and Pedagogy
• Magical Realism and the short story
• National traditions (e.g., Irish, Australian, Canadian, Spanish, French, German, ...)
• Indigenous Cultures: language, history, and storytelling
• Short stories and politics
• Short stories and religion
• The American Work Ethic and the short story
• Gay and Lesbian short stories; and Short Story issues
• Anglophone short stories from other countries and continents
• Philosophy and the Short Story
• Historical approaches to the Short Story
• Short Stories and MFA Programs
• The Short Story and the oral tradition