Sharing CFP Using Comics to Build Community: Approaches to Teaching Comics (Roundtable) (Virtual) (9/30/2026; NeMLA 3/6-9/2027)

Sharing our sponsored call for papers on the ninetieth anniversary of Prince Valiant.

View the full call at https://medieval-comics-project.blogspot.com/2026/07/cfp-lives-and-legacies-of-medieval.html.

The Lives and Legacies of Medieval Comics: A Commemoration of Ninety Years of Hal Foster's Prince Valiant (Hybrid)

62nd International Congress on Medieval Studies, Western Michigan University (Kalamazoo, MI), Thursday, 13 May, through Saturday, 15 May, 2026

Co-sponsored by Medieval Comics Project, Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular Culture

Co-organized by Michael A. Torregrossa, Bristol Community College, and Carl B Sell, University of Pittsburgh

Rationale

The comics have a long history of adapting aspects of the Middle Ages, and, while many series and characters have disappeared over time, Hal Foster’s comic strip Prince Valiant has persevered, continuing under a series of writers and artists over nine decades.

In commemoration of the ninetieth anniversary of Foster’s comic in 2027, we’d like to assess the ways that comics (and their adaptations across media) have contributed to the public’s understanding of the medieval past and to illuminate strategies for expanding knowledge of and interest in this corpus as creators, researchers, and teachers.

Submissions that look directly at Prince Valiant (or any of its adaptations) are especially encouraged; however, we will also consider proposals devoted to other characters, creators, and/or series that make use of medieval themes.


Do check out our expanding resource, the Medieval Comics Project Bibliographies, at https://tinyurl.com/MedievalComicsProjectBiblios, for information on prior studies of medievalist comics.

Submission Information

Please post paper submissions into the Confex site using the direct link https://icms.confex.com/icms/2027/prelim.cgi/Session/8806.

Do send any questions to the organizers at comics.get.medieval@gmail.com. Submissions are due no later than 15 September 2026.


Full details at https://medieval-comics-project.blogspot.com/2026/07/cfp-lives-and-legacies-of-medieval.html.

Sharing CFP Using Comics to Build Community: Approaches to Teaching Comics (Roundtable) (Virtual) (9/30/2026; NeMLA 3/6-9/2027)

Sharing our sponsored call for papers on teaching comics.

View the full call at https://medieval-comics-project.blogspot.com/2026/07/cfp-using-comics-to-build-community.html.

Using Comics to Build Community: Approaches to Teaching Comics (Roundtable) (Virtual)

Co-organizers Michael A. Torregrossa and Carl B. Sell

Sponsored by Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular https://medieval-comics-project.blogspot.com/2026/07/cfp-using-comics-to-build-community.html

Call for Papers - Please Submit Proposals by 30 September 2026

58th Annual Convention of Northeast Modern Language Association (NeMLA)

Salve Regina University (Newport, RI)/Online.

Hybrid event: 6-9 March 2027


This session’s modality is Virtual Only, meaning all presentations will be delivered via Zoom regardless of whether the presenters are in-person.

Rationale

Teaching with comics offers many ways to engage with the conference theme of Empowering Communities.

Comics, through their interplay of text and image, can support and/or supplement the reading of traditional texts and help all students to engage equally with a story. In addition, comics, by themselves, offer unique examples and models of a wide array of literary genres, both as fiction and non-fiction, spurring conversations and debate within the classroom. Lastly, the creation of comics as an activity forges a third type of community as creators work together to produce and (often) publish their work.

In this session, we seek to highlight innovative ways that instructors are using comics in their classrooms, either through one of the strategies we’ve outlined or through something unique to their own teaching.


We welcome submissions from instructors of all disciplines and experiences.

Submission Instructions

All proposals must be submitted into the CFPList system at https://cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/22574 by 30 September 2026. You will be prompted to create an account with NeMLA (if you do not already have one) and, then, to complete sections on Title, Abstract, Brief Bio, Media Needs, and Modality. This session’s modality is Virtual Only, meaning all presentations will be delivered via Zoom regardless of whether the presenters are in-person.

Further details at https://medieval-comics-project.blogspot.com/2026/07/cfp-using-comics-to-build-community.html.

CFP Superheroes of the Squared Circle - Chapter Contributors (7/15/2026)

Superheroes of the Squared Circle - Chapter Contributors

deadline for submissions:
July 15, 2026

full name / name of organization:
Forrest C. Helvie / CT State Community College

contact email:
forrest.helvie@ctstate.edu

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2026/06/12/superheroes-of-the-squared-circle-chapter-contributors



CALL FOR CONTRIBUTORS

Superheroes of the Squared Circle:

The Intersection of Comics and Professional Wrestling

An Edited Academic Collection for McFarland & Co. Publishing

Editor: Forrest C. Helvie, Ph.D.

Connecticut State Community College

About the Project

Professional wrestling and superhero comics have more in common than audiences might expect. Both rely on serialized storytelling, larger-than-life characters, clearly defined heroes and villains, and a shared grammar of spectacle and myth. Yet despite their obvious kinship, few sustained academic studies have examined the two forms side by side.

Superheroes of the Squared Circle aims to fill that gap. This edited collection will bring together essays that explore the rich connections between professional wrestling and superhero media — including comics, film, and television — from a variety of disciplinary perspectives. Contributors might examine narrative structure, character archetypes, cultural significance, performance, identity, or any number of other angles. The goal is a volume that is rigorous without being inaccessible, and that will appeal to both scholars and serious fans of either (or both) forms.

Topics of Interest

Essays may address, but are not limited to, the following:

• The history of professional wrestling and its parallels with superhero narrative traditions
• Kayfabe and comic book continuity: shared logics of suspension of disbelief
• Heels, babyfaces, and the villain-hero binary across wrestling and comics
• Wrestlers and their superhero analogs (e.g., Hulk Hogan and Superman; the nWo and the Punisher)
• Lucha libre and its intersections with Latin American superhero and comics traditions
• Japanese puroresu, manga, and anime: shared themes of perseverance, honor, and the heroic struggle
• Gender and representation in wrestling and superhero media
• Race, ethnicity, and identity in the ring and on the page
• The evolution of both forms in the streaming era (WWE on Netflix; the MCU, DCU, and The Boys)
• The crowd as character: audience, kayfabe, and participatory culture
• Wrestling's influence on superhero comics, film, and television — and vice versa
• Disability, body politics, and the superhero/wrestling ideal
• Comics adaptations of wrestling figures and promotions

Submission Guidelines

Interested contributors are invited to submit a proposal consisting of:A 250–300 word abstract describing the essay's argument, methodology, and significance
A brief contributor biography (100 words or fewer), including name and institutional affiliation (if applicable)

Accepted essays should be approximately 6,000–7,000 words (excluding references) and formatted according to the Chicago Manual of Style (author-date system).

Co-authored essays are welcome. AI co-created or fully AI-generated work will not be accepted.

Contributors will be responsible for securing reproduction permissions for any images used in their chapters. The editor will provide guidance on fair-use standards and publisher image specifications.

Proposed Timeline

• Abstract Deadline: July 15th, 2026
• Contributor Notifications: August 1st, 2026
• First Drafts Due: October 15, 2026
• Final Drafts Due: December 15, 2026
• Manuscript Delivered to Publisher: Jan/Feb 2027

About the Editor

Forrest C. Helvie, Ph.D. is a Full Professor of English at Connecticut State Community College and an experienced editor of academic collections in comics and popular culture studies. He has written about comics for Marvel.com, Newsarama, Sequart, and Popverse, and is the editor of How to Review and Analyze Comics (Sequart, 2021) and Superheroes and American Exceptionalism (McFarland, forthcoming 2026). He holds a Ph.D. in English Literature and teaches composition at the college level.

How to Submit

Please send abstracts and contributor bios to:

Forrest C. Helvie, Ph.D.

forrest.helvie@ctstate.edu

Please use the subject line: Squared Circle Submission — [Your Last Name]

Questions about the project are welcome. The editor is committed to building a diverse contributor pool that reflects the global reach of both professional wrestling and superhero media, and actively encourages submissions from scholars working in international, cross-cultural, and underrepresented perspectives.



Last updated June 12, 2026

CFP Superhero-Con Symposium (10/17/2026; PCEA 4/10/2027)

Superhero-Con Symposium

deadline for submissions:
April 10, 2027

full name / name of organization:
Pennsylvania College English Association

contact email:
pceaconference2027@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2026/07/10/superhero-con-symposium



The rise of the superhero is one of the most significant cultural developments of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Since the debut of Superman in Action Comics #1 (April 18, 1938), superheroes have evolved from colorful comic-book figures into powerful global symbols that shape conversations about politics, morality, identity, technology, gender, race, mythology, trauma, and resistance. What began with the imaginative vision of Jerry Siegel (writer) and Joe Shuster (artist) has expanded into a worldwide phenomenon spanning comics, film, television, literature, gaming, digital media, and academic discourse.



The Superhero Symposium: Exploring the Cultural Significance of Heroes Across Texts and Cultures invites scholars, educators, students, artists, and fans to explore the enduring significance of heroes and superheroes across texts and cultures. This interdisciplinary symposium seeks to examine how heroes, especially superheroes, reflect societal anxieties and aspirations while simultaneously redefining concepts of justice, power, humanity, and even heroism itself. We welcome proposals (250-300 words) that engage with superheroes and other heroes through literary criticism, cultural studies, rhetoric, philosophy, psychology, media studies, mythology, history, pedagogy, gender studies, political theory, or related disciplines.



Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

• The evolution of the superhero genre
• Heroes/superheroes and mythology
• Race, gender, and representation in comics and film
• Trauma, identity, and the dual self
• Heroes/superheroes as political or ideological symbols
• Fan culture and participatory media
• Adaptation from comic page to screen
• Ethics, vigilantism, and justice
• Global heroes/superheroes and transnational narratives
• Teaching heroes/superheroes in the classroom

Along with presentations on our super theme, the symposium also welcomes traditional papers, roundtable discussions, creative presentations and readings, as well as multimedia projects. Join us as we examine the stories and symbols that continue to shape modern culture and redefine what it means to be heroic.



Proposal Due Date: Saturday, 17 October 2026



Proposal Email: pceaconference2027@gmail.com



PCEA Website for Conference Information: Home | pcea-online v2



Last updated July 10, 2026

CFP Rise and Fall of Comics and Cartoons, and the Popularity of Graphic Novels in India (7/20/2026)

Rise and Fall of Comics and Cartoons, and the Popularity of Graphic Novels in India

deadline for submissions:
July 20, 2026

full name / name of organization:
Mahatma Gandhi Central Univeristy

contact email:
deepak@mgcub.ac.in

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2026/06/18/rise-and-fall-of-comics-and-cartoons-and-the-popularity-of-graphic-novels-in-india

Indian comics, cartoons and graphic novels occupy a unique and dynamic space within the country's literary, visual, and cultural traditions of storytelling, especially among children. Earlier, cartooning was a Western monopoly, when Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, Tom and Jerry were household names, which was later challenged by Japan’s Doraemon, Shin Chan, Kochikame, and Pokemon. India, until 1990, was a new but promising market, where most children preferred comics like Chacha Chaudhary, Tenali Raman, Akbar-Birbal, and Nagraj, as cable TV was not within reach of common people. By the mid-nineties, cable began reaching the common man, and the rise of cartoons and the decline of comics in India began with the launch of several cartoon channels, including Cartoon Network, Pogo, Nickelodeon, Hungama, Disney, Sony Yay, and Animax. These channels' established duopoly of West and Japan in Animation, and then entered Indian series like Chota Bheem and Motu-Patlu, which instantly captured the whole audience. As a result, several channels shut down operations, and now only two cartoon shows, Chota Bheem and Motu-Patlu, are shown all day, which further harms the Indian cartoon industry, as nothing new is created. Second, it limited children's options to only these two cartoons. Third, creating cartoon characters is costly, and most of their sources are in the West, which is already facing losses, resulting in a decline in the cartoon industry, especially after TikTok and Reels. In between, China has already emerged as a dominant player in the international market and captured the space left by Western and Japanese series with their Kung-Fu Panda series. As a result, China is gaining market share as Ne-Zha 2 breaks all previous earnings records.

By bringing diverse perspectives from across disciplines, this book aims to foster critical dialogue on the significance of Indian comics, cartoons, and graphic novels as both entertainment and cultural texts. Through this book, we understand how these genres illuminate the complexities of the past, present, and future, expanding the possibilities of storytelling in contemporary India.

Themes:

• The Evolution of Popular Visual Culture in India
• Rise and Fall of Comics
• Superheroes and common men
• Western and Japanese Cartoons in India
• History and Transformation of Japanese Cartoons
• Development of Chinese Cartoon Movies
• Sudden Rise Indian Cartoon
• Boom of Cartoon TV Channels
• Decline of the Indian Cartoon Industry
• Beginning of Graphic Novels
• Future of Cartoons and Graphic Novels

Kindly send an Abstract of 250 words at deepak@mgcub.ac.in by July 20, 2026

Bibliography

Dudrah, R. K., & Varughese, E. D. (2020). Graphic novels and visual cultures in South Asia. Routledge.

Jha, S., Gusain, A., & Krishnan, A. R. (2026). Documenting lives: Comics, representation, and activism across cultures. Springer.

Nayar, P. K. (2016). The Indian graphic novel: Nation, history and critique. Routledge.

Varughese, E. D. (2018). Visuality and identity in post-millennial Indian graphic narratives. Springer.





Whataspp Group:

https://chat.whatsapp.com/IdoPsvoCaL0L7RebTopJ9g


Last updated June 26, 2026

CFP Superhero Project: 10th Global Meeting (3/31/2026; East Sussex, UK 9/4-6/2026)

REMINDER: SUPERVILLAINS & ANTI-HEROES (The Superhero Project: 10th Global Meeting )

deadline for submissions:
March 31, 2026

full name / name of organization:
The Superhero Project

contact email:
t.caeners@superheroproject.net

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2026/01/14/reminder-supervillains-anti-heroes-the-superhero-project-10th-global-meeting

CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS

The Superhero Project: 10th Global Meeting

SUPERVILLAINS & ANTI-HEROES

Friday 4th to Sunday 6th September 2026

The View Hotel, Eastbourne, East Sussex, United Kingdom



“I don’t want to kill you! What would I do without you? Go back to ripping off mob dealers? No, no, no! No. You… you… complete… me.” – The Joker (The Dark Knight, 2008)



Superheroes may be defined by their powers, their never-ending battles and their distinct identities, but they are measured against the threats and challenges presented by their foes… the supervillains. Be they megalomaniacal billionaires (Lex Luthor), universe-threatening Titans (Thanos, Galactus), mad clowns (The Joker), sentient AI (Brainiac) or gigantic monsters (Starro The Conqueror), they constantly test the superhero’s mettle via nefarious deeds and ceaseless schemes for world domination.



Essential to superhero narratives and discourse within the genre, supervillains have become increasingly nuanced characters, often providing a lens to deconstruct the superhero (does Batman inadvertently attract his flamboyant villains?) while in some cases, traversing from villainy to heroism (the MCU’s Loki).



Alongside this, the Modern Age of Comics, now in its fifth decade, has seen the superhero defined by a substantial increase in anti-heroic traits, sparked by The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen in the mid-1980’s. Today, anti-heroes are a prominent and highly popular part of superhero landscape via the likes of The Punisher, Harley Quinn, Deadpool, The Boys and Agatha Harkness, while on the big screen, the genre’s most prominent characters embrace anti-heroic traits as they become ever-more aligned with action hero tropes.



For its milestone 10th anniversary edition, The Superhero Project invites exploration and discussion of the challenges, opportunities, successes and failures of supervillains and anti-heroes throughout the entire range of topics covered by the superhero discourse across all media (comics, TV, Film, theme parks, video games…).



Indicative themes for exploration include:

Villains and Anti-heroes in comics
Villains and Anti-heroes in film, television and video games
Subversion, Parody and Pastiche through anti-heroes and villains
Gender and villains / anti-heroes
Origin Stories and / of villains and anti-heroes
Villains and anti-heroes as elements/functions in world building
Explorations of the relationship between superheroes and villains/anti-heroes
Explorations of relationships among villains/anti-heroes
Transmedial negotiations of villains and anti-heroes
Multiversal negotiations of villain and anti-hero characters
Costumes and Iconography of villains and anti-heroes
Identity construction of and though villains and anti-heroes
Depiction and Functionalisation of Villains and anti-heroes in Theme Parks
Villains and anti-hero cosplay



BONUS STRANDS! 2026 marks the fortieth anniversaries of WATCHMEN and THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, both seminal texts which immediately prompted a sea change in the tone of superhero narratives and potently infused the genre with antiheroic traits which still dominate the genre to this day, across mediums. We welcome papers exploring the impact and legacy of these two vastly influential works.



WHAT TO SEND

300 word abstracts should be submitted by Tuesday 31 March, 2026 to the following email addresses: t.caeners@superheroproject.net and m.j.laird@superheroproject.net.



Emails should be entitled: SUPER X Abstract Submission.



All other Superhero Project enquires should be sent to t.caeners@superheroproject.net.



Abstracts should be submitted simultaneously to both emails, abstracts should be in MS Word formats with the following information and in this order: a) author(s), b) affiliation as you would like it to appear in the programme, c) email address, d) title of proposal, e) body of proposal, f) up to 10 keywords.



Accepted proposals will be notified by Monday 13th April 2026.



We acknowledge receipt and answer to all proposals submitted. If you do not receive a reply from us in a week, you should assume we did not receive your proposal. If this is the case, please do resent to both email addresses. If you have any questions, the team will be only too happy to assist.



Danny Graydon (Founder and President) d.graydon@superheroproject.net

Dr Torsten Caeners (Vice President) t.caeners@superheroproject.net

Mikayla J. Laird (Information Manager) m.j.laird@superheroproject.net



Last updated March 2, 2026