Interrupted Reading – Follow-on Readings: Reading Journals

International conference of the DFG Research Unit “Journal Literature” (FOR 2288)

17-19 September 2018
Ruhr-Universität Bochum

(German version below)

The international conference “Lektüreabbruch – Anschlußlektüren: Journale lesen” (“Interrupted Reading – Follow-on Readings: Reading Journals”) will take place from 17-19 September 2018 at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum. It will be organized by DFG Research Unit 2288, Journal Literature, in the framework of the programme priority “Coherence/interruption”. The aim of the conference is to examine journals of the 19th and early 20th century, taking the concrete materiality of the journal’s form of publication, and its potential to govern reception, as a methodological starting point. The specific temporality and materiality of journal literature governs processes of generation and superimposition of meaning, and both the conditions and the consequences of these processes will be explored. Areas of enquiry will therefore include materially offered reading paths and directions of reading, forms of reflection on journal mediality, and journal-specific logics of format and practices of reception. Case studies are welcome, as are historical and international comparisons, or work in the area of comparative media studies. Proposals focusing on the following areas are invited:

1. Conditions: production/distribution/communication
The contemporary reading of journals is subject to specific historical conditions. Developments in the production and distribution of the periodical press can thus be seen as dictating reception processes: they form the technological and economic basis for the diverse forms of periodicity, thereby determining the pace and rhythm of journal reception, and they develop formats and economies which condition journal-specific reception processes. In this sense, discontinuous reading of periodical publications is to be regarded as an effect of journalistic conditions, which are worthy of closer examination. The same goes for the development of coherence-forming practices of reception. This is closely linked with cultural, institutional and medial conditions of contemporary reading, which mediate the media-specific openness of the journal, and develop journal-specific forms of communication. Some of the questions to be asked here are: What developments in printing technology govern the timing of journal reception? At what pace, in what ways, and via what institutions do journals reach their readership? What economic considerations underlie periodical interruptions and their literary counterparts, cliffhangers? In which formats are there tendencies to encourage and institutionalize communication with readers, and what binding force is generated by relevant sections of journals, i.e. the printing of readers’ letters, or sections for correspondence and advertising?

2. Forms: materiality/time/space
Secondly, the conference will investigate the temporal and spatial format-related conditions of journal publications, and their effects on the reception of journal literature. The basic temporal and textual-spatial conditions of the journal as a media format, conditions to which both the publication and reading of journals are subject, are not aimed at closure, but at continuation, not at homogeneous coherence, but at heterogeneous diversity and permeable boundaries between written and pictorial components. Possible areas of enquiry therefore include forms of seriality and sequentiality, as well as narrative, thematic or media-format-specific forms of periodic interruption and the development of coherence, which condition both interruptions in reading and follow-on readings. The aim will be to examine micro and macro levels of coherent and discontinuous reception, and ways in which the materiality of journals governs reception: What reading paths and directions of reading are offered by narrative, structural, textual or visual elements? What modes of reception do journals, in their specific structure, mediality and materiality, invite? What reader expectations can be reconstructed in this way, and how are these fulfilled or disappointed?

3. Consequences: practices/semantics
The economic and institutional parameters and the resulting forms of journal communication, with their respective format-related conditions, favour the development of certain practices of reception and corresponding semantics. This raises the question of what practices of reception are implied by the logic of the format, which is based on coherence/interruption. The development of coherence takes place, for example, on the level of archiving: the binding of a year’s issues into a single volume, the issuing of title pages, the supplying of covers at the end of the year, and perhaps even indexes or library classification systems emphasize the nature of journals as works. Another question to be asked in this context – as part of the focus on coherence and interruption – is how to evaluate different options for reception resulting from parallel editions of a journal with differences in quality and design, or different intervals of publication (daily, weekly or monthly); different rhythms of distribution (e.g. depending on the place of residence of the subscriber) should also be taken into account. In this context we would also welcome contrasting studies on book and journal reception, on contexts of reception relevant across different works, and on ‘migrating’ texts and figures, which transcend the boundaries of more than one issue or of different journals. Removed from the context of the individual journal, individual (segments of) texts appear as mediated through decontextualized and recontextualized practices, embedded in partly private, partly public forms of reception and presentation such as scrapbooks, albums, reprints or grangerized books. These also seem a promising object of study in the framework of this section.

Submissions
Presentations should be 25 minutes long. The conference languages will be English and German, but papers in French are also welcome. Travel and accommodation costs will be covered by the research unit organizing the conference. Applicants should send an abstract (maximum length 500 words) and a short CV (maximum length 150 words) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 5 March 2018.
The conference will be organized by sub-projects 2 (Nicola Kaminski, Volker Mergenthaler, Nora Ramtke, Sven Schöpf) and 6 (Monika Schmitz-Emans, Christian A. Bachmann) of DFG Research Unit 2288, Journal Literature.
Please address any queries to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website of the research unit: https://journalliteratur.blogs.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/

Lektüreabbruch – Anschlußlektüren: Journale lesen

Internationale Tagung der DFG-Forschergruppe „Journalliteratur“ (FOR 2288)

17.-19. September 2018
Ruhr-Universität Bochum

Die internationale Konferenz »Lektüreabbruch – Anschlußlektüren: Journale lesen« findet im Rahmen des Programmschwerpunkts »Kohärenz/Brechung« der DFG-Forschergruppe 2288 Journalliteratur vom 17.-19. September 2018 an der Ruhr-Universität Bochum statt. Die Tagung zielt auf die Untersuchung von Journalen des 19. und frühen 20. Jahrhunderts, wobei die konkrete Materialität der Erscheinungsform sowie deren rezeptions-steuernde Potentiale den methodischen Ausgangspunkt bilden sollen. Die spezifische Temporalität und Materia-lität von Journalliteratur steuert Prozesse der Bedeutungsgenerierung und -überlagerung, deren Voraussetzungen ebenso zu untersuchen sind wie ihre Folgen. Gefragt wird entsprechend nach materialiter offerierten Lektüre-wegen und Leserichtungen, nach Formen der Reflexion von Journalmedialität sowie nach journalspezifischen Formatlogiken und Rezeptionspraktiken. Fallstudien sind ebenso willkommen wie historisch und international vergleichende Darstellungen oder medienkomparatistische Untersuchungen. Vortragsvorschläge werden zu folgenden Schwerpunkten erbeten:

1. Voraussetzungen: Produktion/Distribution/Kommunikation
Die zeitgenössische Lektüre von Journalen unterliegt spezifischen historischen Voraussetzungen. Entwicklungen in Produktion und Distribution der periodischen Presse können daher als ‚Taktgeber‘ von Rezeptionsprozessen angesehen werden: sie bilden die technisch-ökonomische Grundlage für die vielfältigen Formen von Periodizität, bestimmen dadurch Tempo und Rhythmus der Journalrezeption und bilden Formate und Ökonomien aus, die journalspezifische Rezeptionsprozesse konditionieren. Diskontinuierliche Lektüre periodisch erscheinender Blätter ist in diesem Sinne als ein Effekt genauer zu untersuchender publizistischer Voraussetzungen zu betrach-ten, ebenso die Ausbildung von kohärenzbildenden Rezeptionspraktiken. In engem Zusammenhang damit stehen kulturelle, institutionelle und mediale Bedingungen der zeitgenössischen Lektüre, die die medienspezifische Offenheit des Journals vermitteln und journalspezifische Kommunikationsformen ausbilden. Zu fragen wäre daher unter anderem: Welche drucktechnischen Entwicklungen steuern die Taktung von Journalrezeption? In welchem Tempo, auf welchen Wegen und über welche Institutionen erreichen Journale ihre Leserschaft? Welche öko-nomischen Überlegungen liegen periodischen Brechungen und ihren literarischen Entsprechungen, Cliffhangern etwa, zugrunde? In welchen Formaten gibt es Tendenzen zur Anregung und Institutionalisierung von Kommunikation mit Lesern und Leserinnen und welche Bindungskraft geht von entsprechenden Rubriken, dem Abdruck von Leserbriefen oder Korrespondenz- und Anzeigenbereichen aus?

2. Formen: Materialität/Zeit/Raum
Die Tagung fragt zweitens nach den temporalen und spatialen Formatbedingungen von Journalpublikationen und deren Auswirkungen auf die Rezeption von Journalliteratur. Die basalen zeitlichen und texträumlichen Format-bedingungen des Medienformats Journal, denen die Journalpublikation wie Journallektüre unterliegt, zielen nicht auf Schließung, sondern auf Fortsetzung, nicht auf homogene Geschlossenheit, sondern auf heterogene Vielfalt und durchlässige Grenzen zwischen Texten und Bildern. Zu untersuchen wären daher Formen von Serialität und Sequenzialität sowie narrative, thematische oder medienformatspezifische Formen der periodischen Unter-brechung und der Kohärenzbildung, die Lektüreabbrüche wie Anschlusslektüren konditionieren. Untersucht werden sollen in diesem Sinne Mikro- und Makroebenen kohärenter und diskontinuierlicher Rezeption sowie Formen der Rezeptionssteuerung durch die Materialität von Journalen: Welche Lektürewege und Leserichtungen bieten narrative, strukturelle, textuelle oder visuelle Elemente an? Welche Rezeptionsweisen legen Journale in ihrer spezifischen Struktur, Medialität und Materialität nahe, welche Lesererwartungen lassen sich auf diese Weise rekonstruieren und wie werden diese bedient oder enttäuscht?

3. Folgen: Praktiken/Semantiken
Die ökonomischen und institutionellen Rahmenbedingungen sowie die darauf aufsetzenden Journal-Kommunika-tionsformen mit ihren jeweiligen Formatbedingungen begünstigen die Herausbildung bestimmter Rezeptions-praktiken und entsprechender Semantiken. Es ist daher zu fragen, welche Rezeptionspraktiken die auf Kohärenz/Brechung beruhenden Formatlogiken nahelegen? Kohärenzbildung findet etwa auf der Ebene der Archivierung statt: Die Bindung von Jahrgängen, ausgegebene Titelblätter und zu Jahresende gelieferte Einbände, vielleicht sogar Register oder auch Aufstellsystematiken in Bibliotheken heben die Werkförmigkeit von Journalen hervor. In diesem Zusammenhang ist unter dem Fokus Kohärenz und Brechung auch zu überlegen, wie differente Rezeptionsangebote durch Parallelausgaben eines Journals in unterschiedlicher Qualität und Ausstattung oder in unterschiedlicher periodischer Taktung im Tages-, Wochen-, Monatsrhythmus zu bewerten sind, ebenso sind unterschiedliche Distributionsrhythmen (abhängig bspw. vom Wohnort des Abonnenten) zu berücksichtigen. Willkommen sind in diesem Zusammenhang auch kontrastierende Untersuchungen zur Buch- und Journal-rezeption sowie zu werkübergreifenden Rezeptionszusammenhängen wie wandernden Texten und Figuren, die Grenzen mehrerer Hefte oder verschiedener Journale überschreiten. Aus dem Zusammenhang des einzelnen Journals gelöst erscheinen einzelne Text(teil)e vermittelt durch de- und rekontextualisierende Praktiken eingebettet in teils private, teils öffentliche Rezeptions- und Präsentationsformen wie Scrapbooks, Alben, als Wiederabdrucke oder als grangerized books, deren Untersuchung im Rahmen dieser Sektion gleichfalls vielversprechend erscheint.

Einreichungen
Zur Tagung sind für eine Länge von 25 Minuten konzipierte Vorträge eingeladen. Tagungssprachen sind generell Englisch und Deutsch, doch sind auch Vorträge auf Französisch willkommen. Reise- und Übernachtungskosten werden von der veranstaltenden Forschergruppe übernommen. Zur Bewerbung erbitten wir entsprechende Abstracts (im Umfang von maximal 500 Wörtern) und einen kurzen Lebenslauf (maximal 150 Wörter), die bis zum 5. März 2018 an This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. eingesandt werden sollen.
Die Tagung wird organisiert von den Teilprojekten 2 (Nicola Kaminski, Volker Mergenthaler, Nora Ramtke, Sven Schöpf) und 6 (Monika Schmitz-Emans, Christian A. Bachmann) der DFG-Forschergruppe 2288 Journalliteratur.
Rückfragen bitte an: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website der Forschergruppe: https://journalliteratur.blogs.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/

International Summer School “Coherence & Interruption: Seriality in Periodicals”
13-15 September 2018, Ruhr-University Bochum

With Laurel Brake (London), Ellen Gruber Garvey (New Jersey), Matthew Philpotts (Liverpool), Madleen Podewski (Berlin), Geoffrey Belknap (National Media Museum Bradford) and Members of the DFG Research Unit 2288 ‘Journal Literature’

The search for coherence is a fundamental mode of reception, just as the reading process of periodicals is structured by interruptions. With a systematic focus that encompasses the full range of periodical media formats, genres, and periods, the International Summer School investigates these mechanisms of seriality and will thereby shed light on structural similarities (and differences) across boundaries of genre, time, and media formats. Researchers in periodical studies at an early stage of their careers (PhD students and post-doctoral scholars up to five years after their PhD) are welcome to present their research projects and work together with peers and renowned experts on methodological and theoretical approaches concerning patterns of coherence and interruption in periodicals. Possible objects of investigation are the seriality of written texts, serial structures in graphic narratives, the ‘serial’ materiality of periodicals (i.e. their physical presentation including continuous layout, format, typography, or recurring illustrations, indexes, advertisements, etc.), or the temporal structures of periodicals. Seriality, in this sense, must be considered not merely as a narrative phenomenon, but rather as an effect of the media itself. Several questions may be addressed in the Summer School:

1. How is seriality constructed within different periodical media formats in general and within the microcosms of their ‘content’? How are different features of the media format deployed in this regard?
2. How is coherence constructed or irritated by mechanisms of the media formats? How are the ‘contents’ of periodicals arranged in order to indicate cohesion or discontinuity? What strategies are pursued to ensure the reader’s ‘loyalty’?
3. How are journal issues filled in between sequels? In what relation do other contents stand to the focused ones?
4. Which general strategies can be identified for different media formats, genres, and periods?
5. How are coherence and interruption of the media formats linked with coherence and interruption within the literary texts?
6. What methodological and theoretical approaches can be applied for the research of seriality of periodicals?

Submissions:
Project presentations should be 15 minutes long. The Summer School will be conducted in English. Subject to confirmation of funding, travel and accommodation costs are fully covered for up to 15 participants. Applicants should send a short abstract of their research project (maximum length 500 words) and a short CV (maximum length 150 words) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 31 May 2018. Estimated Date of decision is 15 June 2018. Participants of the Summer School are also invited to take part in this year’s conference of the DFG Research Unit 2288 ‘Journal Literature’: Lektüreabbruch–Anschlußlektüren / Interrupted Reading–Follow-on Readings, Bochum, 17-19 September 2018. Please visit the website https://www.rub.de/ journalelesen for more information and indicate in your application whether you will stay for the conference. Organized by Mirela Husić, Nicolas Potysch, and Nora Ramtke Please address any queries to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Women Editors in Europe, 1710-1920

an International Conference

28-29 May 2019, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

http://www.womeneditors.ugent.be/

Research on women’s contributions to the periodical press often focuses on women’s periodicals, considering them as separate “feminized” spaces devoted to the interests of particular circles of female readers.

This conference takes a different approach. Focusing on women editors rather than women’s periodicals, it explores how periodical editorship enabled women to create public voices, participate in public debate

and act as agents of change far beyond their immediate sphere of influence.

As part of the European Research Council funded project “Agents of Change: Women Editors and Socio-Cultural Transformation in Europe, 1710-1920,” we invite papers on a wide variety of topics related to female
periodical editorship in Europe in the broadest historical sense of the word (not just the current European Union) from the early eighteenth to the early twentieth century.

Topics may include:

• Women editors as makers of culture or arbiters of taste
• Women editors as advocates of social change
• Women editors as proponents of women’s rights
• Women editors as mediators (e.g. transnational or cross-cultural)
• Women’s editorial identities
• Women’s editorial strategies
• Female editorship and/as authorship
• Male editors adopting female editorial personae
• Women taking on multiple roles as editors, authors, publishers, translators, salon hostesses, activists etc.
• Women editing behind the scenes as subeditors, assistants, editors’ wives etc. or influencing (male) editors in their own creative ways
• Women editors’ networks
• Digital periodical studies focusing on women editors and their periodicals
• Gendered approaches to theories of editorship

We invite case studies of individual editors as well as comparative, theoretical or methodological approaches. We are particularly interested in papers examining women’s editorship across chronological or language boundaries.

The working language of the conference is English. We welcome proposals from researchers at all stages of their careers.

Proposals of around 250 words (references not included) for 20-minute papers and a short CV (no more than 200 words) should be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 15 November 2018.

We also welcome proposals for joint panels of three papers. Please include a brief rationale for the panel along with an abstract and CV for each presenter.

Updates can be found on the Women Editors Conference Website: http://www.womeneditors.ugent.be/