EVENT Mar 05
ABSTRACT May 15
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Session Proposals for the 2026 NeMLA Convention (Northeast MLA) (2026 NeMLA Convention)

Pittsburgh, PA (USA)
Organization: Northeast Modern Language Association, Inc.
Event: 2026 NeMLA Convention
Categories: Postcolonial, Digital Humanities, American, Hispanic & Latino, Comparative, Interdisciplinary, French, British, Pedagogy, German, Genre & Form, Popular Culture, Gender & Sexuality, Literary Theory, Rhetoric & Composition, Women's Studies, World Literatures, African-American, Colonial, Revolution & Early National, Transcendentalists, 1865-1914, 20th & 21st Century, Medieval, Early Modern & Renaissance, Long 18th Century, Romantics, Victorian, 20th & 21st Century, Adventure & Travel Writing, Children's Literature, Comics & Graphic Novels, Drama, Narratology, Poetry, Aesthetics, Anthropology/Sociology, Classical Studies, Cultural Studies, Environmental Studies, Film, TV, & Media, Food Studies, History, Philosophy, African & African Diasporas, Asian & Asian Diasporas, Australian Literature, Canadian Literature, Caribbean & Caribbean Diasporas, Indian Subcontinent, Eastern European, Mediterranean, Middle East, Native American, Scandinavian, Pacific Literature
Event Date: 2026-03-05 to 2026-03-08 Abstract Due: 2025-05-15

The 2026 NeMLA convention will be March 5-8 in Pittsburgh, PA at Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh Downtown.

Submissions for NeMLA occur in two stages. In the first stage, we are accepting session proposals. The deadline is May 15. After that, in Stage 2 (starting in June), scholars can submit individual paper abstracts to those sessions. See Stage 1 and Stage 2 below for more details.

Stage 1: Session Proposals (due May 15)

  • Please review the session types (https://www.nemla.org/convention/sessions.html) before submitting your session proposal.
  • When thinking about a session proposal and drafting the description, your goal is to find a sweet spot between too narrow (nobody will submit anything) and too broad (there's not enough specificity or direction for people to craft a paper around your topic).
  • For more guidance, attend our free webinar workshop on writing session proposals. Date: May 2, 2025. Time: 3:00pm - 4:00pm EST. Register at http://bit.ly/3RhyQVw .
  • To submit a session proposal, log into the portal and either join or renew your membership (https://cfplist.com/nemla/Home/login). You must be a member to submit a session proposal. Membership includes a digital subscription to Modern Language Studies and eligibility for awards, grants, and fellowships. 
  • Prospective session chairs will be notified of decisions by June 15.

Stage 2: Session Chairs post calls for papers (June 15 - Sept. 30)

  • Once your session proposal is vetted and approved, you may issue a call for individual paper abstracts.
  • Guidance on how to serve as a session chair and how to issue the call for papers will be provided in late May or early June.
  • Individual paper submissions will open June 15 and close September 30.
  • Anyone may submit individual paper abstracts, but if accepted, you will need to become a member. 

Please share the convention information with your department and colleagues.

Thank you for being part of the NeMLA community!

Theme for NeMLA 2026

This year's keyword is (Re)generation, which invokes positivity, energy, and engagement. Think of regeneration in the sense of bringing forth not the original but a new entity that is more powerful, vigorous, efficient, and healthier. Understood in these terms, the health of the humanities depends on a continuous regenerative process that partakes in the creation of new forms of scholarship, both empirical and philosophical, and is open to inclusive debate, restorative justice, and political empowerment.

Under the theme of (Re)generation, we welcome scholarship engaging in explorations of our society, interdisciplinary elaborations of cultures and cultural legacies, as well as the re-examination of our histories. We are optimistic that our collaborative effort and commitment to the humanities will help us better understand the present crises and move us into a period of sustainable and equitable regeneration.

For more information, visit https://www.nemla.org/convention.html

https://www.nemla.org/convention.html

support@nemla.org

Derek DiMatteo