Call for Papers – ‘Asian Popular Culture’

The Journal of Popular Culture, a peer-reviewed scholarly journal that is an official publication of the Popular Culture Association is currently accepting papers for an upcoming special issue on Asian popular culture. The CFP notes that “‘Asian popular culture’ has become synonymous with the ideas, images, and phenomena of East Asia and specifically with Japanese animation and Chinese martial arts cinema”, and aims to expand the scope of the special issue very broadly in terms of both geography (East, Southeast, and South Asia) and topics, such as film, television, music, literature, sports, videogames, youth culture, and fan activities in general.

The Journal of Popular Culture has been published since 1967. Over the years, it has consistently welcomed scholarship on anime/manga. Just some of the articles that have appeared in it include Adams, Kenneth Alan & Hill, Lester, Protest and rebellion: Fantasy themes in Japanese comics (1991); Grigsby, Mary, Sailormoon: Manga (comics) and anime (cartoon) superheroine meets Barbie: Global entertainment commodity comes to the United States (1998), Ito, Kinko, A history of manga in the context of Japanese culture and society (2005), Madeley, June M., Transnational transformations: A gender analysis of Japanese manga featuring unexpected bodily transformations, and, just earlier this year, Maser, Verena, Nuclear disasters and the political possibilities of shōjo (girls’) manga (comics): A case study of works by Yamagishi Ryōko and Hagio Moto. Because of its history and status, it can comfortably be considered one of the highest-profile and most prestigious venues for English-language academic writing on Japanese animation/Japanese comics.

The deadline for submissions is December 31, 2015, and papers must be between 5,000 and 7,500 words.

CFP: Special Issue on Asian Popular Culture
Journal of Popular Culture

In popular and critical imagination, the term “Asian popular culture” has become synonymous with the ideas, images, and phenomena of East Asia and specifically with Japanese animation and Chinese martial arts cinema. What is often overlooked is the range and diversity of Asian popular culture, which extends from South Asia (e.g. India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka) through Southeast Asia (e.g. Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand) to East Asia (e.g. China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan). In addition, much of this popular culture is transnational as it is produced, distributed, and/or consumed across national borders. In an increasingly interconnected world, Asian popular culture is expansive, multifaceted, mobile, and widely consumed.

The Journal of Popular Culture is seeking submissions for a special issue on “Asian Popular Culture.” We are looking for submissions that are cutting-edge and truly advance the field of popular culture studies in new ways. We welcome articles that explore the popular cultural activities and cultural products of South, Southeast, and East Asia, which include but are not limited to:

-film
-television
-music
-literature
-sports
-videogames
-animation (print, digital)
-cosplay and larping
-star and fan culture
-youth culture

We are particularly interested in essays that examine transnational Asian popular culture.

Articles should be between 5000 and 7500 words in length. Authors should consult The Journal of Popular Culture’s “Author Guidelines” for details on format and citation style. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1540-5931/homepage/ForAuthors.html

The deadline for submissions is December 31, 2015.  Please submit your work through the ScholarOne system, which can be accessed through the above link.

It is important that you include the words “Special Issue Submission” before your title (e.g. Special Issue Submission: Chinese Warrior Women).

Please direct your inquires about the special issue to Lisa Funnell (lfunnell@ou.edu) and Yuya Kiuchi (kiuchiyu@hdfs.msu.edu).