Call for Book Chapters: "Italian Comics in the New Millennium"

Vernon Press invites chapter proposals for a forthcoming edited collection on Italian Comics in the New Millennium.

In the last few decades, a series of pivotal transformations has deeply influenced nearly every aspect of Italian comic industry, from creation to distribution to fruition. Major innovations include the rise of webcomics, the increasing popularity of so-called “graphic novels”, the controversial attempts at modernizing beloved classic series, and the ongoing process of intellectual legitimization of the “ninth art” in the eyes of the general public as well as academia. Some of these developments have affected comics worldwide, while others are specific to the Italian context, or at least have manifested in distinctive ways.

This volume takes the turn of the millennium as a merely indicative starting point to assess how Italian comics have changed – and how they have stayed the
same – in recent years. We welcome papers examining individual works or artists, publishers, general trends, reception or comics theory. Possible topics include (but are by no means limited to):

• Serial comics and “authorial” comics (and the hybridization of the two)
• Tradition and renovation in well-established Italian comic publishers (e.g. Italian Disney, Bonelli, Astorina…)
• Autobiography and Autofiction
• Narration of current events through comics (e.g. political satire and graphic journalism)
• Representation of gender
• Webcomics, e-comics, “mobile-comics”
• Transnational authors, experiences, influences
• Innovations in comics production, publication, promotion, fruition
• New perspectives in Italian comics theory

If you are interested in contributing to the book, you are welcome to submit a 250-word abstract and a 150-word bio (both in English) at alessio.aletta@mail.utoronto.ca by September 30, 2022. If your paper proposal is accepted, we will ask you to submit the full chapter by March 2023.