Call for Proposals – Aesthetics of Survival: Cultural Responses to the Anthropocene

Vernon Press invites scholars and researchers to submit book proposals on the topic Aesthetics of Survival: Cultural Responses to the Anthropocene. This is an exceptional opportunity to publish research at the intersection of art, literature, and environmental humanities with a leading academic publisher.

Why Submit a Proposal?

We are currently living in an era of profound environmental change. Scholarly research in the humanities and social sciences is increasingly addressing the ecological crisis, and publishing your research on these critical topics can amplify its impact. The Anthropocene—a period defined by significant human impact on Earth’s systems—demands urgent exploration through cultural, artistic, and literary responses.

Art and literature provide unique ways to perceive, narrate, and respond to the complexities of environmental change. In the face of biodiversity loss, climate displacement, resource extraction, and ecological injustice, artists and writers engage with pressing questions: How can cultural narratives inspire ecological awareness and action?

Scope of the Call for Proposals

Vernon Press is now open to receiving proposals that combine critical and creative engagements with the intersections of art, literature, and the Anthropocene. We welcome proposals that address both historical and contemporary works, drawing on theories and methodologies from ecocriticism, environmental philosophy, posthumanism, decolonial thought, and beyond. Proposals may explore how visual and literary arts document environmental change, give voice to more-than-human agencies, and imagine sustainable futures:

• Ecocriticism

• Environmental philosophy

• Posthumanism

• Decolonial thought

• Interdisciplinary approaches bridging the humanities, social sciences, and arts

We are especially interested in proposals that explore:

• Visual and literary arts documenting environmental change

• More-than-human agencies and multispecies perspectives

• Imaginations of sustainable futures

Suggested Topics for Submission

Possible themes include, but are not limited to:

• Analysis of the Anthropocene era in literature, film, and visual arts

• Ecocritical approaches to historical and contemporary cultural works

• Indigenous ecological knowledge and narrative traditions

• Climate fiction (cli-fi) and speculative eco-literatures

• Environmental justice, activism, and cultural production

• Art as ecological witness: photography, installation, performance

• Narratives of extinction, resilience, and multispecies entanglements

• Posthumanism and the more-than-human in cultural expression

• Memory, heritage, and ecological loss in artistic and literary contexts

• Water, air, land: elemental aesthetics in environmental humanities

• Comparative perspectives on environmental imaginaries across cultures

How to Submit Your Proposal

To publish your book with Vernon Press, please submit a two-page proposal form to submissions@vernonpress.com. Your submission should include:

1. A summary of your proposed book

2. A short biographical note

3. (If applicable) A list of similar titles

Download the proposal form
More on proposal guidelines

About Vernon Press

Vernon Press is an independent academic publisher specializing in scholarly books across the social sciences and humanities. We collaborate closely with authors, academic associations, distributors, and library specialists to publish high-impact research.

Our catalogue includes titles on cultural studies, environmental humanities, and art history. We welcome proposals for research publications that bridge disciplinary boundaries and address urgent ecological questions.

Recent Vernon Press publications in Anthropocene research include:

• Lost Kingdom: Animal Death in the Anthropocene – Edited by Wendy A. Wiseman

• Art, Theory and Practice in the Anthropocene – Edited by Julie Reiss

• Weaving Words into Worlds – Edited by Margot Lauwers & Caroline Durand-Rous