Call for Manuscripts: New Book Series

Studies in Life Writing: Biography, Autobiography. Memoir

This series welcomes full-length studies of life writing in all in forms: biography, autobiography, memoir, journals, diaries, blogs, and so forth. Dovetailing nicely with the critical theories of the later twentieth century and beyond, life writing questions the divide between fact and fiction. Commenting on that tenuous space, Mark Twain quipped, "The only difference between reality and fiction is that fiction has to be credible." Life writing also challenges the possibility of presenting a life objectively and examines how the shaping forces of language and memory prohibit any simple attempts at truth and reference. Provocatively, interest in life writing has increased as both autobiographical and biographical narratives have become a major presence on the Internet, and the growth of literary nonfiction has prompted a resurgence of life narratives, biographies, and memoirs. The series welcomes both single-authored, book-length studies and multi-authored essay collections on the theory and/or pedagogy of life writing. Detailed proposals may also be submitted. Whether you send a completed manuscript or a detailed proposal, please include the following information:

• An overall description of the book's scope and market niche (how does your work contribute something new, valuable, or unique to the field? Are there comparable books?)

• A brief synopsis of each of the chapters or a synopsis of the whole book

• A brief vita; if it is a multi-authored collection, include brief biographical information on each of the contributors

• A probable timeline for the project

• Some idea of the book's projected length (you can calculate about 375 words per published page)

• Miscellaneous - any other issues you foresee (e.g., copyright permissions, illustrations)

For more information about the series and the submissions of manuscripts or proposals, please contact Dr. Kristi Siegel, General Editor of "Studies in Life Writing," or Dr. Heidi Burns, Senior Editor, Peter Lang Publishing, Inc.

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