Deadline: February 29, 2020

Both celebrity and fan studies have experienced significant growth in recent years. While different in trajectory, both fields are intimately connected through an emphasis on the impact and implications of popular culture. Often scholars in fan and celebrity studies examine similar cultural phenomena from different scholarly perspectives; be it representation or responses to media texts, construction or deconstruction of famous persona, or the affordances of online platforms to foster interaction. To date, a consolidated approach to the study of fans and celebrities and points of intersection, is relatively rare.

Two conferences were held at the end of 2019 in Australia aimed to address the intersections between celebrity and fan studies. One conference, focusing on fan studies, was held by the Fan Studies Network Australasia (FSNA); the other on fame, celebrity and fandom held by the Fame and Persona Research Consortium (FPRC). To extend the discussion from the conferences and further explore intersections between fan and celebrity studies, a proposal for an edited volume will be submitted to the University of Iowa Press.

We call for submissions for chapters and invite scholars in both celebrity and fan studies to consider the practical, theoretical and social implications of intersections between celebrity and fan studies. We invite submissions from scholars in all regions of the world, but especially encourage submissions from scholars researching celebrity and fan studies in Asia and the Pacific.

Topics include, but are not limited to:

* Online fan/celebrity interactions

* Offline fan/celebrity interactions

* Overlap between on/offline fan and celebrity practices

* Intersections between fan and celebrity studies

* Rethinking para-social relationships

* Diversifying study of media texts, fans and celebrities

Submission materials:

Please submit 800-word extended abstracts addressing the following:

* Theoretical/conceptual framework

* Methodology

* Argument

* Indicative conclusions

Please also include a 150-200-word bio.

Extended abstracts should be sent to: cjcelebrityresearch@gmail.com by February 29th 2020.

Key Dates:

• Submission of extended abstracts: February 29th 2020
• Notification of acceptance: March 15th 2020
• Submission of book proposal: June/July 2020