Remediating the Social, November 1-3, 2012

Remediating the Social, November 1-3, 2012
Edinburgh College of Art and Inspace, The University of Edinburgh
Conference: November 1-3, Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place, Edinburgh, EH3 9DF
Exhibition: November 1-25, Inspace, 1 Crichton Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9AB
Registration is open at http://www.elmcip.net/conference/registration

The Electronic Literature as a Model of Creativity and Innovation in Practice (ELMCIP) research project invites scholars, artists, researchers and performers to the conference, Remediating the Social, held in Edinburgh, November 1-3, 2012.

Remediating the Social is hosted by Edinburgh College of Art in collaboration with New Media Scotland and University College Falmouth within the framework of the ELMCIP research project. The event is held at Inspace, a purpose-built research and exhibition facility at the University of Edinburgh, fully instrumented to facilitate engagement with developments in new technologies, scientific research and creative practice. The exhibition will continue after the conference for three weeks.

The conference programme consists of expert presentations, across a range of disciplines and modes of inquiry, addressing examples of creative communities that have formed around various practices, media and discourses. Case studies, papers and panels, discussing examples arising from the ELMCIP project and other contexts will be presented. The conference will be e-cast, allowing for remote attendees to freely monitor events and put questions to conference via Twitter. Conference proceedings, with a full colour catalogue of commissioned art works, will be published prior to the event.

Conference: 1-3 November 2012, Edinburgh College of Art, Edinburgh, UK
Exhibition opening: 1 November, 2012, Inspace, University of Edinburgh, UK
http://www.elmcip.net/conference

ELMCIP is supported by the HERA Joint Research Programme (www.heranet.info) which is co-funded by AHRC, AKA, DASTI, ETF, FNR, FWF, HAZU, IRCHSS, MHEST, NWO, RANNIS, RCN, VR and The European Commission FP7 2007-2013, under the Socio-economic Sciences and Humanities programme.

Call for Works: E-Lit @ SLSA 2012 (9/1/12, 9/29/12)

Call for submissions
e-Literature & the Nonhuman: Juried Reading at SLSA 2012
Saturday 5pm, Sept. 29, 2012
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Deadline: Sept.  1, 2012

Literature in the first part of the 21st Century continues to undergo a revolution.   Whether playing to the new aesthetic or re-imagining the literary tradition, emerging works are responding to and shaping the changing nature of reading.

The Society for Literature Science and the Arts has been a long-standing center for scholarship on electronic literature.  This year, electronic literature will be showcased in a juried showcase at the 2012 SLSA conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  The event is co-sponsored by the Electronic Literature Organization (https://eliterature.org).

Potential genres include but are not limited to: electronic poetry, interactive narrative, literary video games, netprov,  locative narrative, and literary generators.

Performances are limited to 10 minutes.

Submit 250-300-word description and links to elitSLSA12@gmail.com (Subject: Submission).  Descriptions should emphasize the performative nature of the presentation. Proposals should include the title and a short description of the work (including any links to your material), a plan for presentation, technology requirements, and a short (50 words) bio for each participant. Available technology will be audio, projector, and wifi.

Deadline: Sept. 1, 2012
Note: All participants must register for the SLSA conference and must be in attendance at the reading.  No remote presentations will be accepted.

For more information, please write to elitSLSA12@gmail.com
Organized by Stuart Moulthrop (UW-Milwaukee) & Mark Marino (U. of Southern California).

ELO Welcomes New Directors and LAB Members

update: 8/20/12

Following the wildly successful conference in Morgantown, ELO announces the addition of 2 new members to each of its boards. This year, Jessica Pressman and Davin Heckman join the Board of Directors, and Erik Loyer and Chris Funkhouser join the Literary Advisory Board.

These world class artists and scholars bring terabytes of talent to the organization. Having published extensively critically and creatively, the four have helped the field to expand and mature, spreading knowledge of e-lit around the globe.

All four scholars and artists have had long standing relationships with ELO. When ELO was in its early years, Jessica Pressman was the first person to serve in what is now the Managing Director position. Davin Heckman manages the Electronic Literature Directory. Both Chris and Erik have been actively involved in the ELO community, developing artistic and scholarly works that have advanced the field. (Read the complete bios below.)

In addition to adding new members, the Board meeting in Morgantown also featured a switch in Vice Presidents as Scott Rettberg completed his term and Talan Memmott was elected to replace him.  Carolyn Guertin was appointed to the newly created position of Director of Publications.

At the start of the meeting, Alexandra Saemmer from Paris 8 lab presented more information about ELO 13, an interim year conference in the planning for France.  More details on this first European ELO conference to follow.

At the end of the meeting, the current Board Members renewed their commitments, and all congratulated Sandy Baldwin, Dene Grigar, and the rest of the organizing committee on a tremendously successful conference.

Read more ELO Welcomes New Directors and LAB Members

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An Open Mic to Open “Electrifying Literature”

The opening event of “Electrifying Literature” conference is on Tuesday, June 19 at 7pm, after the pre-conference workshops. As mentioned in emails from local organizer Sandy Baldwin, this is an open mic, following in the tradition of open mic/open mouse events at UCLA, the University of Maryland, and MIT.

Sandy encourages all to participate, saying, “I love these sorts of readings (even when they aren’t entirely of e-lit) and am planning to present at least a short piece myself. Please sign up and present, if you’re coming with work of yours to Morgantown. I hope to see, and hear, you there.”

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ELO 2012 Conference & Media Arts Show June 20-23

ELO 2012
Electrifying Literature: Affordances and Constraints

June 20-23, 2012
Morgantown, WV

ELO’s 2012 conference is fast approaching, and the schedule of readings and performances is now available online.  The conference, Electrifying Literature: Affordances and Constraints will be held June 20-23 in Morgantown, West Virginia, home to WVU, a sponsor of the event.  Pre-conference events on the 19th include and open mic/open mouse.

In addition from presentations from an international gathering of digital literature artists and scholars, the event also features a Media Arts Show, which presents an exciting collection of new works.  This juried gallery was curated by Sandy Baldwin and Dene Grigar and features cutting-edge works in digital literature.

Conference details
Conference schedule
Media Arts Show (and Gallery)

For more information, contact conference chair Sandy Baldwin: elit2012 [at] gmail [dot] com

Electronic Literature Excites at MLA 2012


(above: the MLA 2012 Electronic Literature Exhibit promo video)

2012 marks the 20th anniversary of the first session at the MLA on electronic literature, and, fittingly, the ELO was a strong force at this year’s conference this past January.

A number of projects were showcased, making use of multiple platforms, including desktops (curated by Dene Grigar), mobile devices (curated by Kathi Inman Berens) and live performance (curated by Lori Emerson).

The stories told this year made an impact on all who came to see them. The exhibit was covered by electronic literature experts from around country—Laurie N. Taylor, Digital Humanities Librarian at the University of Florida said “The E-Lit Exhibit is an excellent example of making scholarship count in terms of impact, return on investment, engagement, and all of the other work that scholarship ideally endeavors to achieve.”

The exhibit was featured in Digital Humanities Now, and got a shout-out in HASTAC’s article on the MLA conference, called “Once More with Feeling”: How the MLA Found Its Heart. References to the exhibit made their way into scholarly databases, and even new scholarship and creative output was generated by people involved with the exhibit.

You can find more on the MLA exhibit here, and can view videos of the performances here

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New Article Covers History of ELO

In the latest issue of dichtung digital, Scott Rettberg, co-founder and Vice President of ELO, reviews the history of the organization from its inception.

According to Rettberg, the article attempts “to provide a relatively comprehensive history of our accomplishments from 1999 to date.” Recounting its development from its early days at Brown University to its current HQ at MIT, the article offers an important review of the evolution of the organization into its current international community of artists and critics.

The issue, co-edited by Rettberg and Patricia Tomaszek focuses on e-lit communities and is the first of a two-part series. Rettberg and Tomaszek work together on the research project Developing a Network-Based Creative Community: Electronic Literature as a Model of Creativity and Innovation in Practice (ELMCIP).

The international collection of authors include Simon Biggs and Penny Travlou, Philippe Bootz, Serge Bouchardon, Donna Leishman, ELO-President Nick Montfort and Emily Short, ELO Director Stuart Moulthrop, Jill Walker Rettberg, Hans Kristian Rustad, and Rob Witig.

The articles cover the histories of communities ranging from the print literary world to IF to works of Flash and beyond. This first part of the series offers a key collection of histories for any student of electronic literature.

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ELO at MLA12

In addition to the galleries and e-lit reading at MLA12 in Seattle this weekend, a number of ELO Board members will be presenting papers. Here is a handy list.

Dene Grigar

532. Reading Writing Interfaces: Electronic Literature’s Past and Present
Saturday, 7 January, 1:45–3:00 p.m., 613, WSCC
“Early Authors of E-Literature, Platforms of the Past”

730. New Media Narratives and Old Prose Fiction
Sunday, January 8, 1:45-3:00 p.m. in 310, WSCC
“Contrasts and Convergences of Electronic Literature”

Carolyn Guertin

301. Reconfiguring Publishing
Saturday, January, 7, 1:45–3:00 p.m., Grand A, Sheraton
Program arranged by the MLA Committee on Information Technology
Presiding: Carolyn Guertin, Univ. of Texas, Arlington; William Thompson, Western Illinois Univ.

Margie Luesebrink

532. Reading Writing Interfaces: Electronic Literature’s Past and Present
Saturday, 7 January, 1:45–3:00 p.m., 613, WSCC
“Seven Types of Interface in the Electronic Literature Collection Volume Two”

Nick Montfort

730. New Media Narratives and Old Prose Fiction
Sunday, January 8, 1:45-3:00 p.m. in 310, WSCC
“Computing Language and Poetry”

Rita Raley

301. Reconfiguring Publishing
Friday, January, 6, 1:45–3:00 p.m., Grand A, Sheraton
Program arranged by the MLA Committee on Information Technology

410. Reconfiguring the Literary: Narratives, Methods, Theories
Saturday, January 7, 8:30–9:45 a.m., 608, Washington State Convention Center
Program arranged by the Association for Computers and the Humanities

Stephanie Strickland

532. Reading Writing Interfaces: Electronic Literature’s Past and Present
Saturday, 7 January, 1:45–3:00 p.m., 613, WSCC
“Seven Types of Interface in the Electronic Literature Collection Volume Two”

Joe Tabbi

730. New Media Narratives and Old Prose Fiction
Sunday, January 8, 1:45-3:00 p.m. in 310, WSCC
“New Media: Its Use and Abuse for Literature and for Life”

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E-lit Exhibit and Performance at MLA 2012

E-lit MLA LogoElectronic literature will take center stage at the 2012 Modern Language Association conference in Seattle thanks to Board Member Dene Grigar, Lori Emerson, and Kathi Inman Berens. The exhibit, the first of its kind at MLA, will feature over 160 works, including ELC I & II. Also featured in this collection, celebrating its 25th anniversary: Invisible Seattle, the database novel written by The Invisibles in collaboration with the people of Seattle. Kathi Inman Berens has curated an additional exhibit of e-lit works created for mobile devices.

In conjunction with these collections, Lori Emerson has organized an evening performance of electronic literature at the Richard Hugo House. The readings will feature Jim Andrews, Kate Armstrong, Ian Bogost, John Cayley, Erin Costello, Aaron Angello, Marjorie Luesebrink, Mark Marino, Nick Montfort, Brian Kim Stefans, and Stephanie Strickland.

Exhibit Location and Time
“Electronic Literature” takes place in Seattle, WA, at the Washington State Convention Center in Room 609. Exhibit times are:

Thursday, 5 January, 12 noon to 7:00 p.m.
Friday, 6 January, 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, 7 January, 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

E-Lit Reading
Friday, 6 January, 8 p.m to 10.30 p.m.
Richard Hugo House 1634 11th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122-2419

Electronic Literature Collection, Volume 2 Launches

Announcing the publication of The Electronic Literature Collection, Volume 2.

ELO is excited to announce the publication of its 2nd collection of electronic literature. With its wide ranging forms, Volume 2 picks up where ELC1 left off, offering a diverse anthology of works from an international group of authors in a variety of languages and forms.

The independent board of editors for the second collection included Laura Borràs, Talan Memmott, Rita Raley, and Brian Kim Stefans, key e-lit artists and critics in their own rights. Their deep knowledge of the field helped them gather works that represent the breadth and variety of e-lit. Also, the addition of Borràs allowed the team to review works in Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese.

The new collection includes 63 works drawn from (and extending beyond):

  • Countries: Austria, Australia, Catalonia, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Israel, The Netherlands, Portugal, Peru, Spain, UK, US
  • Languages: Catalan, Dutch, English, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish
  • Formats: Flash, Processing, Java, JavaScript, Inform, HTML, C++

Like ELC1, the collection can be browsed by author, title, or keyword.

ELC2 speaks to both the continuity as well as the bright future of electronic literature. The works include many of the emerging categories of e-lit: mash-ups, geolocative, codework, as well as “traditional” and evolving forms such as hypertext, chatbots, and interactive fiction. The authors list presents readers with both veterans and newcomers to the field.

As with Volume 1, the editors have published a hard copy of the collection, though this time on a DVD rather than a CD. However, they have also added works that can only be viewed on computers with Internet access, such as Senghor on the Rocks, which uses geodata from Google Maps.

ELC2 is published under a Creative Commons license, which means the collection can be freely shared, non-commercially, between individuals, libraries, and schools, provided that appropriate attribution is maintained and the works are unmodified.

ELC2 is ready for your syllabi and reading list. As a complement to our Electronic Literature Directory, and a continuation from Volume 1, this collection offers an anthology of works that pushes through the boundaries of literary forms, creating new kinds of experiences for interacting readers.

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