Facing fierce competition from new media and new technologies, literature finds itself under pressure of conforming to the equally new norms of measuring value and meaning. It is almost taken for granted that the value of a product, and thus the value of a work of art, is multiplied if that product can be described as interactive . Can literature (or should it) take claim of interactivity in order to make use of the new media? Can this interactivity evolve past its push-button stage to become (at least in part) synonymous with communication, collaboration, activism or wider cultural and social engagement? The proposed set of linked panels will investigate and define what interactivity is in terms of literature, and how communication and collaboration are achieved through literature in the technology-oriented society.

Topics may include (but are not limited to):

interactivity in/of literary creation // hypertext - the pop-up book of yesterday's tomorrow // action/interaction/reaction // interactivity as/instead collaboration // literature of reactionism // activist writing // "geek" literature // cgw - computer generated words // print media mettle // print-on-demand - exploiting the literary supply // book club of the month // blog - why read when you can write? // performance reading // your favorite author no one has heard of // recycling literature // environment-friendly literary consumption // literature as design vs. literature as art // words lie, images don't // photo-shop lit // deserted island's public library // copy & paste writing // authors' web-presence // narrative in video games // fan-fiction - consume & create // gender & interactivity // turn-page interactivity vs. mouse-click interactivity // author & reader - the missing link // history of the (interactive) book // reader as a consumer //author as a consumer // creating a bestseller - interactive criticism // interactive theory?

Please send paper abstracts (no full papers), a CV of no more than two pages, by April 15, 2006 to: nxg42@case.edu .