CFP: Written Communication special issue on narrative

From Written Communication:

Call For Papers

Written Communication

Special Issue on Narrative and Writing Research in Honor of Carol Berkenkotter

http://wcx.sagepub.com/

The Editor and Editorial Board of Written Communication invite article submissions for Narrative and Writing Research: A Special Issue in Honor of Carol Berkenkotter, tentatively scheduled for publication in January 2017. Submissions from established and new scholars of writing theory and research are welcome.

Over the past thirty years, Carol Berkenkotter has substantially shaped the ground of two major areas of study. Much of her work, including particularly her 1995 book with Thomas Huckin, Genre Knowledge in Disciplinary Communication, has been foundational for studies of genre. More recently she has extended her work to investigate narrative in psychiatric discourse in her book, Patient Tales: Case Histories and the Use of Narrative in Psychiatry (2008), as well as many other chapters and articles. In Patient Tales, Berkenkotter examines patient case histories and positions narrative in a tension with the expository logico-scientific mode of writing, a mode that undergirds the biomedical paradigm in psychiatric medicine.

We believe Berkenkotter’s work is representative of a broader interest in narrative as a concept and research tool in studies of writing. Narrative accounts, genres and methods have been woven through writing research for decades. Indeed, articles published in the very first issue of Written Communication drew from narrative as a concept or accounting technique in their research and discussions (Flower & Hayes, 1984; Haas Dyson, 1984; Lunsford & Ede, 1984).

In this special issue, we honor Carol Berkenkotter by taking up her interest in the nature and affordances of narrative, not only in contexts of psychiatry genres, but in other realms of interest to writing studies scholars. While submissions need not draw directly from Berkenkotter’s work, we imagine that many may do so. Submissions might also elaborate, respond to, or revise existing theories and accounts of narrative, including those of Berkenkotter and of other scholars.

In keeping with Written Communication’s mission, we are primarily interested in reports of original research. Possible topics include but are not limited to:

• Fine-grained narrative accounts of in situ literacy practice
• The ways narrative resists or coexists with other discourse genres or research
• The role of narrative in qualitative research
• Potential uses, strengths, and weaknesses of narrative methods
• Longitudinal studies of writing practices that make use of narrative
• Contested narratives in writing research paradigms
• The relationships between narrative and studies of genre
• Issues of narrative and power: whose narratives count?
• The role of narrative in changing global and digital contexts

Authors submitting manuscripts should indicate in a cover letter that they wish the submission to be considered for the Special Issue on Narrative and Writing Research.

Authors should submit manuscripts electronically as .doc or .docx file attachments to writcomm@umn.edu. Please send (a) a manuscript that is free from references to the author or authors (“blind”); (b) an abstract of 100–150 words; (c) five to seven keywords (which do not appear in the title) to facilitate electronic search; (d) a cover page that includes the title of the submission, author names, institutional affiliations, mailing addresses, office telephone numbers, fax numbers, and e-mail addresses; and (e) a three- to four-sentence biographical statement for each author. Author names should not appear anywhere else in the manuscript. Submissions should generally not exceed 9,000 words. Please see the Written Communication Submission Guidelines for further requirements.

Please note: Prospective authors are strongly urged to acquaint themselves with previously published issues of the journal and to strictly follow the Guidelines for Submission (in the print journal and on the website), as well as conform to the guidelines for publication of the American Psychological Association (sixth edition). Failure to do so will result in a delay in the processing of your submission.

Submitting a manuscript indicates that the work reported has not been previously published, that the article—in present or revised form—is not being considered for publication in other journals or in edited volumes, and that the authors will not allow it to be so considered before notification in writing of an editorial decision by WC. Consideration for this special issue will begin April 15, 2016, and continue through June 20, 2016, or until a suitable number of publishable manuscripts have been identified. Submissions for this special issue will follow the normal, peer-review practices of WC.