Miscellany – July 15, 2020

James Bryant Reeves’ Godless Fictions in the Eighteenth Century: A Literary History of Atheismwas published on July 9, 2020 by Cambridge University Press. The book focuses on depictions of atheists and atheism throughout the Enlightenment era, arguing that imaginative, literary reactions against atheism helped sustain various forms of religious belief throughout the period. His recent article “Antislavery Literature and the Decline of Hell” was published in Eighteenth-Century Studies.

MATC graduate Michael Trice’s co-edited book Platforms, Protests, and the Challenge of Networked Democracy was published on July 8, 2020 by Palgrave MacMillan. Michael is a lecturer at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the Writing, Rhetoric, and Professional Communication Program.

An interview by Jon Marc Smith and Smith Henderson about their upcoming novel, Make Them Cry,was published in CrimeReads. See full interview: https://crimereads.com/what-does-it-take-for-two-people-to-actually-write-a-novel-together/

Susan Morrison’s article “Marie de France’s Saint Patrick’s Purgatory as Dynamic Diptych” was published in Le Cygne: Journal of the International Marie de France Society. Her essay “The Body: Unstable, Gendered, Theorized” appears in A Cultural History of Comedy in the Middle Ages, edited by Martha Bayless.

Recent B.A. in English graduate Cole Plunkett was awarded a scholarship to attend the MFA in Creative Writing Program at The New School in New York City.

MFA poetry student James Trask’s poem “Springtime and Single Again” was awarded Second Honorable Mention for the 15th Mudfish Poetry Prize. This year’s contest was judged by Erica Jong. This poem and three other poems by James (“Things That Can Kill You,” “The Stories,” and “A Smear of Red”) were selected for publication in the forthcoming issue of Mudfish. “A Smear of Red” previously won both 2nd prize in this year’s San Antonio Writer’s Guild Annual Writing Contest and 2nd prize for this year’s Austin Poetry Society Award. James was also a finalist for last year’s 14th Mudfish Poetry Prize.

Dr. Luan Brunson Haynes, professor (1967-2008) and Chair of the Department of English (1972-83), has published Ktimene, an historical novel set in ancient Greece. Those who know Luan know of her deep love for Greece the place, its history, and its literature. Her novel presents the epic of Odysseus through the eyes and experiences of a woman, Ktimene. As per the official description: “The narrative of Odysseus and his adventures—the Odyssey—has been a staple of ancient storytelling for millennia, but now the account of his sailing the Mediterranean has a new version: a woman has sneaked on board, in disguise. Not just any woman, but his own sister. Based on research in Greece and other locations, Luan Brunson Haynes has given us more than a glimpse of the primitive world. She has written a lively and entertaining tale of the fearless and beautiful Ktimene and her family. Come along on her far-flung journeys as this Grecian princess learns from her various roles—wife, mother, trader, hostage, heiress, protector, storyteller, ruler—and watches her children grow up to travel the known world and beyond. Through the twists and turns of fate, Ktimene is indeed the founder of civilizations.” Contact Teya Rosenberg (tr11@txstate.edu) for more information.

Please submit all announcements to the English Department’s Miscellany Submission Form found here: https://www.english.txstate.edu/news/Miscellany-Submission.html

Miscellany – July 3, 2020

Cyrus Cassells’ poem, “Like Christ Overturning the Moneylenders’ Tables,” in praise of journalists, appeared recently in On The Seawall: http://www.ronslate.com/like-christ-overturning-the-moneylenders-tables/. Cyrus was also awarded the Civitella Ranieri Writing Fellowship, which consists of a residency at the Civitella Ranieri Center in Italy during the 2021, 2022, or 2023 season. Cyrus was awarded this residency through a highly competitive jury process that resulted in the selection of just 30 candidates from a pool of over 165. The Fellowship will provide Cyrus with six weeks to concentrate on his work in the company of other Fellows from around the world, and includes round-trip transportation to the Center’s 15th-century castle in Umbria, Italy, as well as a private space for living and working.

Rob Tally’s article “Spatial Literary Studies” appears in Literary Geographies: https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.literarygeographies.net%2Findex.php%2FLitGeogs%2Farticle%2Fview%2F215&data=02%7C01%7Csw13%40txstate.edu%7Cf58f93bca4654225ad1608d81142f62d%7Cb19c134a14c94d4caf65c420f94c8cbb%7C0%7C0%7C637278326575416307&sdata=bEdLizqIi%2F3OmRWe8dqeQwP4KwPTwikN3IsoYj8w1Qc%3D&reserved=0. His essay “Sea Narratives as Nautical Charts: On the Literary Cartography of Oceanic Spaces” appears in the Chinese journal Foreign Literature Studies; it is an extended version of the keynote speech he gave at Ningbo University last November.

Anthony Bradley’s essay “My Mother’s Guide to Video” appears in Gayly Dreadful: https://www.gaylydreadful.com/blog/pride-2020-my-mothers-guide-to-to-video.

An essay by Miriam Williams and Natasha Jones (Michigan State University), “The Just Use of Imagination: A Call to Action,” which is a response to recent events, was published by both the Association of Teachers of Technical Writing https://attw.org/publications/the-just-use-of-imagination-a-call-to-action/  and the Spark: 4C4Equality Journal(https://teacher-scholar-activist.org/) in June.

Two essays by MFA fiction student Nkiacha Atemnkeng have been accepted for publication by the South African literary magazine, The Johannesburg Review of Books.

Chase Vanderslice, an MA Literature student starting Fall 2020, has received a Texas State Graduate Merit Fellowship, a fellowship for incoming students of the highest caliber. Chase graduated from the University of Alabama with a BA in English in December 2019 and is interested in pursuing studies in Medieval literature.

Two poems by Steve Wilson, “What Isn’t There” and “Violently sundered,” will appear in Never Forgotten: 100 Poets Remember 9/11, coming out this fall.

Make Them Cry, the upcoming novel by Jon Marc Smith and his co-writer Smith Henderson, received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/smith-henderson/make-them-cry/

Rebecca Bell-Metereau and Steve Wilson have been elected to six-year terms as two of only four At-Large Members of the Board of Directors for the Texas Faculty Association.

MFA poetry graduate A.R. Rogers’ poem “Interior Decorating” was short-listed for the River Heron ReviewPoetry Prize.