Call for Papers for my new edited volume:
Twilightaissance!
The bulk of Twilight scholarship is now nearly one to two decades old, however interest in the franchise has seen a significant resurgence in social media through memes, BookTok profiles, and a range of other online outlets. The younger millennials who were the target audiences for the books, films, marketing and merchandising are now adults looking back upon the series with nostalgia, and new young audiences are looking at the popular literature and cinema from that period with substantial curiosity.
Therefore, this collection is not proposing to retread the same ground as the limited number of books that have already analysed the franchise. Rather, this volume will consider this 'Twilightaissance', using aesthetic and cultural theory, including discourses surrounding colonialism and indigeneity, gender and sexuality, and politiform. These theoretical perspectives will observe the franchise's nostalgising and what it says about our current world, consumption practices and mediasphere.
With provisional interest from the University Press of Mississippi, proposals are invited on any topics that consider the Twilight franchise through retrospective and theoretical lenses, that help consider how, why and in what ways this phenomenon has regained attention. Topics may include, but are not limited to:
- The memification of The Twilight Saga
- The release, reception, and significance of Midnight Sun to the continuing popularity of the franchise
- Current, retrospective or nostalgic readings of the aesthetic form of the books and/or films
- The music of The Twilight Saga and its continued proliferation
- BookTok and the legacy of Twilight in the current popularity of romantasy
- Generational tension and the memory of Twilight
- Critical and/or ironic current readings of problematic racial/ist and colonialist representation in the franchise (and how they differ from contemporary readings)
- Gender, sexuality and the Twilight Franchise
- Parenthood, feminism and Twilight
- Twilight: reflections on politics and form
My aim is for this collection to be inclusive and representative of a diverse range of voices. To that end I would especially invite contributors from minority and marginalised identities and backgrounds, especially queer, BIPOC, working class, early career scholars, and Book-centred social media influencers.
Please submit abstracts of 300 words plus a short bio or any questions or proposals you may have to Wickham Clayton at wickscripts@hotmail.com gwickhamclayton@googlemail.com or wickham.clayton@wickhamclayton.com
Proposals should be submitted by Friday 2 October 2026.
New Publication Announcement!
The (not entirely expected) sequel to the 2015 collection on slashers,
Style and Form in the Slasher Film II: Beyond Hollywood
Out 28 October 2026 from Palgrave Macmillan!
News and Updates
New Release!
My new essay 'Multiple Tunnels, Multiple Genres' is now included in the booklet for the Limited Edition Release of The Great Escape by Arrow Films UK. Stock is selling quickly so, buy now!
I'm currently soliciting abstracts for a new 'Style and Form' Collection!
CfP: Style, Form, and the Slasher Film (Working Title, for intended publication in 2027/28)
The slasher film has received a significant amount of increased critical attention within the last decade, suggesting it is not only not a dead subgenre, but also one that has a tremendous amount of critical and theoretical relevance to the development of film aesthetics. Furthermore, the slasher is itself subject to changes in popular cinema form. The style and form of the Hollywood slasher film is still a very fruitful area for exploration, however global iterations of the slasher are indicative of its continued application in film. Furthermore, the fusing of formalist methodologies with cultural studies has been shown to be beneficial to both frameworks yet there is space for further demonstration of this hybrid approach, ultimately providing groundwork for strengthening both.
With these points in mind, this volume proposes to continue the exploration begun in Style and Form in the Hollywood Slasher Film (2015), while expanding the scope of case studies and applications. Abstracts are invited relating to the subjects covered in the first volume:
- Historical developments in slasher cycles
- Formalist readings of films, franchises and cycles
- Defining the qualities of slasher sub-subgenres and tendencies
- Critical readings (cultural studies and ‘theory’) of slashers using formalism as a foundation for close analysis
The application of formalism and cognitivism toward further cultural studies analyses (including representation, identity politics, class, race, gender and sexuality)
Furthermore, I strongly encourage and invite abstracts on (but not limited to) the following approaches expanding the scope of the original volume:
- The style of the slasher in a North American context, with focus on the relevance of Canadian, Indigenous, Mesoamerican and US independent filmmaking
- Formal innovation and interpretation in global cinematic iterations of the slasher
- Considerations of formal contributions of overlooked figures in slasher production
Furthermore, this collection aims to be not just inclusive, but representative of the range of voices in film production, criticism and viewership. Therefore I am actively soliciting abstracts from marginalised writers, scholars and critics, inclusive of race, class, gender, sexuality and nationality.
There is interest from Palgrave Macmillan, as the publisher of Style and Form in the Hollywood Slasher Film.
Please send abstracts of no more than 350 words and a brief bio to Wickham.Clayton@WickhamClayton.com by 31 July 2024. Queries welcome, and early career/PhD student/non-traditional scholar-friendly.