*CFP* "THE WORKS OF SHONDA RHIMES", SCREEN STORYTELLING EDITED VOLUME

This edited volume on the works of Shonda Rhimes will be the first book in a new series to be published by Bloomsbury Academic. Seeking 250-word abstracts for previously unpublished essays on television series created by Rhimes. Final essays will be 3,000-3,500 words, written for an audience of student readers, and will be due in the Spring of 2022.

The Screen Storytelling series is designed for students, professors, and enthusiastic consumers of film, television, and new media who seek information about contemporary and historically significant screenwriters that is both accessible and critically rigorous. The intention with this new series is to bring much-deserved attention to screen and television writers who have developed noteworthy films and television series of significant aesthetic or cultural achievement, critical acclaim, or commercial success, and to offer close readings of the films and series from the perspective of story, screenwriting craft, audience reception, and cultural impact. Each volume will explore the works of a single screen storyteller. The series will place a strong focus on examining works by screenwriters often left out of classroom syllabi, including women, writers of color, LGBTQ writers, and international writers. (Note: The Works of Jane Anderson is slated as the second volume in the series.)

 

The Works of Shonda Rhimes

Shonda Rhimes’ television series have left an important imprint on television history to date. With Grey’s Anatomy now in its eighteenth season and new series launching nearly annually, Rhimes is a major force in the entertainment industry. Many of Rhimes’ series center on complicated female protagonists who are committed to their careers, arguably to a fault, while also navigating the complexities of their romantic relationships. Famously, Rhimes is known for her diverse casting choices and, as such, has helped to challenge and change the images of women presented on the small screen, reaching millions of viewers around the globe. Grey’s Anatomy currently airs in more than 200 territories around the world and is a multibillion-dollar franchise.

I welcome contributions from scholars of film, television, media studies, and popular culture, as well as working practitioners, including screen and television writers, filmmakers, and playwrights. Essays may explore individual works or may interrogate a single theme, question, or construct across multiple works. I expect many essays will offer a critical analysis of Shonda Rhimes’ work so readers can expand their knowledge and understanding of the television writing craft, and many essays in this volume will include historically sophisticated commentaries, exploring Rhimes’ career through the lens of production, reception, and creative collaborations and dynamics.

Possible essay topics could include but are not limited to:

• Women characters and representation 
• Women’s desire, dating, and sex 
• Representation of women’s work / careers 
• Representation of motherhood 
• Women of color, representation on screen or behind the scenes 
• Television writing craft 
• Pilot creation craft 
• Showrunning and gender and/or race shondaland as an empire 
• Recurring themes in Rhimes’ series 
• Male characters as sex symbols 
• Viewer response / critics’ response 
• Business aspects of Rhimes’ series 
• Rhimes’ public persona and influence 
• The Year of Yes
• Recurring partnerships with actresses 
• Deep dives into individual series (pilot and episode craft)

 

Please submit a 250-word abstract along with a 150-word biographical statement to Anna Weinstein (aweinst6@kennesaw.edu) by Sept 30, 2021. Please title the subject line of your email: Abstract – The Works of Shonda Rhimes.

Please direct any questions or inquiries to this email address as well. I welcome submissions from scholars at all stages of their careers, as well as practicing and aspiring screen and television writing professionals. Feel free to contact me with any questions about the book or series, and please share this announcement with colleagues whose work aligns with the focus of this volume.

Abstracts due Sept 30, 2021