Deadline for submission: April 30, 2013.

Crime fiction is one of the most elastic formulas in genre fiction; it can be different things to different people at different times. There’s the whodunnit, the whydunnit, the howdunnit. As a rich and valuable literary genre, it appeals to all levels of readers and culture and scholarship. Crime fiction crosses national borders, time periods, languages, genres and boundaries between the literature and other arts.We are interested in any and all topics about or related to mystery, thrillers, detective and crime fiction and its representations in popular culture.

Proposals may be for individual papers or 3-person panels.

Topics can include, but are not limited to:
• critical approaches (race theory, queer theory, postcolonial studies, empirical science)
• adaptations to film, television, comics, graphic novels
• cultural representations (crime/criminal, hero/anti-hero, thriller)
• subgenres (hard-boiled, cozy, police procedural, legal, medical, PIs, true crime)
• comparative study of crime fiction
• genre blending and bending (sci-fi/romance/western/eco-noir)
• historical practices and traditions in and of mystery
• regional and geographic pressures, influences or settings (national, international)
• material culture (pets, food, handicrafts, fashions)
• gender and identity (race/ethnicity, gender-bending, queering the mystery)
• narrative voice (gonzo writing, humor, young adult)
• characterization (detectives, supporting, criminals, villains)
• individual authors, texts, series
• gender-bending and gender-crossing
• crime fiction and its readers

Submit a one-page (200-250 words) proposal or abstract by 30 April 2013 to the Mystery/Thrillers area on the MPCA/ACA website . Please include name, affiliation, and e-mail address with your abstract. Also, please indicate in your submission whether your presentation will require a TV and DVD player. Note that LCD projectors will not be provided by MPCA/ACA. More conference information can be found at .
For further inquiries or concerns, please contact Mystery/Thrillers Area Chair, Maryan Wherry, Western Illinois University Quad-Cities, .