Applying to annual meetings is a minefield. Which ones to go to? What are the organizations looking for? How do you assemble a panel? What are the strategies to employ when putting together multiple entries? Hazine has got you covered: we crowdsourced advice on social media from annual meeting veterans over the last few weeks then put it up here to immortalize their comments.
As usual with Hazine content, we rely on YOU for submissions, so tweet us or email us with advice for applying to an annual conference and we’ll get this information up ASAP. We also realize we have included information on a limited number of annual meetings: please send us tips and tricks by emailing us (hazineblog@gmail.com) or starting your own thread on social media (tag us please!). Then we can include AAA, MELA, MELCOM, BRISMES, BRAIS, ASOR and whatever other acronyms floating out there. We will also try to update with tips for what to do when actually going to the meeting.
Big thank yous to everyone who contributed: Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst, Kecia Ali, James Ryan, Candace Mixon, Kristian Petersen, Joshua Donovan, William Carruthers, Evan Berry, and Matthew B. Lynch.
The American Academy of Religion (AAR)
Check out Professor Kecia Ali’s “Writing a Successful Annual Meeting Paper Proposal” before going any further! It includes information relevant to writing ANY abstract and also specifics to the AAR meeting
- Make a Clear Argument
- “Have a thesis, have an achievable goal (you. cannot. prove. your. book.).”-Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- “Make a clear argument. Reviewers read many dozens of submissions. They will only follow where you lead.” -Evan Berry
- “I know a proposal is doomed when every other word is a term that needs defining. If I can’t personally follow or can’t imagine an audience of non-specialists following your argument, whether that’s a deep-cut Islamic legal one or some Deleuze riff, I can’t rate the proposal well.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- Know the Field(s)
- “Know who your conversation partners are in the sub-field and in the overall discipline of Religious Studies. Position your app relative to those conversation partners. If possible, consider organizing a panel with the people you want to be in conversation with.” – Matthew B. Lynch
- “Tell us how this is Big Picture Islamic/religious studies, and make your citations/interlocutors clear.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- Exchange Ideas and Look for Diverse Interlocutors
- “{Have} a writing group to exchange proposals, even just with one person. I think my accepted proposals were after exchange with others. Also spend time on a snappy title.” -Candace Mixon
- “The Study of Islam Unit specifically bars ‘Manels’ {exclusively male panels}, and asks explicitly for diversity across rank, ethnicity, geography (like non-US citizens) and race. I’ve “deal rejected” panels for missing these; my tip is to plan ahead for panels and do that labor to stand a chance at all.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- Navigating Multiple Submissions
- “The rule is you may submit one paper to two units. I think authors can cast their nets—I have done a big unit (Islam) and a smaller one (colonialism/postco) when my work fit two calls. But authors should read the call for papers (CfPs)! Find a good FIT for individual papers & prearranged panels.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- “Individual Papers allow authors to submit without a network. Islam unit splits about 50/50 on what types are accepted in any given year. (and we’re committed to maintaining that ratio more or less so more folks have access).” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- “You can propose the same paper to two program units, but only present it once, or you can propose two different papers, and if they are both accepted you can present both.” -Kecia Ali
- Individual (i.e. non-panel) Submissions
- “Trying to connect on a thematic panel has been successful in my experience. In that case, emailing to say “hey, I’m a junior scholar working on X. Has anyone been in touch?”- Kristian Petersen
- Arranging a Panel
- “Sometimes fit is only clear AFTER reviewing every other paper submission: maybe this year, two really strong proposals about X came in, and yours is the third–and *now* we have a strong panel. But maybe next year, yours is the only one on X, and its rad, but one paper does not a panel make.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- “Panels always present better because in theory they hang together well! Individual papers can be highly rated but if other submissions don’t “match,” it may not find a home.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- “Emailing the co-chairs doesn’t mean “ruining” blind review, though. At least in my unit, we get these emails frequently.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- “Using the IslamAAR listserv, or Twitter/Facebook, to do a mini-CfP so that you can prearrange a panel is also always an option. See who’s got what, call on your network and work on expanding it. It can be unwieldy this way, but the potential results are worth it.” -Ilyse R. Morgenstein Fuerst
- Other Application Tips
- “As you would tell students: read the directions closely. Most groups will tell you what types of papers/approaches they want and do not want!” -Matthew B. Lynch
- “When deciding on which unit to apply to, check who can see your name (if anyone) before submitting, sometimes this slightly alters my strategy.” -Candace Mixon
- “Remember: rejection is often more a reflection of fit than a judgment on quality.” -Matthew B. Lynch
- Invest in AAR
- “Have a finger on the pulse of the unit to which you are proposing, attend biz meetings, engage the steering committee members, etc. Units are long-running conversations.”- Evan Berry
- “Attend the previous meeting OR get the notes from the bizness meeting of the group that you are going to pitch to. If you attend, suggest your topic as one to include in the Call for Papers (CfP). If you get the notes/CfP, make sure you’re speaking to the group’s call in your app!” -Matthew B. Lynch
The Middle East Studies Association (MESA)
- Submit to a Pre-Formed Panel
- “I generally prefer submitting as part of a pre-formed panel. They usually (though not always) stand a slightly better chance than solo papers. Plus, who doesn’t like a panel with strong thematic coherence? MESA has a great forum on its website to create mini Calls for Papers (CfPs)”- Joshua Donovan
- “Indeed: the one time I submitted a standalone paper, it didn’t get anywhere. I think it’s easier to get away with it at larger conferences, but the other time I submitted it was as part of someone else’s panel and it actually worked/had coherence.” William Carruthers
- “I’ve had about the same luck submitting solo as submitting as a panel (~50%) but the end result is always better when you form the panel yourself.” James Ryan
- Writing an Abstract
- “With panel abstracts, my general format is one paragraph to draw readers in: Why should someone attend this panel? What does it contribute? Then a second paragraph should briefly introduce each paper in a sentence or two, making a clear connection b/w its argument and the whole panel.” -Joshua Donovan
And for the record, here are the original Twitter threads where we solicited the information (we like to cite our sources).