WORKSHOP: Fan Studies and Archival Research

This workshop will introduce the basics of archival research for fan studies scholars. Drawing upon the wide variety of materials held at the Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Collection at Texas A&M and at other institutions, we will demonstrate how to locate relevant materials in library collections and how to conduct archival research virtually and in person by working through sample research queries. We will also provide a historical material overview to discuss the challenges of preserving and handling ephemera that truly were not meant to last as long as they have, and what this can mean for researchers going forward. We will also touch briefly on issues of access, copyright, and ethics in looking at these materials, as the custom pre-internet was for people to use their real names as well as pseudonyms, and the difficulties this can present when trying to publish work.

Facilitators: Cait Coker (University of Illinois) and Jeremy W. Brett (Texas A&M University)

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