From Quidditch Flyers to Dreaming Spires:
Exploring the Worldwide Influence of the Harry Pottertm Novels

Magdalen College, Oxford
25 - 27 July 2008

The Deadline is long past. This call is provided for historical information only.

Accio 2008 will bring together academics and adult fans to discuss the Harry Potter series in the Hogwarts-like setting of the University of Oxford. The conference will be held at the beautiful Magdalen College, which still preserves its 15th century pronunciation of 'Maudele'n' and which boasts such alumni as CS Lewis and Oscar Wilde.

During the last ten years, the Harry Potter novels have made many changes to our world, including increasing reading (particularly among boys), creating a much larger interest in fan sites and fan fiction, adding words (such as 'Muggle') to the dictionary and increasing interest in science that looks like magic.

The Programming Committee is inviting proposals for paper presentations, roundtables, moderated panels, debates and workshops to evoke a lively, interesting and thoughtful discussion on the changes the Harry Potter novels have already made to our world, and on the potential for the novels to have a lasting influence.

Suggested Topics

Presentations on any topic relating to the Harry Potter phenomenon are welcome and topics may include, but are certainly not limited to:

• Chemistry
• Computer Science
• Economics
• Education
• History
• Linguistics
• Literature
• Physics
• Psychology
• Publishing
• Sociology
• the Fandom

Programming Schedule and Time Blocks

Three concurrent tracks of programming sessions will be held on the afternoon of Friday, 25 July; all day on Saturday, 26 July and the morning of Sunday, 27 July. Time blocks in multiples of 30 minutes will be available.

Printed Proceedings

Conference papers and summaries of other presentation forms will be published in the Conference Proceedings, which will appear in print form and be available at the Conference. All material will be properly and academically edited for content, rigour, and format. The Conference Proceedings will be made available for sale to non-attendees after the conclusion of the conference.

Other Publications

We have had a statement of interest from a UK publisher in a modest collection of academic essays based on those submitted to this conference. Such essays would be considerably longer than the presented essays and would be suitable for academic use at the senior undergraduate or postgraduate level. Should you be interested in contributing to such a collection, please say so on your proposal.

Proposal Submissions - Deadline: 4 January 2008

Proposals should be formatted as follows:
Name of Presenter(s) (individuals presenting jointly should submit a single proposal)
E-Mail Address and Phone Number of Presenter(s)
Name of Presentation
Type of Presentation (e.g., paper presentation, roundtable, moderated panel, debate or workshop; please note that lively presentations are encouraged)
Amount of Time Required (in multiples of 30 minutes, including an indication of how much of that time will be made available for audience discussion/question and answer session)
Abstract (500 words maximum)
Audio-Visual Requirements (e.g., projector, screen, whiteboard)
Biography of Presenter(s) (100 words maximum)
Presentation Summary for Conference Programme (100 words maximum)
Interested in Contributing to Collection of Academic Essays? Yes/No

Please send proposals to the following address, with 'Accio 2008 Proposal Submission' noted in the subject line: submissions@accio.org.uk. We are accepting e-mail submissions only, and any attachments must be in Microsoft Word. Proposals must be received by 4 January 2008 to be considered.

Proposal Evaluation

Proposals will be evaluated based on an assessment of the level of interest conference participants will have in the topic area and the originality of the ideas presented.

Notification, Confirmation and Registration Requirements

Selected presenters will be notified by week ending 1 February 2008. We regret that, in order to keep conference fees as low as possible, we are unable to fund presenters' registration, hotel and/or travel costs, or provide any other form of remuneration. Presenters must confirm that they will present by 22 February 2008, at which point they will need to register for the conference at their own expense.

Submission of Final Papers - Deadline: 16 May 2008

Presenters are expected to submit a conference paper for publication in the printed proceedings by 16 May 2008. This paper should be no greater than 4,000 words, and must be written in compliance with the Accio Style Guide (which may be found here). The Programming Committee reserves the right to reject papers that exceed 4,000 words in length, do not comply with the established style guidelines or are not submitted by the required deadline. Papers must be presented at the conference to be published in the proceedings.

Attendees

As Accio is an adults-only event, all presenters and participants must be at least 18 years of age at the time of the conference.