Call for Proposals for a Special Issue of Rhetoric Society Quarterly – Deadline February 3, 2023

December 7, 2022

Each year, Rhetoric Society Quarterly publishes a special issue, the aims of which are to help set the intellectual agenda in rhetorical studies, encourage focused statements on timely topics in rhetorical studies by scholars working in related areas, attract participation by top scholars, and stimulate scholarly activity within the Rhetoric Society of America. The 2023 special issue focuses on “Rhetoric and/of the Commons.” Other recent special issues have addressed relations between rhetoric and disability (2020), demagoguery (2019), and the more-than-human (2017), to name just three examples. 

As Rhetoric Society Quarterly’s associate editor for special issues, I invite proposals for the 2024 special issue. Proposals should identify the guest editor(s), provide a descriptive rationale of approximately 1,000 words, a list of authors, and a 200-word précis for each essay. The rationale must demonstrate the timeliness of the topic, describe how the topic falls within the scope of Rhetoric Society Quarterly, and show how the issue as planned will speak to the Journal’s broad audience. In addition, the proposal should situate the issue alongside relevant contemporary scholarship, including other similarly themed issues or edited collections, and describe the qualifications of its guest editor(s) and contributors to speak to the field on the topic’s behalf. 

In preparing the proposal, guest editors should consider whether they will solicit a few longer essays, numerous shorter essays, or some combination of the two. Guest editors should also consider whether they will invite someone to write a preface or afterword, or to participate in an interview. These should be included in the original proposal. The special issue is allotted a maximum of 80,000 words (104 typeset pages). RSA will make available to the guest editor up to $1,000 for expenses related to the special issue.

In brief, the timeline for the special issue is as follows: In March of 2023, those who proposed a special issue will be notified whether their proposal has been accepted. In August of 2023, the first drafts of the manuscripts for the selected proposal will be due to the associate editor and guest editor. In February of 2024, revised manuscripts will be due to the associate editor and guest editor. After copyediting, the special issue will be published in the summer of 2024. 

Deadline: February 3, 2023

Direct inquiries and completed proposals to: 

Joshua Trey Barnett, RSQ Associate Editor for Special Issues, barnett@psu.edu