transitions.COMICS STUDIES
TRANSITIONS 10LONDON / 2027

New directions
in comics
studies.

A meeting place for new voices, fresh conversations, and the possibilities of comics.

Explore the call for papers

Proposals due

A COMICS STUDIES CONFERENCE
New perspectives.
Shared conversations.
WHEN
Thursday
WHERE
To be announcedVenue details to follow
PARTICIPATION
Free to attendOpen to the comics community
01 / ABOUT TRANSITIONS

A space for
what comes next.

TEN EDITIONS. AN OPEN CONVERSATION.

Transitions brings together people who think, make, and ask questions through comics.

A long-running, free-to-attend comics studies conference, Transitions has grown through collaboration between comics researchers across several London universities.

Our tenth edition welcomes postgraduate students and early career researchers, alongside creators, independent researchers, established scholars, and anyone with an interest in comics studies and practice.

We offer a supportive space for productive debate, the sharing of new ideas, and future collaborations.

Transitions 10 conference poster with blue, pink and purple watercolour forms. New Directions in Comics Studies, 18 March 2027; keynote speakers Dr Gareth Brookes and Karrie Fransman.
Transitions 10 · Conference posterView full size

TRANSITIONS 10 / THE TENTH EDITION

Keynote
speakers.

Dr Gareth Brookes

Kingston University

Karrie Fransman

Free to attend

02 / CALL FOR PAPERSTRANSITIONS 10

Comics, from
any perspective.

There is no prescribed theme. We invite contributions that engage with comics in any form, across any disciplinary or creative approach.

Download the full call PDF

Possible directions

Starting points, not limits.

  1. 01

    Form & materiality

    Media specificity, the page, panel, sequence, and the material qualities of comics.

  2. 02

    Digital & experimental comics

    Print, digital, webtoon, platform-based, hybrid, and experimental forms.

  3. 03

    Histories & archives

    Memory, historiography, and marginalised genealogies of comics.

  4. 04

    Identity & everyday life

    Embodiment, race, gender, sexuality, disability, affect, and lived experience.

  5. 05

    World-making & storytelling

    Speculative imaginaries and alternative forms of telling stories.

  6. 06

    Publishing & circulation

    Labour, authorship, copyright, translation, and global publishing cultures.

  7. 07

    Teaching & community

    Pedagogy, education, activism, community practice, and institutional settings.

  8. 08

    Readers & participation

    Fandoms, reception, participation, and ethical modes of engagement.

  9. 09

    Practice & research methods

    Practice-based, artistic, design-led, archival, ethnographic, and interdisciplinary research.

  10. 10

    Comics in context

    Wider cultural, technological, social, ecological, and political frameworks.

We particularly encourage proposals that challenge disciplinary boundaries, foreground underrepresented perspectives, or experiment with form and method.

03 / SUBMISSIONS

Bring your
perspective.

We invite proposals for
20-minute papers.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE
ACCEPTANCE NOTIFICATIONS
Expected early January 2027

What to include

  1. 01

    Paper title & abstract

    An abstract of 200 words.

  2. 02

    A short biography

    Up to 50 words about you.

  3. 03

    Your contact details

    Presenter’s name, affiliation, and contact email.

What are comics?
What might they become?

Download the call