Current Issues in Publishing Studies – 2025 University of Warsaw International Summer School

We invite interested doctoral students and early career researchers working in publishing studies and book history to our inaugural summer school “Current Issues in Publishing Studies” hosted by the University of Warsaw.

ul. Dobra 55, Warsaw, Poland
15-19 September 2025

Publishing studies is an interdisciplinary field which examines the world of publishing from cultural, economic, and literary perspectives. This summer school offers an intensive course of study on the key concerns and debates in publishing studies. Doctoral students and young researchers working in areas such as creative economies, book history, print cultures, and literary studies will have the opportunity to broaden their expertise with the latest research and insight from leading academics with practical experience working in the publishing sector. The summer school is designed to benefit participants through intensive seminars on a broad range of topics and individual feedback sessions on their current research from internationally recognized scholars.

Recent technological developments have radically altered the landscape for publishing, where everything from how publications are consumed, where they are distributed, and how authors produce work, has been impacted. Publishing studies, a disciplinary focus with connections to literary studies, book history, and media/communication studies, works to understand multiple dynamics of the publishing industry, including (but not limited to) the shape of publishing today, environmental concerns around distribution and consumption, gender and racial equality in publishing, bibliotherapy, and the affordances and economic impact of social media, most recently including publishing platforms like Wattpad and promotion-based platforms like BookTok (TikTok). Moreover, recent and rapid developments in AI have raised questions about ethical uses and industry impact. Taken together, publishing studies addresses a broad range of concerns for both the humanities and the sciences. As academia, broadly considered, continues to be structured around the publication and sharing of research findings, publishing studies is an essential, self-reflective discipline for scholars to analyze research outputs, their impact, and their role in how the trade profits from their labor.

Summer school faculty

Nicola Wilson (University of Reading)
Eben Muse (Bangor University)
Dennis Duncan (University College London)
Laura Dietz (University College London)
Kanupriya Dhingra (Max Planck Institute)
Michał Choiński (Jagiellonian University)
Matthew Chambers (University of Warsaw)

Participation fees have been waived and the event will be fully catered. Recommendations for travel and accommodation can be made upon request.

A c.600-word expression of interest in relation to the applicant’s current research should be sent no later than 26 March 2025 to Dr. Matthew Chambers (mj.chambers@uw.edu.pl). Notifications will be sent out shortly thereafter.

News

Temporary Change in Małgorzata Gajda-Łaszewska’s Office Hours

June 10, 2025

Dear Students, Małgorzata Gajda-Łaszewska’s office hours on June 11, 2025, will be held online instead of in person. Dr. Gajda-Łaszewska will be available from 2:00 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.

Year 2024/2025

June 12: Beyond Homeland(s) and Diaspora: Russian-Israeli Literature at Multiple Crossroads

June 6, 2025

We would like to invite you to a special guest lecture by Maria Rubins of University College London who will present a talk titled “Beyond Homeland(s) and Diaspora: Russian-Israeli Literature at Multiple Crossroads”. This lecture will examine the transnational, hybrid and translingual character of contemporary Russian-Israeli writing and its unique position within the evolving landscape of Russophone literature on the one hand, and Israeli culture on the other.

Year 2024/2025

June 5: Scaling Migrant Worker Rights. How Advocates Collaborate and Contest State Power

May 30, 2025

We are pleased to invite you to the second lecture of the Western Hemisphere Lecture series in the 2025 Spring semester! In the United States, immigration policy has undergone substantial changes in recent years. These changes have been particularly evident since the beginning of President Donald Trump’ recently inaugurated second term. In her analysis, Professor Xóchitl Bada will address these changes by focusing on the experience of migrant workers.

American Studies Colloquium Series

May 29: Surveillance and AI in the Military (and Beyond)

May 29, 2025

We are pleased to invite you to the last lecture of the American Studies Colloquium Series in the 2025 Spring semester! This lecture focuses on the revelatory power of media technology, particularly AI and other new media innovations. Beginning with an analysis of contemporary military surveillance projects, the presentation looks at the role of drones and similar technologies in making new enemies visible.

Year 2024/2025

May 27: Intersections of Queer and Class

May 27, 2025

We would like to invite you to a discussion meeting introducing the book “Reading Literature and Theory at the Intersections of Queer and Class” (Routledge 2025). We will talk about various crossovers of queer and class in American and German literary texts to explore, among others, queer precarity, intersections of queerness and class privilege, interclass queer sexuality, and lesbian response to class inequalities.