We are seeking abstracts for Warren Zevon and Philosophy, to be published by Carus Books, the editorial team behind the long-running Popular Culture and Philosophy series by Open Court.
Submission Guidelines:
All submissions鈥攁bstract, biography, and chapters (if accepted)鈥攕hould be written for an educated, non-specialized audience. References should be minimal, and it is nearly always better to describe concepts yourself than to use quotations. Also (and this is important), your writing should be fun or interesting to read! We strongly suggest that you refer to past volumes in the series to get a sense of the intended style. Chapters are expected to be 3k words.
Interested persons should submit, by October 15, 2021, the following to John E. MacKinnon (john.mackinnon@smu.ca) as a single Microsoft Word document: 1) An abstract of between 100 and 500 words (written in an engaging style); 2) A biographical statement for each author/co-author, no more than 125 words each (also written in an engaging style); 3) A CV for each author/co-author.
Deadlines:
October 15, 2021: Abstracts and other submission materials are due to the editor.
January 15, 2022: Editor will notify authors of their potential involvement
May 15, 2022: Finished essays are due from the authors
August 15, 2022: Editorial review, revision, and proofreading
Example Topics: All chapters should have two related goals: 1) to entertainingly engage with the music and life of Warren Zevon and 2) to expand readers鈥� appreciation of Zevon and his music by drawing on philosophical concepts and thinkers. Submissions which fail to satisfy both aims will not be considered. Again, we strongly suggest referring to past volumes in the series for examples of this practice. Any relevant topic will be considered, including thoughtful commentary on particular songs or albums, but here are some examples of the kinds of chapters we are seeking:
- Zevon鈥檚 mastery of what Jackson Browne calls 鈥渟ong noir.鈥�
- Zevon and the perils of fame (consider in light of his own reflections on this in 鈥淛esus Mentioned鈥� and 鈥淧orcelain Monkey鈥�).
- The place of history in Zevon鈥檚 music (鈥淔rank and Jesse James,鈥� 鈥淰eracruz,鈥� 鈥淩oland the Headless Thompson Gunner,鈥� 鈥淥urselves to Know鈥�)
- The literary Zevon.
- Zevon and the art of collaboration (in relation to the songs he co-wrote with, for instance, Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen, Thomas McGuane, Carl Hiaasen, Paul Muldoon, and Jorge Calder贸n).
- Zevon and the aesthetics of the cover version (his covers of others鈥� music, like 鈥淲ild Thing,鈥� 鈥淎 Certain Girl,鈥� 鈥淩aspberry Beret,鈥� 鈥淏ack in the High Life,鈥� 鈥淜nockin鈥� on Heaven鈥檚 Door,鈥� as well as other musicians鈥� covers of his work).
- Zevon on the sporting life (鈥淏ill Lee,鈥� 鈥淏oom Boom Mancini,鈥� 鈥淗it Somebody鈥�).
- Zevon on our obsession with harm (鈥淟ife鈥檒l Kill Ya鈥�), and the further means of discipline and control that it warrants.
- Zevon鈥檚 evocation of Los Angeles (鈥淒esperadoes Under the Eaves鈥�, 鈥淐armelita,鈥� 鈥淛oin Me in L.A.,鈥� 鈥淐harlie鈥檚 Medicine鈥�).
- Zevon in a censorious age: themes of sex and race.
- Zevon and the dystopian (鈥淒esperadoes under the Eaves,鈥� 鈥淩un Straight Down鈥�)
- Zevon and sin.
- Zevon, death and dying.
Carus Books is now taking over the publishing mission of Open Court Publishing Company. To propose ideas for future volumes, please contact David R. Steele, at dramsaysteele@gmail.com
For more information on the Popular Culture and Philosophy Series, check:
Thank you! John E. MacKinnon (john.mackinnon@smu.ca)