CfP: Special Issue: Cli-Fi as Dystopia, Utopia, or Realism

In a time when the specter of environmental catastrophe is not a possibility for a hypothetical or distant future, but a matter of contemporary and most pressing concern, the ways in which we incorporate its causes and consequences into our collective cultural imagination as a species has emerged as a dynamic arena for critical inquiry. As scientists, scholars, and policy-makers grapple with the complexities of how to effectively address the climate crisis, contemporary fiction has become a site for exploring another set of parallel questions: how are we imagining a present and a future where climate crisis is the new norm? When do we cross the threshold of considering the ongoing climate crisis a matter of realist fiction instead of a concern for authors of dystopian plots? Is it still possible – or even responsible – to imagine eco-utopias based on how far behind are we on our goals for sustainable development? Or are they now more necessary than ever to promote an ideal objective to achieve?

Building upon existing scholarship, this special issue of Theory Now aims to deepen our understanding of climate fiction (cli-fi) and to question the range and diversity of its manifestations. From the stark realism of cli-fi dystopias to techno-optimism, authors employ a diverse array of narrative techniques to confront the existential challenges posed by the climate crisis. We encourage authors to analyze the intricate interplay of form and content, exploring how fiction shapes our understanding of the climate crisis and inspire transformative action. As our definition of what to consider cli-fi continues to evolve as a genre, questions surrounding its boundaries, conventions, and aesthetic sensibilities have come to the fore.

While much attention has been paid to cli-fi produced in Europe and the United States, voices from the Global South offer invaluable perspectives on the climate crisis, challenging dominant narratives and foregrounding the intersecting dynamics of race, class, and colonial legacies. We encourage papers addressing these questions and which explore the diverse voices and narratives emanating from underrepresented connections and traditions.

We welcome submissions from scholars across disciplines, including literature, cultural studies, environmental humanities, and beyond. Interdisciplinary approaches are encouraged, as are contributions that engage with underrepresented voices and perspectives. An example of potential topics includes, but is not limited to:
  • Discussion on the state and direction of speculative fiction, either utopias or dystopias, when it comes to the representation of the climate crisis.
  • Debates over how tropes associated with cli-fi intertwined with conventions traditionally associated with realism in literary fiction.
  • Contemporary fictional representations of the climate crisis, specially by authors from the Global South.
  • The role and presence of counter-hegemonic politics of care and ecofeminism in contemporary climate fiction.
  • Challenges for the narration of the climate crisis, such as questions on temporality, spatial distribution, regional inequality, individual vs collective agency, or human-nonhuman relationships.
  • Transmedia and transdiciplinary approaches to the representation of the climate crisis, with an emphasis on the challenges and opportunities brought by bending traditional conventional lines.
Papers should be between 5,000 to 11,000 words, including notes and references. They need to follow the journal’s style of conventions and can be written in English, Spanish, or French. Authors are responsible for any necessary language editing and proofing. Submissions must include a justification on why the author believes their paper fits within the scope of this special issue.
Contact Information

If you have any questions or wish to send an abstract to check suitability for publication, please email Jordi Serrano-Muñoz.