International Conference on Telling Stories: Media, Materiality and the Transforming Forms of Narrative

Organizer: Research Centre and PG Department of English- St. Aloysius College (Autonomous), Elthuruth, Thrissur, Kerala - 680 611, India, Affiliated to the University of Calicut & Aided by the Govt. of Kerala, Re-Accredited by NAAC with A++ Grade (4th Cycle) In collaboration with Kerala Sahitya Academy

About the Conference

• When: 4 December 2026 at 9:30 AM
• Venue & Mode: Hybrid Mode at College Auditorium & Google Meet
• Registration Link: Google Form
• Call for Papers
• Publication: Selected papers will be published in a book with ISBN by the Publication Division of St. Aloysius College, Elthuruth.

Keynote Address

Dr. Stavroula Kalogeras, Author, Higher Education Strategist, Associate Professor, Edinburgh Business School, Heriot-Watt University, Dubai

Topic: The Stories Between: Transmedia Storytelling, Artificial Intelligence and the Human Search for Meaning

Valedictory Address

Dr. Vrinda Varma, Author & Translator, Associate Professor, National Institute of Technology, Calicut

Topic: Can I Tell You a Story? Finding, Shaping and Telling the Stories That Matter

Call for Papers

Papers are invited from students, researchers, and faculty across disciplines.

Concept Note

Storytelling has continually evolved with changing cultures, technologies, media and modes of human interaction. From oral traditions, folklore and the printed short story to film, radio, television, digital platforms, social media and transmedia environments, stories have moved across forms and media while continually adapting to new audiences and contexts. The contemporary moment, marked by artificial intelligence, digital transformation, changing patterns of attention and emerging technologies, invites renewed reflection on how stories are created, circulated, experienced and remembered.

Against this backdrop, the conference explores storytelling as a dynamic cultural, literary, technological and pedagogical practice. It brings literary studies into conversation with transmedia storytelling, digital and experimental fiction, AI and emerging technologies, media studies, narrative pedagogy, communication, audience studies and new modes of knowledge dissemination. Particular attention will be given to how narratives move across media, acquire new meanings through different material forms, and engage increasingly diverse and participatory audiences.

The conference also opens dialogue with emerging interdisciplinary areas such as AI Humanities, Digital Humanities, Discard Studies, Medical Humanities, Climate and Blue Humanities, Multispecies Studies, Disability and Care Studies, Decolonial Studies, Migration and Border Studies, and Global South and Indigenous Futurisms. Medical narratives, illness stories, narratives of care, migration and displacement, ecological storytelling and stories that cross linguistic, cultural and national borders will be considered as important forms of contemporary narrative practice.

The conference further recognises the relationship between literature, leadership, communication and pedagogy. Storytelling increasingly informs leadership, organisational communication, professional practice and education, while narrative-based and design-thinking approaches offer new possibilities for student engagement and experiential learning. The conference therefore seeks to examine how storytelling can bridge research and practice, connect academia with society and industry, and create meaningful forms of knowledge and human engagement.

Thrust Areas

• 01. Storytelling Across Media: Oral traditions, print, radio, television, film, digital platforms, social media and transmedia storytelling.
• 02. Materiality and the Changing Story: Page, screen, image, sound, performance, platform and emerging narrative forms.
• 03. AI, Digital Narratives and Emerging Technologies: Generative AI, digital fiction, AI-assisted storytelling, authorship, creativity, virtual environments and new modes of dissemination.
• 04. Storytelling, Pedagogy and Learning: Narrative instruction, transmedia pedagogy, student engagement, design thinking, experiential learning, AI in education and research-to-practice approaches.
• 05. Literature, Communication and Leadership: Narrative and leadership, storytelling in organisations, communication, public speaking, purpose-driven organisations and professional practice.
• 06. Medical Humanities and Stories Across Borders: Illness narratives, patient stories, disability, care, grief, ageing, medical ethics, narrative medicine, migration, diaspora and cross-cultural storytelling.
• 07. Ecology, Waste and More-than-Human Narratives: Climate storytelling, Blue Humanities, Discard Studies, waste and toxicity, multispecies narratives and ecological futures.
• 08. Decolonial, Indigenous and Alternative Futures: Indigenous epistemologies, Indian Knowledge Systems, oral traditions, Global South perspectives, decolonial storytelling and speculative futures.
• 09. Narrative Resistance, Power, and Marginality: Unpacking dominant structures, counter-storytelling, subaltern agency, resisting overarching discourse, and peripheral voices.
• 10. Contemporary Theories and New Directions: Affect, trauma, posthumanism, materiality studies, platform studies, attention studies, digital humanities and other emerging approaches to narrative.

Submission Guidelines

• Citation Style: MLA 9th Edition
• Abstract: 300 words
• Font: Times New Roman, 12 pt
• File Format: Submit in MS Word (doc or docx)
• References & Citations: Follow MLA 9th edition for in-text citations and works cited.

Important Dates

• Abstract submission: on or before 25th November 2026
• Full paper submission: on or before 1st December 2026

Send your full paper to: webinarenglish@staloysiuselt.edu.in

Fees Category

Account Details

A/C Number: 12400100033016

Name: St. Aloysius College

IFSC Code: FDRL0001240

Branch: Olarikkara

Bank: Federal Bank

Conference Convenors

Prof. (Dr.) Betsy Paul C, Director of Research, St. Aloysius College (Autonomous), Elthuruth

Dr. Atheetha K. Unni, Assistant Professor & Research Supervisor, St. Aloysius College (Autonomous), Elthuruth

Committee Members

Ms. Susan Joshi - HoD, Assistant Professor

Mr. Jaison Jose P. - Assistant Professor

Ms. Reshma K. Jose - Assistant Professor

Dr. Abin Sojan - Assistant Professor

Ms. Seena Mohan - Assistant Professor

Mr. Sandeep E. S. - Assistant Professor (On Contract)

Ms. Athulliya Surendran - Research Scholar

Ms. Hridhya P. S. - Research Scholar

Ms. Nima A. M. - Research Scholar

Ms. Sruthy Krishnadas - Research Scholar 

Contact

Phone: 8590035196

Email: webinarenglish@staloysiuselt.edu.in