Troy student plans a conference

Spooky season is almost here, and senior English major Anais Shelley from Danzey, Alabama, will be playing host for an international literary conference called “Things That Go Bump In The Night: An International Literary Conference On All Things Scary.” The debut conference is available for students from all levels, including undergraduate and graduate students. 

“’Things That Go Bump In The Night’ is a celebration of scary literature, and that does not just mean horror,” Shelley said. “It means gothic, it means scary authors such as Anne Rice and Edgar Allen Poe, and it means scary themes, even in film and television.”  

At the conference, there will be two different kinds of panels: a research panel and a creative writing panel.  

“The main idea of the conference is to bring in literary analyses,” said Professor of English Dr. Ben Robertson. “However, they are also accepting creative writing.” 

The research panel is open to many different kinds of submissions, including proposals between 150 and 250 words.  

On the research panel, students can present a paper, PowerPoint, poster or digital infographic that they could give a speech along with,” Shelley said. “On the creative writing panel, students can submit their own creative works. 

However, the conference is not limited to just participants. “Things That Go Bump In The Night” is also completely free for any students that just want to sit in and listen. 

The conference is almost completely student-run by Shelley.  

“I’m just kind of advising as needed,” Robertson said. “Anais came to ask me about hosting a conference sometime last year, and I told her to go for it.  

“She’s really the one in charge of everything.” 

Shelley came up with this idea after participating in the Conference on Domestic Cats in Literature held earlier this year by Dr. Robertson and Professor Katona Weddle, another professor in the English department.  

“The theme and title came to me all at once,” Shelley said. “I was just in love with ‘Things That Go Bump In The Night’ since I’ve always had an interest in the supernatural and scary literature, and it was just meant to be.” 

The conference is also noted to have several speakers throughout the weekend. Multiple Troy University English professors will be speaking at this conference, including Robertson. Professor and Chair of English Dr. Kirk Curnutt, and Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities Dr. Michael Thrasher will be giving opening remarks. 

“Things That Go Bump In The Night” will be held over Teams, so that international students are able to submit works as well. Shelley emphasized how much she is already learning about scary stories from other countries because of the international submissions.  

“It’s going to be a fascinating discussion across several different disciplines, countries and fields of emphasis on this literature,” Shelley said. 

The conference is a huge opportunity for students that are interested in spooky literature. 

“I’m excited that students will be running it, which we’ve never done before,” Robertson said. “It also gives participants a great opportunity to do public speaking and gives another line on their resumé.” 

A few students are already looking forward to this upcoming conference.  

“I am beyond excited,” said Alivia Radovich, a senior English major from Elk Grove, California. “I am submitting in the creative writing section a short story that I wrote a couple of years ago.  

“It’s really creepy, and it’s based off of a town that I grew up in in the mountains of California. It’s the story I’m most proud of.” 

The conference will be held from Oct. 16 through Oct. 18. Submissions are due Sept. 19.

Email Anais Shelley at ashelley226206@troy.edu with any submissions or inquiries.