Baylor University, Waco, Texas, welcomes scholars to the website for the Thirtieth Annual British Women Writers Association conference, May 19-21, 2022! The BWWC 2022 theme of “Borders” and the supporting logo encourage reflection about widening the borders of the discipline. Who is included among the writers studied? What geographic boundaries could expand to include overlooked, colonized, or misrepresented lands? How might contemporary scholars disrupt historical boundaries between literatures, people, cultures, and disciplines to uncover and make evident intersectionality?
To start the conversation and to encourage dialogue about these questions, this website offers an interactive discussion forum where association and conference participants can engage with one another in the months and days ahead of the conference. Join the discussion here.
About the Logo
The conference logo is designed with two purposes: to foreground diverse voices of women writers from the long eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and to show, through its circular structure, a commitment to equity and welcoming. The circular “border” line around the outside of the inner circle gives the logo movement, creating the sense of borders widening. Writers represented in the logo are (from the center top, clockwise): Mary Seacole, Toru Dutt, Isabella Bird, Krupabai Satthianadan, Phillis Wheatley, and Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. The background image is a map drawn by Shanawdithit, a member of the Beothuk people from what is now called Newfoundland. Shanawdithit (1801-1829) documented the culture of the Beothuk nation.
COVID-19 Information
For now, we are planning an entirely in-person conference, while remaining open to adjustments necessary as the pandemic continues to morph. As we have learned over the course of this pandemic, COVID spikes occur in waves, so we will need to see what is happening toward the end of April to make the most informed decision. Keeping abreast of the latest information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Texas Department of State Health Services, and Waco-McLennan County Public Health District, as well as international travel restrictions, the conference organizers will make every effort to provide updates and to make well-informed decisions as we finalize conference plans. Depending on the relevant data closer to the conference, there are several protocols we might follow, such as masking and/or social distancing and moving any events with food outdoors. If there are international travel restrictions, we might open slots for virtual presentations by our international members.
For people who prefer to eat outside, the following information may be helpful: Outdoor spaces are easily accessible at the convention center for conference members to grab breakfast and snacks to eat outside before attending a panel. There will be time to eat the box lunch before the keynote lunch speaker on Thursday; members can choose to eat at tables in the room or take their lunch to outside areas on campus surrounding the building. Members can hear the keynote speaker Friday evening, and then choose to join for the banquet indoors or we will provide a list of nearby restaurants with patio seating for those who wish to convene together outside during the banquet hour.
Please do not hesitate to contact us with any additional questions at bwwc2022@baylor.edu