NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State University will host its annual LitCon on April 12-13 in the Natchitoches Room of Russell Hall. Presentations will be from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday. Admission is free and open to the public.
Conference originator and organizer Oona Zbitkovskis said LitCon is a two-day celebration of the humanities, which highlights the interconnectedness of academic and artistic disciplines.
“We define ‘humanities’ broadly to include many facets of film, literature, music, writing, pop culture, theater, visual arts, etc., and the appreciation of their value to students, academics and community members,” said Zbitkovskis, an instructor of English at Northwestern State.
Started in 2017, this conference seeks to bring together and feature academics, artists, makers and thinkers from the local community and beyond. LitCon offers a playful environment for artists and academics where we all encourage and learn from each other.
“At its core, LitCon is a hybrid event bringing together elements of the traditional academic conference and the popular culture convention,” said Zbitkovskis. “We invite anyone enthusiastic about contributing in a thoughtful and meaningful way—academics and artists. You don’t need to wear any particular hats, capes, elbow patches, smocks, pocket protectors—you get the point. Join us to meet, create and share.”
Faculty and students from NSU and other regional universities will be making presentations. LitCon will also feature informational tables, as well as authors and artists sharing their work.
LitCon 2024 Schedule of Presentations/Workshops/Panels
Friday April 12th
9:30 “The Runaway Shadows: A Reading,” Ashtyn Maddox and Nathan Williams from Northwestern State University
10:10-12:10 Dance performances of original poems by Northwestern State University students, John McBride and dancers from NSU CAPA
12:30 “The Heart and Stomach of a King: Female Leadership in Dido, Queen of Carthage,” Allison Shaver from Louisiana State University in Shreveport
12:30 “Viking Games,” (outside on the lawn, weather permitting) Shea Montgomery from Northwestern State University
1:30 “Out on a Limb” Northwestern State University’s Comedy Improv Team
2:30 “Bisexual Erasure and Bisexual Stereotypes in ‘Killing Eve,’” Heather Salter Dromm from Northwestern State University
2:30 “Writing Superman: Humanity, Vulnerability, and Jesus Christ,” Logan Boline from Northwestern State University
3:30 “Parenting in the Movies,” Debra Jo Hailey from Northwestern State University
3:30 “Stumbling Out of Childhood: Sociopolitical Commentary in the Star Trek Franchise,” Jason Couch from Stephen F. Austin State University
Saturday April 13th
9:30 Short Fiction Reading, Kirsten Chandler from Stephen F. Austin State University
10:30 “Worldbuilding and Character Creation with a focus on TTRPGs,” Marko Bones and Khirs Doolan from Northwestern State University
10:30 Words of Art, Rae Bynum from Stephen F. Austin State University
11:30 “The Art of the Book,” Rita D. Costello (and others) from McNeese State University
11:30 “Math Matters: Can’t English Major my way out of this!” Katie Alfultis-Rayburn from Northwestern State University
12:30 “Excerpts from a Genre-Hopping Novelist: Three Selections from Original Work,” Carly Chandler (alum) from Northwestern State University
12:30 Monster of the Week—A TTRPG One Shot, Marko Bones
1:30 “Notes from the Holodeck: Student Experience with Artificially Intelligent Narrative PoetryTutors,” Steve Marsden from Stephen F. AustinState University
