CFP Silly Old Bear? A Companion to Adaptations, Appropriations, and Transformations of Winnie-the-Pooh (8/1/2026)

Silly Old Bear? A Companion to Adaptations, Appropriations, and Transformations of Winnie-the-Pooh

Organized by the Monsters & the Monstrous Area of the Northeast Popular Culture Association (NEPCA)

Please submit proposals by 1 August 2026


A. A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh has always been a bit of a shapeshifter manifesting under various names and appearances since the start of his now over one-hundred-year career as a transmedia figure. Over the past century, Pooh and his associates from the Hundred Acre Wood have been adapted and appropriated to feature in accessories, artwork, cards, cartoons, clothing, collectibles, comics, cookbooks, fiction, films, games, home decor, illustrations, memes, musical theater, original videos, philosophical treatises, plays, poems, radio broadcasts, self-help manuals, stuffed animals, songs, streaming video, television programs, theatrical productions, theme park attractions, and translations as well as critical commentaries and works of scholarship. These stories tell of their adventures across time and space, and each text offers a unique approach to the characters. Notably, Pooh and his band have often undergone radical transformations through various parodies and pastiches, with many more innovative approaches appearing since their move into the public domain beginning in 2022.


In this collection, we seek to catalog and critique some of these various takes on Winnie-the-Pooh and his companions. We ask you to explore how these adaptations, appropriations, and transformations of these familiar figures connect to and/or diverge from the Poohian tradition established by Milne and illustrator E. H. Shepard. We want you to uncover what these works might say about the gang from the Hundred Acre Wood, the creators of these new works, and, ultimately, ourselves as the receivers of these texts. We encourage you to make use of the resource guide provided at https://tinyurl.com/SillyOldBearRG in formulating your approach. Updates on the project and news of Winnie-the-Pooh will be shared at https://silly-old-bear.blogspot.com/.


Please submit a chapter proposal (200-500 words) plus an academic biographical statement (75 words or less) to Michael A. Torregrossa, Monsters & the Monstrous Area Chair at popular.preternaturaliana@gmail.com. Submissions should be made by 1 August 2026. Please use the subject heading “Silly Old Bear Companion.” Early submissions are encouraged.

Tentative Timeline:

Proposals - August 2026

Responses - September 2026

Drafts - Spring 2027

Final Versions - Fall 2027

Further information on the Monsters & the Monstrous Area can be accessed on our blog, Popular Preternaturaliana: Studying the Monstrous in Popular Culture at https://popularpreternaturaliana.blogspot.com/.