Professor gets horror studies editorship
The new Principal Editor of Lexington Books Horror Studies plans to expand the reach of horror into the broader landscape of popular culture.
AUT Professor of Popular Culture Lorna Piatti-Farnell says she is honoured to have been appointed to the position.
"Being part of the portfolio of such a high-profile publisher, the horror series holds high importance as one of the official channels for the dissemination of scholarly work on horror," she says.
"I am keen to expand the portfolio of horror into different fields of enquiry. Traditionally, horror has found its most prolific arena in studies connected to fiction and film. However, horror has now grown to be an important and noticeable part of other areas such as television, digital media, games, comics, graphic novels, and even the tourism industry.
"As editor of the series, I am committed to expanding the reach of horror into the broader landscape of popular culture, recognising the genre as an unmissable part of our 21st century cultural landscape."
Lexington Books is the research branch of Rowman & Littlefield, a top-tier academic publisher with a global profile.
It holds a wide-ranging portfolio in media studies, film studies, cultural history, and popular culture.
The horror series is newly established and recognises the importance of horror not only in media and popular culture, but also in academia, as part of the publisher's international scholarly scope.
Professor Piatti-Farnell is Director of the Popular Culture Research Centre, based at AUT.