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Shakespeare Electronic Conference, Vol. 2, No. 290. Thursday, 7 Nov 1991.
 
From: 		Ken Steele <ksteele@epas.utoronto.ca>
Subject: 	Request to all Members re Work in Progress
Date: 		Thu, 7 Nov 91 8:57:30 EST
 
Dear Fellow SHAKSPEReans;
 
Since SHAKSPER was just a glint in my eye, I've hoped that it could be
used for rapid communication of quickly obsolescent material to
Shakespearean scholars.  In my mind, this included calls for papers,
announcements and reviews of recent publications and productions,
discussions of textual cruxes, information about new discoveries
(documentary and archeological), and word of work in progress.
 
In particular, more traditional print media have not been able to
provide up-to-date indexes of dissertations, articles, and books in
progress, in manuscript, and in press.  Such information could help
scholars avoid duplication of effort, and could provide valuable
contacts for specific information not yet available.  I somewhat
prematurely offered such an index some months ago, but have only now
managed to complete the required editing of the SHAKSPER Member Biography
files to produce even a preliminary version of the file.
 
In doing so, I encountered several difficulties which, perhaps, should
have been anticipated.  First of all, the earliest biographies are
about a year and a half out of date now.  Secondly, many included only
general statements of research interests, while others offered exact
titles for forthcoming works.  Thirdly, SHAKSPEReans are an
interesting bunch, and are at work on literary scholarship in other
periods, theatrical productions, and quite unrelated projects.
 
I have somewhat ruthlessly decided to limit this works in progress
index to scholarly projects in Shakespeare, Medieval and Renaissance
literatures.  Information about individuals, productions, and research
in other fields remains available in the SHAKSPER Biographies, of
course, but my aim was simply to create a research tool for
Shakespearean scholars.  If anyone would be interested in compiling a
list of SHAKSPERean playwrights, producers, and actors, and their
recent and future work, I believe that would also be of great value to
the group as a whole.
 
At the moment, then, I have a single file which summarizes information
about works in progress from the five member biography files.  It is
currently arranged, as the biography files are, in chronological order
of membership, and regrettably omits many members who did not offer
information in this regard, or whose information my bleary eyes
somehow managed to overlook.  I suspect that I will be arranging the
list alphabetically by author, for neatness if nothing else, but do
not feel that any more complex indexing will be required when an
electronic text can so easily be searched.  (I welcome suggestions from
members as to what they would organization or information they would find
most useful.)
 
MOST IMPORTANTLY, I would ask members to check their entries in the
SHAKSPER Member Biography Files.  (You can obtain the entire set of
current biography files by requesting BIOGRAFY PACKAGE SHAKSPER from
the Fileserver, LISTSERV@utoronto.bitnet.)  If you can add any
information to that entry regarding dissertations, articles,
monographs, or editions recently published, forthcoming, or in
progress, please write the information in a short paragraph and
forward it to me.
 
Once the hoped-for deluge has diminished to a trickle, I will
integrate those updated paragraphs, organize the index, and post it to
the Fileserver.  (Naturally another announcement will indicate the
file's availability.)
 
Thanks in advance to all who make this effort.  Not only will the
information you provide further scholarship, but it might just
increase advance orders for your books! :-)
 
					Ken Steele
					University of Toronto

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