Issue 2025 

Autofictions and Mutations: Crises of the Self, Crises of the World

 

 

Autofiction, a term coined by Serge Doubrovsky in the 1970s, blends autobiography and fiction in ways that challenge the boundaries of both genres. Since its emergence, autofiction has unsettled traditional notions of authorship, identity, and narrative truth. Initially debated within French literary circles as a response to Philippe Lejeune’s autobiographical pact (1975)—which posits a truthful alignment between author, narrator, and protagonist—Doubrovsky’s Fils (1977) shattered this pact through a fragmented, self-reflexive narrative that foregrounds the instability of memory and identity. The self, in autofiction, emerges as fluid rather than fixed.

In both Francophone and Anglophone literary studies, autofiction remains a contested term. While some critics view it broadly—as any novel incorporating autobiographical elements—others insist on more restrictive definitions, considering it a narrative modality (Hughes, 2002), a subgenre of autobiography, a distinct genre, or a literary strategy (Effe & Lawlor, 2024). As Gasparini (2008) notes, autofiction has evolved into an umbrella term encompassing a wide variety of hybrid texts that defy easy classification.

Positioned at the crossroads of post-structuralism, deconstruction, intertextuality, and postmodernism, autofiction blurs the lines between reality and fiction, destabilizing genre conventions and challenging reader expectations. Its fluidity enables writers to explore and experiment with narrative forms, creating texts that resist definitive interpretation and demand active reader engagement. Autofiction does not simply represent the self—it questions, fragments, and reconstructs it, reflecting the fractured nature of subjectivity in a world marked by cultural, technological, and psychological shifts.

This crisis of the self, at the heart of autofiction, mirrors broader societal crises. In our post-truth age—characterised by disinformation, shifting national identities, and cultural upheaval—autofiction resonates as a form uniquely suited to capturing personal and collective uncertainty. As global narratives fracture and digital self-curation transforms how individuals present their stories, autofiction emerges as both a symptom and critique of these mutations.

The 2025 issue of Confluențe. Texts and Contexts Reloaded invites interdisciplinary contributions that explore autofiction as a response to personal and global crises. We seek articles that investigate how personal narratives engage with wider cultural, political, and existential challenges, illuminating the interplay between individual identity and collective experience.

 

We welcome submissions that address, but are not limited to, the following topics:

  • Autofiction as narrative form: How do autofictional texts blur reality and fiction to navigate crises of the self and the world?

  • Identity and crisis: In what ways does self-writing articulate both personal and collective crises in contemporary contexts?

  • Narrative strategies: What rhetorical and structural tools does autofiction employ to provoke reflection on identity, truth, and crisis?

  • Cultural perspectives: How do different cultural traditions approach autofiction in times of crisis, and how do these narratives compare across linguistic and national contexts?

  • Digital autofictions: How has the rise of digital media influenced autofiction, self-writing, and identity construction?

Submission Guidelines:

  • Articles may be written in English, French, or German.

  • Length: 5,000–7,000 words.

  • Submissions will undergo a double-blind peer review, with authors receiving detailed reports.

  • Please follow the Instructions for Authors.

  • Deadline for full articles: 31 July 2025.

  • Send submissions to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Suggested Bibliography:

  1. Colonna, V. (2004). Autofiction & autres mythomanies littéraires. Editions Tristam.

  2. Doubrovsky, S. (1977). Fils. Galilée.

  3. Effe, A., & Lawlor, H. (2024). Rethinking autofiction as a global practice: Trajectories of anglophone criticism from 2000 to 2020. A/b: Auto/Biography Studies, 1–33.

  4. Effe, A., & Lawlor, H. (Eds.). (2021). The autofictional: Approaches, affordances, forms. Palgrave Macmillan.

  5. Gasparini, P. (2008). Autofiction: Une aventure du langage. Seuil.

  6. Gibbons, A. (2017). Contemporary autofiction and metamodern affect. In R. van den Akker, A. Gibbons, & T. Vermeulen (Eds.), Metamodernism: Historicity, affect, and depth after postmodernism (pp. 117–130). Rowman & Littlefield.

  7. Gilmore, L. (2001). The limits of autobiography. Cornell University Press.

  8. Lejeune, P. (1975). Le pacte autobiographique. Seuil.

  9. Shands, K., et al. (Eds.). (2015). Writing the self: Essays on autobiography and autofiction. Södertörns Högskola.