Dr. Julian Ingelmann

born 1990. 2009-2012 Studied German Studies and History in a joint-honours Bachelor at the University of Hanover. Following this he studied modern German Literature until 2014. Qualification obtained with a Master's thesis on the subject of the connection between Theology and Dramatic Arts in Karl Philipp Moritz' "Anton Reiser". From 2012 held a scholarship from the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes (German National Academic Foundation). Publications about light fiction around 1800 with a particular focus on Gothic fiction. From October 2014 graduate student at the Research Training Group GRK 1787.



Doctoral project: The keyboard warriors of web 2.0 writing forums and digital dilettantism in the borderland of the Gutenberg-galaxy
Since the forum gedichte.com was founded in the year 2000, around 25,000 users have gathered to publish their own poems and discuss their verse with like-minded people. In this way around 120,000 works have come together - an impressive number in a time in which professional poets have to increasingly fight to be heard. In the shadow of the publishers, unnoticed by culture journalists and literary studies, an entirely new kind of digital art scene formed. Hobby authors attempt to walk the tightrope between the fast moving nature of the internet and the claim to eternity made by artistic literature. Platforms such as gedichte.com offer reading material which can be read easily from the screen of a smart phone on a tram ride but wishes to be much more than a way to pass the time for commuters.
My dissertation examines these writing communities. Not only the published short stories and poems are analyzed but also the discussion culture in the forums. How do lay authors position themselves in relation to their own texts and which criteria play a role in their appraisal by readers? Answering these questions should not only make the phenomenon of writing forums tangible but also contribute to the characterization of digital dilettantism.