Literatur und Literaturvermittlung im Zeitalter der Digitalisierung

Nicole Gabriel

Born in 1986. Studied English Philology, Economics and German as a Foreign Language at Martin-Luther-University of Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) and at Oulun Yliopisto (University of Oulu, Finland). Worked as tutor and research assistant for Prof. Sabine Volk-Birke, Chair of English Literature at MLU, from 2009 to 2013. Graduated as English Philologist in January 2013 with a Diploma thesis on Terry Pratchett's Shakespeare Adaptations. EU-funded COMENIUS assistant at Greenbank High School in Southport, England from February to July 2013. Member of the Research Training Group 1787 since October 2013. Additionally, visiting lecturer at MLU from 2013 to 2015. Internship at LovelyBooks from April to October 2015.




Publications





Lehre:


  • Introduction to Cultural Studies (SoSe 2016)
  • Cross-Cultural Adaptations of The Office (Summer 2015)
  • Introduction to Convergence Culture: Transmedial Sherlock Holmes (Summer 2014)
  • Fantasy: Terry Pratchett and William Shakespeare (Winter 2013/14)






Project: Terry Pratchett's Discworld in the Digital Age
My project focusses on contemporary British Fantasy author Sir Terry Pratchett (1948-2015), his ever-growing Discworld-franchise, which was begun in 1983, and its large international (online) fan base. In my thesis, I will trace the development from novel series to transmedial world (Klastrup/Tosca) by determining its different phases of world-building. Special attention will be given to the impact of the digitalization of content and culture.
For the Discworld, various technical, medial, economical, legal, and socio-cultural changes and challenges can be identified, from which new roles and functions arise for the author within the transmedial world: Pratchett develops from author to 'world manager'. In order to define the different functions, I shall analyse this process through a selection of case studies of interactions between Pratchett and other producers or prosumers (Toffler). Eventually, I shall compare the Discworld with other novel-based transmedial worlds to identify its distinctive features, and to compile a typology of novel-based transmedial worlds and their world managers. Theoretically and methodologically, the thesis will be based primarily in transmedia and adaptation studies, as well as culture and media studies (esp. Jenkins' concepts of convergence culture and participatory culture).