An upcoming conference entitled “Stepping into Literature: Bringing New Life to Books through Virtual Worlds,” will explore the potential that virtual worlds can bring to the staid world of literature.

“What possibilities do virtual worlds offer us in sharing a love of literature?” asked John Howard, conference director and Special Projects Coordinator for Alliance on the infoisland blog. “Is there value in building worlds that previously existed only in print, or in our imaginations? How can we use 3-D experiences to enhance our experience of literature?”

The conference will have lectures but will also guide participants through virtual literary worlds, such as a gothic world, an Edgar Allen Poe world or visit a ‘secret garden.’ The keynote speaker will be Beth Ritter-Guth, the founder of Literature Alive! and a college-level educator, and the keynote author will be Kim Rufer-Bach, who is a software developer.

Alliance Library System and LearningTimes are presenting the conference in SL on August 4 and 6 which you can register here. The conference is part of the Stepping Into Virtual Worlds series, which will hold more similar-type events in the future.