I've received some inquiries on the relation between presenting a paper
at MLA and being a member of MLA.  The MLA rule is that in order to
qualify to present a paper at the 2009 convention (Dec. 27-30 in
Philadelphia), you must be a member of MLA by April 7, 2009.  The
deadline for submitting an abstract for one the Mark Twain Circle
sessions is March 15.  You can submit an abstract without being (at that
time) a member of MLA.  If your presentation is accepted for one of the
Mark Twain Circle sessions, I'll inform you of that in plenty of time
for you to get your membership in order before the April 7 deadline.
The two Mark Twain Circle calls have now been published in the MLA
newsletter, and can be viewed at the following address, which also gives
information about MLA policies:
http://www.mla.org/pdf/calls_spring09.pdf

Session 1: Mark Twain in the New Millenium.  Papers on Twain's
reputation and/or the relevance of his works at the 100th anniversary of
his death.  Abstracts by 15 Mar; James Leonard ([log in to unmask]).

Session 2: Open Topic.  Any topic related to Mark Twain's works or life.
Abstracts by 15 Mar; James Leonard ([log in to unmask]).

Jim Leonard