Mark:

As facilitator over at AmLit-L, I recommend "starting" the discussions
over there--not complaining that the list is "dead."  However, take a look
at the list of "Other American Lit Discussion Lists" on the www page,
American Literature OnLine at:

http://www.missouri.edu/~engmo/amlit.html

Perhaps one of those would fit the bill.

Michael O'Conner
Millikin University