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Martin Willis

@profwillis

Academic, literature and science, 19th century. Trustee of Literature Wales. Devourer of crime fiction. Scot in North Wales & Cardiff.

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15.11.2024
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Latest posts by Martin Willis @profwillis

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#EnglishCreates: Futures continues with this post by Francesca Mackenney and Jamie Castell (Cardiff University):

'How do representations of sound in literature shape our awareness of the natural world?'

Read the full post here: universityenglish.ac.uk/englishcreat...

#EnglishStudies
#Ecocriticism

06.02.2026 20:23 πŸ‘ 20 πŸ” 14 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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My January Crime Club author newsletter is out, so check your inboxes or sign up on my website to get my latest newsletter now:

www.lucyandrew.com/crime-club

#authornewsletter #cosycrime #booklaunch #janeausten

31.01.2026 18:25 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Constructing impartiality in a polarised news environment: An analysis of BBC Question Time contributors 2014-2024 - Matt Walsh, 2025 Televised panel discussions are an increasingly used form of journalism, providing cheap content without expensive newsgathering. In recent years, panel constru...

Final publication of the year: I examined 10 years of panellists on BBC Question Time. Some interesting findings - thread below:
(1/6)
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

27.12.2025 13:28 πŸ‘ 54 πŸ” 32 πŸ’¬ 8 πŸ“Œ 8
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πŸ¦‡ Do you love bats and enjoy writing? Join us in celebrating bats in creative writing through our Bat's Laureate Competition!

There are two categories: one for adults/young people over 12 and one for our younger supporters, under 12 years old.

More info: www.bats.org.uk/our-work/con...

27.12.2025 09:44 πŸ‘ 16 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Conference 2026 – Strathclyde – The British Society for Literature and Science

CfP Deadline Approaching! The deadline to submit an abstract for this year's BSLS conference is this Friday (12th Dec) more details here: www.bsls.ac.uk/conference20...

08.12.2025 09:35 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Mills on the Water of Leith; including paper, snuff and grain. #Edinburgh

23.11.2025 09:12 πŸ‘ 46 πŸ” 21 πŸ’¬ 3 πŸ“Œ 2

My years of research give me the authority to say that the most realistic part of Down Cemetery Road (ep1) is Ruth Wilson's character getting lost while trying to chase someone through an NHS hospital.

06.11.2025 20:10 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
CfP: British Society for Literature and Science Annual Conference – BARS Blog

Call for Papers: British Society for Literature and Science (@thebsls.bsky.social) 21st Annual Conference, University of Strathclyde, 9th-11th April 2026. 200-word abstracts due by 12th December 2025.
www.bars.ac.uk/blog/?p=6183

12.10.2025 15:06 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 10 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Perhaps you’ve gone beyond study, beyond the department, beyond even the university. Maybe you’ve reached the ultimate: a state of beyondness.

23.07.2025 12:09 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Illustration divided into two frames. The upper frame shows a cut-through depiction of a flooded village with intact church and stunted trees, green in hue under the water as fish swim past.
Below is an innocuous, conventional scene of a peaceful reservoir in sunlight

Illustration divided into two frames. The upper frame shows a cut-through depiction of a flooded village with intact church and stunted trees, green in hue under the water as fish swim past. Below is an innocuous, conventional scene of a peaceful reservoir in sunlight

I used to find this picture - and the whole concept - of a flooded valley quite haunting.
Actually, I still do

Artist: Ronald Lampitt
(Our Land in the Making, 1966)

20.07.2025 19:21 πŸ‘ 1085 πŸ” 123 πŸ’¬ 52 πŸ“Œ 4
A flow chart titled 'What to call your Academic Event', poking fun at academic event titles.

A flow chart titled 'What to call your Academic Event', poking fun at academic event titles.

I had not seen this before, and it made me smile...

15.07.2025 16:44 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Call for entries: 2025 BSLS/JLS Essay Prize – The British Society for Literature and Science

ECRs and PGRs - you have three days to submit your 4k-5k word essay to the BSLS/JLS essay prize! Tidy up those conferences papers and send them in! Deadline is THIS FRIDAY.

www.bsls.ac.uk/2025/04/call...

03.06.2025 13:07 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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In case you want proof, here's an article i wrote years ago about Victorian eugenicists wanting to found a religion centred on "the human body is god". (I'll cheerfully admit that it has a genuinely terrible title. I don't know what I was thinking.) www.literatureandscience.org/wp-content/u...

06.05.2025 15:23 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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Liam McIlvanney launches The Good Father in conversation with Lesley McDowell | Events at Waterstones Bookshops | Waterstones Events at Waterstones get you closer to the books and authors you admire most. Find information and tickets about Liam McIlvanney launches The Good Father in conversation with Lesley McDowell today.

Citizens of Glasgow! I will be in the big Waterstones on Sauchiehall St on 3rd July, chatting to the outstanding @lesleymcdowell.bsky.social. Hope to see you there if you can make itβ€¦πŸ’™πŸ“š

03.05.2025 20:59 πŸ‘ 36 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 0
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Very pleased that my article 'Facts and Fictions: Emotional Authenticity and Narrative in Natural History Exhibitions', which close reads the displays of the NHM and the Loch Ness Centre, has been published today!

journals.le.ac.uk/index.php/mas

02.05.2025 10:25 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Me and the jury.

Me and the jury.

The doctoranda pictured in front of slides on the five magazines her dissertation focuses on, moments before a small constrictor attacked for the "snake fight" portion of the defence.

The doctoranda pictured in front of slides on the five magazines her dissertation focuses on, moments before a small constrictor attacked for the "snake fight" portion of the defence.

Dr Guyton at last!

On Tuesday I defended my dissertation, "Popular Astronomy: Mediating Outer Space in German and British Periodical Culture, 1890-1950."

#PhDone

01.05.2025 19:31 πŸ‘ 30 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 3 πŸ“Œ 0

Taking today's date as an opportunity to thank my lucky stars that I was taught "Shakespeare" by the terrific triumvirate of Catherine Belsey, Martin Coyle and Terence Hawkes at @cardiffuni.bsky.social

Always grateful πŸ™

23.04.2025 09:24 πŸ‘ 14 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 3 πŸ“Œ 1

The first day of the conference is already over - with a fantastic plenary from @profmhwhitworth.bsky.social and two panels of amazing papers. It's #BSLS2025 to follow along!

10.04.2025 17:19 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Hand holding up a copy of The Good Father by Liam McIlvanney against background of living room

Hand holding up a copy of The Good Father by Liam McIlvanney against background of living room

I’m extremely lucky to have an early preview of β€˜The Good Father’, the new novel by my brilliant colleague @liammcilvanney.bsky.social. It’s his fault if I’m late for work because I stayed up all night reading…

30.03.2025 09:30 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1
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B-Sides: β€œUnder the Sea-Wind” by Rachel Carson - Public Books Bill McKibben proclaimed nature’s demise in 1989. But Americans who cared about DDT’s poisonous effect and the extinctions that would follow had been

New album just dropped. Check it. www.publicbooks.org/b-sides-unde...

14.03.2025 21:30 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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A Decade of Crisis The UK's universities are in crisis. Dave Hitchcock on how the sector became 'broken' and why it must be understood as an interdependent system.

UK universities are in crisis.

Dave Hitchcock (@davehitchcock.bsky.social) on how the sector became 'broken' and why it must be approached as an interdependent system.

www.historyworkshop....

13.03.2025 07:08 πŸ‘ 224 πŸ” 152 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 44

Great to see the EA offering strategic support to all colleagues in arts and humanities whose jobs are under threat.

08.03.2025 14:22 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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a kangaroo wearing sunglasses and a red shirt says " someone call my agent " Alt: a kangaroo wearing sunglasses and a red shirt says " someone call my agent "

Calling all #literaryagents!
A northern Literary Festival is looking for agents to present and do author one-to-ones.
The all-day event will be at Leeds Trinity University, Sat 6th Sept 2025.
It’s partly to fill the gap in the North of England now that #JerichoWriters have relocated to London.
1/

24.02.2025 21:37 πŸ‘ 14 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 1

As promised, here are the slides I shared with students to convince them to NOT use chatGPT and other artificial stupidity.

TL;DR? AI is evil, unsustainable and stupid, and I'd much rather they use their own brains, make their own mistakes, and actually learn something. πŸͺ„

23.02.2025 13:45 πŸ‘ 5636 πŸ” 2116 πŸ’¬ 236 πŸ“Œ 115

2/ β€œThey need ethics, philosophy, language and history to guide them. Universities like ours, cherishing the full range of academic disciplines, will have a vital role in showing how sciences and humanities can inform and strengthen each other.” Words that might be heeded by VCs elsewhere.

19.02.2025 20:39 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

1/ Lord Hague, speaking as he becomes Oxford University Chancellor: β€œthe pace of change in sciences and medicine will mean we need humanities and social sciences more than ever. New technologies are changing politics and transforming the way culture is developed and communicated…”

19.02.2025 20:38 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

🚨 A CONFERENCE ABOUT RAIL TRAVEL THAT TAKES PLACE ON A TRAIN!!!!!!!! 🚨

12.02.2025 16:48 πŸ‘ 141 πŸ” 39 πŸ’¬ 5 πŸ“Œ 4

What can you do with English studies β€¦πŸ‘€πŸ‘€β¬‡οΈ

11.02.2025 16:19 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Fears for future of National Museum Cardiff after abrupt closure for maintenance Martin Shipton Concerns have been raised about the future of the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff after an official notice was posted outside saying it was closed indefinitely. The Museum’s managem...

The university facing 400 redundancies, the museum shutting suddenly because cuts have kept them from maintaining the building. Wales is losing key institutions in its capital city. nation.cymru/news/fears-f...

03.02.2025 07:40 πŸ‘ 116 πŸ” 58 πŸ’¬ 7 πŸ“Œ 4
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The deep cultural cost of British university job cuts | Letters Letters: Arts and humanities are being hit hardest by cuts in higher education, write Prof Thea Pitman and Prof Emma Cayley, and Dr Ronan McLaverty-Head and another letter writer comment on cuts at Ca...

The deep cultural cost of British university job cuts

Arts and humanities are being hit hardest by cuts in higher education, write Prof Thea Pitman and Prof Emma Cayley

www.theguardian.com/education/20...

05.02.2025 19:14 πŸ‘ 109 πŸ” 75 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 5