Author Archives: Emma Claire Sweeney

About Emma Claire Sweeney

Lecturer in Creative Writing at the open University, Director of the Ruppin Agency Writer's Studio (a nationwide literary mentoring programme), and award-winning author of novel OWL SONG AT DAWN and co-author with Emily Midorikawa of non-fiction book A SECRET SISTERHOOD: THE HIDDEN FRIENDSHIPS OF AUSTEN, BRONTË, ELIOT AND WOLF.

Thinking Aloud: Ethical Research

Shafquat Towheed, Senior Lecturer in English [Image 1: The Africa Museum, Tervuren, Belgium] ‘In a very few hours, I arrived in a city that always makes me think of a whited sepulchre’, said Conrad’s Marlow about his return to Brussels … Continue reading

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On writing a diary of literary terms

Richard Jones, Lecturer in English Literature Daisy, I say, it’s time to put you in a blog post. Not likely, she says and starts to squeeze out of it. I don’t mind this. The whole point of the blog post … Continue reading

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Teaching for the OU – having the time of my life!

Dr Lynda Morgan, Associate Lecturer It is February 1976. I am 23 years old, recently graduated with a degree in English and a teaching certificate, and I am about to walk into a shabby classroom at Sarah Siddons school, Paddington. … Continue reading

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Reading as a writer: ‘Offshore’

Sally O’Reilly, Lecturer, Creative Writing As creative writing academics, we constantly remind students about the importance of ‘reading as a writer’, and in my own reading I sometimes wonder to what extent this should be a conscious process, and to … Continue reading

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‘Of These and Other Worlds’: Reflections on the C. S. Lewis Festival, Belfast

Patricia Ferguson, PhD student, English Literature Saturday November 3 is described in the brochure as ‘The Day of Magical Thinking’, but it seems to me that we were privileged to enjoy a whole week of magical thinking. The title of … Continue reading

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The Book as Cure: Bibliotherapy and Literary Caregiving from the First World War to the Present

Jenny Cattier PhD student, Anglia Ruskin University When I saw the conference programme for The Book as Cure: Bibliotherapy and Literary Caregiving from the First World War to the Present, I genuinely could not believe my luck.  As a creative … Continue reading

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Light Documents: The Personal Inspiration for a Research Project

Patrick Wright PhD student, Creative Writing It has always struck me as peculiar that academics tend to conceal personal origins or motives for their research. More often than not our deep investment in a subject or area of study appears … Continue reading

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What is literature for? – and Why do I do what I do?

Sara Haslam, Senior Lecturer in English We’ve been asking the first question in my title for this blog post for many years in our department. In modules such as A300 Twentieth-Century Literature: Texts and Debates our teaching materials have explored … Continue reading

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Reflections on EastSide Arts Festival, Belfast, 2-12 August 2018

Patricia Ferguson, PhD Student, Department of English The Director of the EastSide ArtsFestival writes, in the brochure’s welcome page: ‘…if this part of the city is your home, the festival is our annual invitation to you to celebrate and enjoy … Continue reading

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“What Do We Do Now?” Part 1

Thoughts on Enright, Academic Travelling and Critical Distance Robert Fraser, Emeritus Professor of English One afternoon in October 1974, I was standing in a somewhat Spartan corridor in the University of Leeds in desultory conversation with a tall, lean, slightly … Continue reading

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