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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I am organising what I hope will be a very generative and inclusive conference in Oxford on Waters in Medieval Romance (8-9 June 2027). Please consider submitting an abstract to kirsty.bolton@ell.ox.ac.uk by 31st December 2026.

Waters in Medieval Romance
Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford
8th-9th June 2027

Keynote speaker: Dr Amy Louise Morgan, University of Surrey

The element of water is hugely significant in medieval romance. Characters travel by sea and river; women rise from lakes to bestow swords upon kings or warn their daughters against sin; men and women cry tears that communicate their emotions; knights meet fairy women by fountains and springs; women bathe themselves or their children; lakes and streams provide entrances to Otherworlds and Underworlds; holy water baptises, cures, or reveals.
This conference is dedicated to representations and uses of water in romance texts, with a particular focus on the connections that water makes between both individuals and communities. Papers on romance texts from throughout the pre-modern world are encouraged. We hope to foster conversation that reflect the fluidity of romance identities. We invite papers on topics including but not limited to:
- Travel by sea, river, or lake
- Otherworldly waters
- Religious uses of water
- Water and gendered identities
- Water and national or ethnic identities
- Bathing and hygiene
- Consumption of water
- Fluidity and flux
- Connection, transformation, and stasis
Please send abstracts of 200-250 words for 20-minute papers and a short bio to kirsty.bolton@ell.ox.ac.uk by 31st December 2026.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

I'm looking for another paper (or two!) for my Leeds IMC 2027 panels. If you work in romance and fancy coming to Leeds next year, please do submit an abstract. Extended deadline 21st September.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

It's that time of year! @imc-leeds.bsky.social has just begun but I'm thinking about #IMC2027! Please consider submitting an abstract for papers on Community in Romance to kirsty.bolton@ell.ox.ac.uk by 31st August.

Call for Papers for Leeds IMC 2027 for 20 minute papers about Community in Romance. Contact kirsty.bolton@ell.ox.ac.uk with any queries or to submit a 200 word abstract by 31st August 2026. Image shows king Arthur and his round table.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Is anyone thinking of going to the NCS conference on Reading Chaucer Outside the Anglophone World (readingchaucer.com)? It sounds amazing and I’d love to go but Taiwan is a way away! Should I?!

chaucer.com

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Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford @hmcoxford.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Join Harris Manchester Research Fellow @drjaninaramirez.bsky.social tomorrow ( 5 June) at Lady Margaret Hall where she will be in conversation with Professor Christine Gerrard. More info and booking 👇 www.lmh.ox.ac.uk/events/conve...

lmh.ox.ac.uk

In Conversation: Janina Ramirez | Lady Margaret Hall

All are welcome to join LMH Principal Professor Christine Gerrard for an 'In Conversation' with medieval art historian and author Janina Ramirez

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

How is it even possible to put together a budget for a conference before you have any idea of how many people might come?!

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Has anyone gotten the Eurostar from St Pancras recently? I do *really* need to arrive 90 minutes before, or will an hour suffice?

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Very proud of these workshops that are part of my @leverhulme.ac.uk fellowship.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

Nothing like creating an index to make you question the spelling of every word important to your research.

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Boydell & Brewer @boydellandbrewer.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

In our latest blog post, Kirsty Bolton reflects on her experience of claiming a space of her own and the ways mothers occupied and used space within #medieval romances. Read the blog 👉 buff.ly/ZGItAjv @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social #medievalsky #skystorians #womenhistory

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

Very excited for the Medieval Insular Romance conference at Oxford in April. Look at the gorgeous programme! So many papers that I’m excited to hear and friends that I’m looking forward to catching up with 🥰 medieval.ox.ac.uk/medieval-ins...

medieval.ox.ac.uk

Medieval Insular Romance Conference – Oxford Medieval Studies

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

So very tempted to go to the New Chaucer Society’s ‘Reading Chaucer Outside the Anglophone World’ conference in Taiwan next year while I still have a research budget… anyone else considering? I don’t have much to contribute but it would be so interesting.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

My book published yesterday! If it looks like your thing, maybe suggest your library buys a copy, or offer to review it for a journal, or you can get 35% off with code BB135 boydellandbrewer.com/book/motherh...

Cover image for Motherhood and its Spaces in Medieval Romance by Kirsty Bolton. Illustration shows a group of women helping a post-partum woman in bed.

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Catherine Clarke @cathamclarke.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

Look who popped over! The wonderful @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social (a former PhD student of mine, now doing great things as a Leverhulme ECF in Oxford), with a copy of her book #Motherhood and its Spaces in #Medieval #Romance! A must read! Thank you, Kirsty, and big congratulations! 🎉❤️

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Look what arrived! Actual physical copies of my book! It’s so pretty 💕 As with any academic book, this has been quite a while in the making and wouldn’t have been possible without the support and expertise of so many amazing people. Thank you!

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

News! The submission deadline for www.uarcticcongress.fo/programme/ca... has been extended to 15th Jan! It would be amazing to see you there and hear about the brilliant watery research that you're doing. My sessions are 134, 162, and 174 - please join me!

uarcticcongress.fo

Uarctic Congress 2026

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Alicia Spencer-Hall @aspencerhall.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

Meet my new (& newly landed in my postbox) friend, Medieval Twitter in PAPERBACK!!! Get your own fine flippable friend from @archumanities.bsky.social for the low(ish) price of £29.95 👉https://www.arc-humanities.org/9781942401957/medieval-twitter/

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

Another call for abstracts for our sessions at the UArctic Congress in May. It's on the Faroe Islands and I'm really excited! Deadline for abstracts 15/12/25 medieval.ox.ac.uk/uarctic-cong...

medieval.ox.ac.uk

UArctic Congress 2026 – Oxford Medieval Studies

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 24/11/2025

If you’re interested in Environmental Humanities, the Arctic, medieval lit/hist, or indigenous populations, submit an abstract for my sessions at the UArctic Congress in Torshavn in May! Sessions 134, 162, and 174 www.uarcticcongress.fo/programme/ca...

uarcticcongress.fo

Uarctic Congress 2026

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Dolly Jørgensen @dollyjorgensen.bsky.social · 03/11/2025

Spread the word about this brand new Masters in Public Environmental Humanities with me and The Greenhouse crew in Norway. For those outside of EU, registration is in second half of November, so don’t miss it!

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Dr Basil Arnould Price @basilaprice.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

Ready for @imc-leeds.bsky.social 2026? Submit an abstract to Dan Reeve and I's CFP: "BEYOND TOUCH: New Queer and Trans Temporalities" We invite submissions for 15-20 minute papers that examine queer and trans temporalities from new and unexpected angles. #IMC2026. Full CFP below 👇

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 06/07/2025

Thank you, Rachel and the amazing GMS community. This was an brilliant experience, as was the whole wonderful conference.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 25/06/2025

My proposal has been accepted for the New Chaucer Society congress in Freiburg next July! Who all else is going, #MedievalSky?

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 23/06/2025

MAMO is this week! I’m so excited for so many amazing papers and workshops reflecting on how medieval research interacts with the modern world.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 17/06/2025

I’ve started my PowerPoint for my ECR plenary at GMS in a few weeks 😂 🧜🏽‍♀️ Disclaimer: there are no actual mermaids in the paper. Yet. @medievalgender.bsky.social

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 12/05/2025

Perhaps naively, I believe that most people think they are doing the right thing within their value system. But bloody hell, Starmer, give your head a wobble. You’re sorely testing this belief right now.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 10/05/2025

Feeling the love for my Catholic homies atm.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 10/05/2025

I’ve braved the @socmedfem.bsky.social gathering and there is not a single person I recognise. Going to drink my pint quickly and go find pizza. Social anxiety core.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

On the train to @kzooicms.bsky.social and I think I’ve sat on the wrong side to see the lake. Actual woe.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

@kzooicms.bsky.social Quick Q: how often are the shuttles from downtown to campus? Thanks 😊

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Women's History Scotland @womenshistscot.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

📢 Calling all researchers! Women's History Scotland offers a Research Bursary to support work on women’s and gender history in Scotland. 📝 Applications close 31 May 2025 – don't miss out! 🔗 Apply here: womenshistoryscotland.org/projects-and... #WomensHistory #ScotHist #ResearchFunding

womenshistoryscotland.org

WHS Research Bursary – Women's History Scotland

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Reposted by Kirsty Bolton

👻madeline bOoOoOoOodent👻 @oldenoughtosay.com · 16/04/2025

The law determines what is legal. It does not determine what is true; what is just; what is morally and ethically sound and defensible. The history of law is the history of the legal system being wrong on these grounds. Trans women are women.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

Today’s mission: trying to find out if Chaucer ever went to Northumberland.

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Rebecca Menmuir @rebeccamenmuir.bsky.social · 10/03/2025

Very excited to share that registration for the 5th Middle Ages in the Modern World (MAMO) conference is now open! 24-26 June, London. Over 100 speakers will present on the reception of the medieval world across a variety of panels, keynotes, events, performances. Take a look: themamo.org

themamo.org

The Middle Ages in the Modern World

A multidisciplinary conference on medievalism in the post-Middle Ages

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MAMO Conference 2027 @themamoconf.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

The Middle Ages in the Modern World conference is now on Bluesky! Stay tuned here and on our website for the upcoming 5th MAMO conference, at King's College London, 24-26 June 2025. See you at MAMO number 5! themamo.org

themamo.org

The Middle Ages in the Modern World

A multidisciplinary conference on medievalism in the post-Middle Ages

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

I submitted my monograph manuscript (again) today. I hope that I’ve cracked it this time. Who knew that writing books is pretty hard work?

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

Bibliography Q: do I list authors with two last names under the first or second last name? So, does Caroline Walker Bynum go in W or B? I seem to have done it both ways and need consistency.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 06/02/2025

So many lovely faces on screen for the launch of @laurakalas.bsky.social and Roberta Magnani’s wonderful new book, Women in Christianity in the Medieval Age 💕

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 18/12/2024

I’m going to make my children badges that say “I own a coat and mum did tell me to wear it.” But if I can’t convince them to wear a coat, they probably won’t wear the badges.

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Kirsty Bolton @lusignanmermaid.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

Can anyone else simply not work with music on? I am formatting footnotes, so thought I’d pop Spotify on, but my brain just can’t do it. I have to work in silence.

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Alicia Spencer-Hall @aspencerhall.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

This is not a drill!!! 25% off the hardcopy and 50% off the ebook if you order from @archumanities.bsky.social site 👉 Code ARC24 for 25% off hardcopy 👉 Code EPB50 for 50% off ebook Discount valid till end of year! Run, don't walk, etc www.arc-humanities.org/978194240195...

arc-humanities.org

Medieval Twitter - Arc Humanities Press

This pioneering monograph provocatively explodes current research paradigms for the modern and the medieval by showing that Twitter shares key similarities w...

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Adam Sharp @adamcsharp.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

MILF = Manuscript I’d Like to Finish

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