iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

we’re just back from holiday, and this is the picture the catsitter sent half way through 😭

Jones the big grey cat looks at the camera with extremely sad eyes and ears (though that’s partly just his face)

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Please read Sarah Kareem’s unbearably brilliant essay on Fielding, long and short forms, and diagnoses. York (and its hoteliers) play a minor comic role

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Please read Sarah Kareem’s unbearably brilliant essay on Fielding, long and short forms, and diagnoses. York (and its hoteliers) play a minor comic role

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

This is phenomenal! Thank you Felicity ✨

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Thank you #BARS2026 organisers and student assistants, keynotes, and speakers @bars.bsky.social for a brilliant three days in Birmingham! We missed you @drbeard79.bsky.social 🎶

Old Joe Birmingham university clock tower and a dry lawn and campus buildings

UV light scene of karaoke, Walking in Memphis on screen

Blue plaques on concrete including to Stuart Hall

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Yes!! 🤟🤟🤟 Get well soon Andy - we will miss you very much next week!

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

A first glimpse of my book on the CUP website ✨ www.cambridge.org/core/books/r... Coming just in time for Christmas 2026. Very very happy to be published in Studies in Romanticism, especially alongside so many cracking books by brilliant women (h/t Emily, Yasmin, Orianne!)

Screenshot of publisher's webpage with details of book: Romantic Devotion, Coming soon, expected publication date December 2026.

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

🗣️🗣️🗣️ There's a job at York! 1-year 0.5 FTE postdoctoral fellowship funded by MHRA, working with me on the Collected Works of Mary Wollstonecraft OUP edition. You have to be within 3 years of your PhD - unjust I know but a requirement of the MHRA. jobs.york.ac.uk/vacancy/rese...

jobs.york.ac.uk

Jobs - The University of York

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Dept of English and Related Literature at Uni of York @uoyenglishrl.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Join us in celebrating the past, present and future of Creative Writing at York. Featuring Horatio Clare, Suzannah Evans and Kit Fan, alongside other departmental creative writers: April 22nd, 5pm, Church Lane Building, room CL/A057. buff.ly/G304Cqj

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Matthew Sangster @mjrsangster.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

A reminder that the deadline for Expressions of Interest in hosting BARS 2028 is coming up - if you're potentially interested, but have questions or concerns, please feel free to drop me an email. It's a big responsibility, but a very rewarding one, and crucial for the health of the Association.

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

Springtime friends and neighbours 🌱

Four alpacas look at the camera, daffodils in background

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Alice Marples @alicemarples.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

Fully-funded AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership project: 'Rediscovering a Woman Collector at the British Library: New Sources and Perspectives on Sarah Sophia Banks' - BL & UCL Dep of Information Studies www.ucl.ac.uk/arts-humanit... Now open for student applications! Deadline: 14 April

ucl.ac.uk

AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) PhD Studentship

Rediscovering a Woman Collector at the British Library: New Sources and Perspectives on Sarah Sophia Banks

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Rodger Sherman @rodger.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

DOG AT THE OLYMPICS FULL COMPETITION HIGHLIGHTS

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Claire Connolly @claireconnolly.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

The Uses of Romanticism @ucc.ie Reading 18 Feb by Maureen McLane Papers 19 Feb by Mary-Ann Constantine, Elisa Cozzi, Porscha Fermanis @penfielding.bsky.social Nigel Leask, Omar Miranda, Jane Moore @drtinamorin.bsky.social Tríona Ní Shíocháin, Peadar Ó Muircheartaigh, Diego Saglia & Brandon Yen

ucc.ie

Conferences, Seminars and Workshops | University College Cork

Learn, Study and Research in UCC, Ireland's first 5 star university. Our tradition of independent thinking will prepare you for the world and the workplace in a vibrant, modern, green campus.

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

🗣️🗣️🗣️ Brilliant CfP for Romantic Elements: Rocks, and Stones, and Soil, 1750–1850 Symposium at The University of Manchester, 25–26 June, 2026. Keynotes Jeremy Davies and Stephanie O’Rourke. Organised by two @cecs-york.bsky.social alumni! No conference fee! [full CfP in image alt texts]

Romantic Elements: Rocks, and Stones, and Soil, 1750–1850 Symposium at The University of Manchester, 25–26 June, 2026

Keynote Speakers Dr Jeremy Davies (University of Leeds) Dr Stephanie O’Rourke (University of St Andrews)

Earth and earthiness are ubiquitous in the period’s many modes of nature writing, but elements of the ground do not flow or yield their depths like water, nor mediate like air. Earth as physical entity obscures, obstructs, and sullies, proving a less tractable ground for what we might still think of as defining Romantic-era postures of idealism and spontaneity. What literary forms, what knowledge practices, does earthly matter press poetics into? Is the geological record hostile to the human and human expression in its radical alterity, as Heringman at times suggests? Or are there underground places of passage, sympathy, even love, as Mary Jacobus, Susan Wolfson, and Tristram Wolff have more recently proposed? Is there a whole spectrum of attachments to rocks and stones, amounting to (in Wolff’s phrase) a ‘gray romanticism’, in which writers can both resist and relish digging in the dirt?

‘Romantic Elements: Rocks, and Stones, and Soil, 1750–1850’ aims to explore these questions. We seek to go beyond the exhilarating stony subjects of mountains, deep time, and fossils, widening the remit of Romantic-era writing about the earth to include more particulate matter and more conceptual treatments. We want to add soil, dirt, dust, sand, and ashes to the Wordsworthian catalogue of Romantic elements; and we want to expand our theoretical and metaphoric range to excavate the implications of Barbauld’s and Shelley’s ‘unearthly forms’.

We invite proposals for 20-minute papers on the theme of earth, unearthing, and the unearthly in Romantic-era poetry and prose (1750–1850). When engaging with the theme, prospective speakers may wish to explore topics such as the following:

Earth, earthiness, and literary form/genre
The subterranean/undercommons
The components of earth: mud, soil, clods, dust, sand
Earthy elements as sites of affect or criticality
Poetic and/or epistemological obscurity
Images or forms of burial and concealment
Images or forms of unearthing, unveiling, or revelation
Earth as generative, fertile, life-giving
Earth as a site of labour and resource extraction
Earth as gendered, queered/queering, racialized, classed
Formalist, ecocritical, queer, and affective approaches to earth, earthiness, and unearthing

Please send proposals for 20-minute papers in the form of a 250-word abstract and an author biography (150 words) to James Metcalf (james.metcalf@manchester.ac.uk) and Millie Schurch (millie.schurch@english.su.se) by Friday 30 January 2026.

Please note: this will be an in-person meeting only. With thanks to support from the Swedish Research Council, there will be no conference fee for speakers, other than to attend the optional conference dinner at the end of the first day. Food and refreshments will be provided on both days (coffee and pastries; lunch; tea-break snack).

We are particularly keen to encourage the participation of early career researchers and scholars on precarious employment contracts. We are pleased to be able to offer up to 10 bursaries to cover accommodation and travel within the UK for those without access to institutional support for research activities. Please indicate with your abstract submission if you do not have access to institutional financial support and would like to be considered for a bursary.

We hope to hear from you! Millie and James

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poorly drawn cats @poorlycatdraw.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

“oh, i wish there were some kind of punctuation to chain these two sentences together” the humble semicolon:

believe me or not, this is a drawing of two black cats, but their shape resembles a semicolon

two black cats lying down, their shape resembles a semicolon

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 14/12/2025

‘Tis the season, for tiny tree, enormous cat 🎄🩶

Jones the big grey cat sits next to a diminutive Christmas tree

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

I'm talking about Anna Laetitia Barbauld again tomorrow! 🗣️🗣️🗣️York Georgian Society lecture: more details here: www.georgianyork.org.uk/events-1/ann...

georgianyork.org.uk

Anna Laetita Barbauld, eighteenth-century polymath, two-hundred years on | My Site

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 28/10/2025

Looking forward to delivering the Annual Dr Williams's Lecture tomorrow at Senate House, London: Anna Laetitia Barbauld and Dissenting Hymns 🗣️🗣️🗣️

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 02/09/2025

✨intellectually rowdy✨@cecs-york.bsky.social ❤️ Congratulations Rhys!

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 02/09/2025

Rest in Peace Jack Donovan: outstanding Shelley scholar, wonderful teacher, and delightful human www.york.ac.uk/english/abou...

york.ac.uk

Jack Donovan

It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of our former colleague Jack Donovan.

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British Association for Romantic Studies @bars.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

BARS First Book Prize: Call for Expressions of Interest in Serving on the Judging Panel BARS invites expressions of interest from Romanticists who would like to serve on the judging panel for the next BARS First Book Prize. More information here: www.bars.ac.uk/blog/?p=6086

bars.ac.uk

BARS First Book Prize: Call for Expressions of Interest in Serving on the Judging Panel – BARS Blog

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Leigh Claire La Berge @lclaberge.bsky.social · 14/07/2025

Happy Bastille Day! Feline reminder that philosophical patron saint of the French Revolution, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, put a cat on the cover of "The Social Contract" because cats were his “test of character”; those who don’t enjoy cats “have the despotic instinct of men.” @dukepress.bsky.social

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British Association for Romantic Studies @bars.bsky.social · 05/07/2025

Now on the BARS Blog: Registration is Open for Eloquent Voices: Orality in the Age of Print, 1750-1870 A one-day conference at the University of Sussex, Tuesday 16 September, 2025 See the blog and full details/registration link here: www.bars.ac.uk/blog/?p=6056 Please repost/share!

bars.ac.uk

Registration Open: Eloquent Voices: Orality in the Age of Print, 1750-1870 – BARS Blog

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Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies at York @cecs-york.bsky.social · 17/06/2025

📢 We’re thrilled to announce that we have up to 4 student bursary awards for the MA in Eighteenth Century Studies at the University of York for 2025-26. Deadline to apply is 31 July. Please share widely! www.york.ac.uk/eighteenth-c... #18thcentury #18thC

york.ac.uk

Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies bursaries - Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies, University of York

Thanks to funding from an external donor, we offer up to four bursaries towards fees for the MA in Eighteenth Century Studies.

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

Our Barbauld conferences is next week! Still time to register, in-person or online 🗣️🗣️🗣️

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Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies at York @cecs-york.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

Many congratulations to Dr Catriona Kennedy @trionakennedy.bsky.social on her new book, Women, Politics, and the Irish Public Sphere in the Age of Revolution, from Oxford University Press. A beautiful and insightful book! 📚💫🎉 Find out more @oxfordunipress.bsky.social: global.oup.com/academic/pro...

Catriona Kennedy’s new book, photographed in front of the historic King’s Manor.

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

Join us in York and online 27-28 June for our conference Anna Letitia Barbauld: Voicing Dissent. Fantastic speakers! Great value registrations, including free registration for York students! 🗣️🗣️🗣️ tinyurl.com/barbauld25

Conference poster for Barbauld: Voicing Dissent conference

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

Django the cat: roof surfer (he greeted me with a small squeak)

Shot of the front of a house, rendered white. At the top, a small tabby and white cat gazes out proudly over the edge of the roof

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Bob Eaglestone @bobeaglestone.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

“in a lot of towns your university is your car plant, it is your steel mill”

constituencies.in

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

wanderer above a sea of little birds, just out of reach [he has never caught and never will catch one; the starlings mock him]

Django the tabby and white cat on a roof, looking hopefully out across the valley

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

Check out the Barbauld:Voicing Dissent conference poster 🗣️🗣️

Anna Letitia Barbauld Voicing Dissent conference poster featuring keynote speakers, sponsors and the conference webpage tinyurl.com/barbauld2025

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

Registration is OPEN for the Anna Letitia Barbauld: Voicing Dissent conference! Join us in York on 27-28 June to celebrate, Barbauld, Dissent, voices of all kinds, and publication of the OUP edition of Barbauld’s Works. More details and registration at the conference webpage: tinyurl.com/barbauld25

tinyurl.com

Anna Letita Barbauld: Voicing Dissent Conference - Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies, University of York

Join us for a two-day conference celebrating Anna Letita Barbauld's work as the year 2025 marks the two-hundredth anniversary of her death.

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Chloe Wigston Smith @chloewigstonsmith.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

Save the date for the Great CECS book sale on 16 & 17 May! We’re raising funds to support the research of our brilliant postgraduate community at York’s Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies. Not in York in those dates? You can still lend your support; full details at spsr.me/6Gxx

spsr.me

The Great CECS Book Sale

Supporting innovative research by postgraduates at York’s Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

beautiful spring shoots are springing 🌿

Jones the big grey cat sits next to a plant pot with green leaves. He’s resting his eyes

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

2 books, 6 articles, 1 book review 😑

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 13/03/2025

I'm looking forward to this talk at UBO in Brest on 21 March! I'll be discussing Dissenting worship, devotion and contagious sociability. It's a double header with DCU's Ross Carroll, as part of the GIS Sociabilities project. You can access the event on Zoom: gis-sociabilites.org/gis-interdis...

gis-sociabilites.org

GIS Interdisciplinary Seminar: 'The Language of the Sociable Self' | gissociabilite

"The Politics of the 'Sociable Self': Theories and Practices (1650-1850)" - Third thematic session on 'The Language of the Sociable Self', 21 March 2025 at the Université de Bretagne Occidentale, Facu...

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Helen Smith @wordsmith.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

The deadline for proposals for English: Shared Futures 2025 is this Friday! We welcome papers on research and teaching across English Studies, and across HE, FE and Schools. We'll be using some fantastic, central York venues, and look forward to an amazing three days. www.englishsharedfutures.org

englishsharedfutures.org

English: Shared Futures 2025

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Mary Fairclough @maryfairclough.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

this lad stole his feline housemate’s gabapentin 👀

Jones the big grey cat lies on his back on my lap. His eyes have gone. He’s stoned

Now Jones is upside down on my lap. He’s having a moment

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