Falmouth hosts Contemporary Women’s Writing conference

Originally established in 2005 by Mary Eagleton, the CWWA has since evolved into a vibrant network of those engaged in the multifaceted nature of contemporary women’s writing, forging links between experts and those with interests in the field. 

Three speakers delivered keynotes at the conference, including Rebecca Lloyd, an independent scholar on Terry Pratchett, and Lamya Sadiq, a researcher on ambivalences and the present. Enlightening perspectives were offered on topics ranging from the visual and oral aesthetics of the melodrama to the haunting past as a reckoning of the present, and even the gendered figure of the ‘crazy cat lady’ in popular cat-based crime fiction. 

In addition to the keynotes, a range of student-led workshops and panels also took place across the three days, in which women’s writing in the modes of prose, scriptwriting, poetry, writing for games, life-writing and more, were explored. Attendees were spoilt for choice in the number of events available, with titles including ‘Autobiographical Writing’, ‘Cinemas of Resistance’, and ‘Feminism and Political Landscapes’. While some discussed popular culture’s obsession with the female body, others analysed the ethics of depicting sexual violence in film, and all provided a glimpse into the compelling research of academics past and present. 

Find out more about Research & Knowledge Exchange at Falmouth