Liz Macwhirter
l.macwhirter.1@research.gla.ac.uk
Research title: A novel and critical reflection
Research summary
When Hope Takes Flight >> Intersecting trauma theology with Julian of Norwich through writing poetry and hybrid forms.
Submitting my thesis Spring 2026.
Original research proposal: As trauma research shows, emotional suffering can be hard to verbalise. Events feel too ‘present’, pain eludes description, complexity defies explanation; a person may choose silence or they may be silenced. My research project uses the form of a literary novel to create new ways to represent a range of liminal human experiences, including the spiritual. My characters explore themes of loss and exile, journeying and homecoming. The natural home for these non-dual experiences is as pre-modern as post-modern: the story takes place in late medieval Britain, when contemplative practice and political tension employed in the story still resonate today.
My praxis involves a creative response to primary texts from the period.
Supervisors
Grants
Yale Institute of Sacred Music – Initiative for Religion, Ecology and the Expressive Arts, honoraria payment for the additional performance of 'Blue: a lament for the sea'
University of Glasgow Research Support Awards 2023 towards a trip to present a paper at Yale University
Publishing Scotland Author Travel Fund: trip to Finland to present a paper 2022
University of Glasgow Research Support Awards 2022 to support Iona field research trip; creative-critical paper Finland trip
University of Glasgow School of Critical Studies, Strategic Research Support Fund 2021 to support Iona field research trip
University of Glasgow Centre for Scottish & Celtic Studies, Seedcorn Funding 2021 to support Islay field research trip
Creative Scotland 2010 funding for an early manuscript of Black Snow Falling
Conferences
DELIVERED PAPERS / WORKSHOPS AT:
Iona Writers Festival 11-17 October 2025. Performance of Blue: a lament for the sea at Iona Village Hall. Entangled Forest writing worksop at Iona Abbey.
Festival of Books & Belief Edinburgh University, New College. Performance of Blue: a lament for the sea & discussion with poet Jane McKie 2.30-3.30pm. Entangled Forest Creative Writing Workshop 11am-12.30pm. 8.11.25.
Creative Conversations with Dr Colin Herd at the University of Glasgow. 1-2pm 24.11.25.
Yale University GCRE 2024 Entangled Forest Creative Writing Workshop for 60 students and academics 23.2.24
Mystical Theology Network St John’s College, Oxford University Performance of Blue: a lament for the sea. Paper: ‘Theopoetics, Julian of Norwich and the Climate Emergency’ 19.3.24
European Forum for the Study of Religion and the Environment Performance of Blue: a lament for the sea. Potsdam, Germany 17.5.24 (Selected, but not attended due to Covid).
Centre for Ancient Environmental Studies (Paper) University of St Andrews, 27.5.24
International Medieval Congress (Choreopoetic Performance of Blue: a lament for the sea and roundtable discussion) University of Leeds, 3.7.24
ISRLC International Society for Religion Literature and Culture (Paper) Denmark, 5.9.24
Power of The Word Project (Paper) La Sapienza University, Rome, 16.9.24
Yale GCRE (Graduate Conference in Religion and Ecology) Yale University 3.3.23 'Blue: a lament for the sea', a creative-critical paper.
Finncon ’22 Finland 9.7.22 Imagining a new poetics of the fantastic and resilient through a medieval dream vision poem.
Historical Perspectives PG Seminar Series online 23.3.22 Embodied spirituality: revisioning misogyny in late medieval Britain through creative practice research.
Voice Conference University of Glasgow 10.6.22 Blue: a lament for the sea.
Mystical Theology Network 1.12.22 Netherlands “My herte can thinke”: exploring Julian of Norwich’s embodied spirituality, the emotions, and trauma theology through interdisciplinary creative practice research.
Yale GCRE Yale University 3.3.23 Blue: a lament for the sea 20-minute long verse narrative performed solo with a film made by digital artist Jonathan Kearney, Senior Lecturer at Central St Martins. Kindly funded by Yale Institute of Sacred Music – Initiative for Religion, Ecology and the Expressive Arts.
Hidden Door Arts Festival Edinburgh 12.6.22 Blue: a lament for the sea (earlier version) 15-minute long verse narrative performed solo with a film made by digital artist Jonathan Kearney, Senior Lecturer at Central St Martins.
Writing Historical Fantasy University of Glasgow online 24.11.21 - panel event
Dollar Academy World Book Day 3.3.22 - Speech to whole-school Assembly; Presentations to Form 1 and Form 11.
Edinburgh Writers Club Writing Young Adult Fiction online 8.3.21
Scottish Book Trust Live Literature event Hillpark Secondary School, Glasgow, 6.21
YayYA! Scotland’s festival for Young Adult Fiction 2019 - 6 solo events and 1 panel event
AyeWrite! 2019 - Black Snow Falling solo events at Castlemilk High School, Notre Dame High School, Glasgow
Soutar Book Festival 2019 - Emerging Writers Showcase panel event
Bramall Hall May 2019 Black Snow Falling Schools Day solo event with creative writing workshops
Cymera Book Festival 2019 - panel speaker Historical Fantasy
Edinburgh International Book Festival 2018 - panel speaker Feisty Fantasy; Coping with Change; Imprisoned Writers
Teaching
Course Tutor for Creative Writing as Spiritual Reflection (TRS1034E) SCQF8, 10 Credits Level 1, 2025-26; 2024-25.
Sarum College 1-day workshop 25.3.2026 Creative Writing in the Ecological Crisis.
Creative writing teaching to adults and YA listed under workshops.
Creative-critical research papers listed under Conferences.
Additional information
On various social media @LizMacWhirter