Nonia Williams

I grew up in Norwich, and went to the Hewett comprehensive school and City College. After time out of education, I retook my A levels and studied Theology and Philosophy at Cambridge University as a mature student. I then trained as an English teacher at the Institute of Education, and taught in Forest Gate, East London. I completed an MA in Literature in 2008 and a PhD in 2013. I have been working at UEA since 2012.

I am a literary critic who specialises in archival research and women's experimental writing. Research interests include: Twentieth-Century Literature; Modernism; experimental aesthetics and forms; feminism, gender and sexuality; literature and madness; representations of ageing; issues of archive and recovery research; Ann Quin; Doris Lessing; Muriel Spark. I am Academic Curator of the Doris Lessing Archive at UEA.

Current projects:

• Lead researcher of the Doris Lessing Archive and Collected Letters project.
• Lead organiser, in collaboration with Goldsmiths University, of CHASE funded training for PhD researchers on Decolonising Methodologies for “Recovery” and Archival Research in the C21.

At UEA, I am a member of the Modern and Contemporary Research Group and the Medical and Health Humanities Network. Externally, networks include The Doris Lessing Society, the British Association for Modernist Studies, the French Society for Modernist Studies, and the British Association for Contemporary Literature Studies.

I have designed and taught on a wide range of modules including: Modernism, Fiction 'After' Modernism, Living Modernism, Critical Theory, The Short Story, Contemporary Fiction, Feminist Writing and Three Women Writers. I am a member of the LDC Decolonising Working Group: on modules that I run, such as Feminist Writing, I regularly revise the curriculum in light of this important work. I enjoy supervising UG and PG dissertations.

I am interested in the connection between student writing and well-being. I have written about my work in this area (in collaboration with Zoe Jones) for the Canadian Journal for Studies in Discourse and Writing/Redactologie.

I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Association.

I am Senior Advisor in LDC, and Widening Participation Champion, where my focus is on supporting student mental health and wellbeing.

I co-lead the Community Building workstream for LDC's Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Committee. I am a member of the HUM Student Experience Group, the UEA Wellbeing Interest Network and the UEA Inclusivity Network Project.