It is so important to keep hammering in this point. People always ask me why I would have to go visit archives - why not just look at a scan? Because they haven’t been scanned! And they are never going to be! There are millions & millions of pieces of paper in every archive.

A few impressions from last week's #Poetica11, a literary festival hosted every year at the @unicologne.bsky.social & in the city. This year, I got to collaborate with Rike Scheffler for a panel discussion with the Poetica poets & by helping to bring to Cologne US poet @joyellemcsweeney.bsky.social.

Did you know that 2/3 of Americans are at least “somewhat worried” about global warming -- but 85% of Americans either underestimate how many others are worried, or don’t know enough to say? This key misunderstanding tanks our sense of collective efficacy. How do we overcome it? Talk about it!

Starting @unicologne.bsky.social : The DFG-funded conference on "Anthropocene #Necropoetics: Empire, Violence, and Ecological Ruin in US #Poetry" that I'm organizing with Mahshid Mayar. So exciting! #EnvHum #AmericanStudies

These are the books I discussed in my talk on "Dystopias of Reproductive Work in North Am. #SpeculativeFiction" this week. I'd recommend all of them to a wider audience, except /Sojourn/ (1835) which is viciously racist. Be advised though that all of them contain brutal violence, some of it sexual.

Earlier today I gave a talk (in German 😲) @ruhr-uni-bochum.de on "Dystopias of Reproductive Work in North American Speculative Fiction" in @nitzkesolvejg.bsky.social's super cool lecture class on "Dystopias of Work." 📚 I can recommend it. You get cake. 🍰 #CompLit #AmericanStudies #FeministSF #SFF

[Admin] Renaissance, zeitgenössische britische Literatur und die Rolle von Piraten auf der Theaterbühne! Begrüßt unsere neue Kuratorin @susannegruss.bsky.social ! realscientistsde.blogspot.com/2026/01/rena...

Received a "Old Library" DYI booknook as a Christmas present and started to assemble it over the weekend. One of the books in the library is "Whitman's Poems"! 😍

It's been a while: Happy holidays, everyone! I hope you get to rest a bit!

In der nächsten Woche findet der nächste Workshop des DFG-Netzwerks „Literatur & Energie“ in Bochum & Köln mit u.a. @doctoressa.bsky.social @judithrauscher.bsky.social @victoriaherche.bsky.social @untamed.bsky.social statt! Herzliche Einladung! energyandliterature.wordpress.com/events/

The #PopCultureInContext series is co-edited by @hermioneclone.bsky.social, @judithrauscher.bsky.social, and me, guided by the wonderful @davideisler.bsky.social. If you’ve got ideas you’d like to pitch, please get in contact with us! www.degruyterbrill.com/serial/pcc-b...

Yesterday,I attended the opening ceremony of the 5-year celebration of @euniwell.bsky.social, a 12-partner university alliance focused on human and ecological #Well-Being. We heard a wonderful talk by #Happiness researcher Lara Aknin & an amazing performance by the all-female vocal ensemble Aember 🤓

We've extended the deadline for submissions to our special issue, "Adaptations," to January 15th, 2026. Attaching the cfp here: please submit!

Cover-reveal of the first book in the @degruyterbrill.bsky.social book series 'Pop Culture in Context' I co-edit with @lizwfab.bsky.social & @hermioneclone.bsky.social! Congrats to Vaughn @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social & many thanks to @davideisler.bsky.social,our editorial director,for all your hard work!

Just finished /Nomansland/ (2010) by #LesleyHauge, which offers a take on the kind of #SingleSexNarrative I am interested in that is reminiscent of #feminist #criticalutopias from the 1980s, such as #PamelaSargent 's /The Shore of Women/ (1986) & #SheriTepper 's /The Gate to Women's Country/ (1988)

Still on vacation in the #Sauerland, which I will from now on refer to as the German Shire! #Hiking

On vacation in a region called the Sauerland, which I will from now on refer to as the German Midwest. #Thunderstorm

I am also utterly thrilled to be one of the editors of this new series, and to be working with @lizwfab.bsky.social and @judithrauscher.bsky.social ! ❤️ We can't wait to hear your pop culture book ideas!

I'm excited to announce that I'm co-editing the new @degruyterbrill.bsky.social book series, Pop Culture in Context, with @hermioneclone.bsky.social and @judithrauscher.bsky.social! Contact one or all of us to discuss your pop culture book ideas! www.degruyterbrill.com/serial/pcc-b...

Yesterday at the queer dance school 🧡💛💚💙💜 (A massive heatwave has hit Cologne 🥵)

Vom 23. bis 29. Juni streicht die #FUBerlin das "E", um zu zeigen, was fehlt, wenn Substanz gestrichen wird. Allein für 2025 sollen die Kürzungen rund 37 Million n uro betragen. D r B rlin r S nat g fährd t damit L hr, Forschung und Zukunftssich rh it. All Infos ➡️ tinyurl.com/aktionswoche...

#PrideMonth book display at my department's library. Come study #EnglishLiterature and/or North #AmericanStudies (Lit/Cult + #History) here at @unicologne.bsky.social, or pick the interdisciplinary M.A. in Gender & #QueerStudies and then come take classes with us.

Next up: a panel on "Archiving the Liberal Tradition in the United States? Contestation, Erosion, and Preservation in an Era of Political Poliarization". #dgfa2025

What used to be the Karstadt department store is now a lecture hall building. Quite a nice place actually. And, more importantly, it is the place where we will be listening to @katrinhorn.bsky.social ‘s keynote lecture now. 🤗 #dgfa25 #dgfa2025 #gaas25 #gaas2025

a great opening; about 200 members showed up today; great conversations, amazing keynote — hyped for the next two days now! #dgfa2025 www.uni-siegen.de/phil/anglist...

For this afternoon's DGfA session, I picked a panel on "Transmedial (Un)Archiving: Poetry Transposition into New Media" with four wonderful talks featuring #poetry, visual art, film, video games & poetry by #MinaLoy, #WaltWhitman, and #SylviaPlath. #AmericanStudies #DGfA2025

I think I picked the perfect panel for this first stream: with a focus on "Waters, Oceans, Maps: Archiving thr Environment, Environment as American #Archive", both René Dietrich & Katja Sarkowsky spoke beautifully about contemporary Indigenous #poetry. #AmericanStudies #DGfA2025

The second day of this year's annual conference of the German Association for American Studies (DGfA/GAAS) in Siegen started gloriously with an amazingly rich & entertaining talk on 19th-century epistolary culture & queer intimacy by @katrinhorn.bsky.social. #AmericanStudies #QueerStudies #DGfA2025

Liebe Bundesregierung, schaut nicht weg, handelt jetzt! Reformiert das Allgemeine Gleichbehandlungsgesetz (AGG) endlich!

Looking forward to being part of this important event on queer life in Germany, Europe, and the United States in light of the rise of the (far) right.

I wish more people would trust themselves to just shoot off a friendly "loved your article/post/whatever!" email to the authors of work they enjoy. It isn't creepy unless you make it creepy!!! Please do it!!!

Academics, researchers, scholars, students and advocates have highlighted the significance of translations of texts from the #GermanGayMovement and their relevance to sexuality and rights. #LGBTQhistory #QueerStudies #MagnusHirschfeld Magnus Hirschfeld www.amazon.com/author/lomba...

Went to visit the "Tanzlinde Effeltrich" yesterday, a 400-1000 year-old linden tree with a crown circumference of nearly 60m that used to be a place where the people gathered for court proceedings, religious occasions and dances. 🥰🌳🥰

Take a break and a breath and have a lovely Sunday evening, everyone!

Yesterday, at the annual reception of the President of @unicologne.bsky.social, Sara Tewelde-Negassi, who is doing her PhD in #AmericanStudies, received the Benedikt & Helene Schmittmann-Wahlen scholarship to continue her research on artificial intelligence in US speculative fiction. Congrats, Sara!

Attended the opening of the exhibition on the fascist origins of modern aerospace research & space exploration co-organized by @jenstemmen.bsky.social at the Haus der Universität @hhu.de. Such important work, even more so for the way it involved students. #AmericanStudies

The last few days in 4 images: first the work(shop), then the pleasure. After 2 intensive workshop days, which led to wonderful transatlantic conversations about #Sustainability & #SocialJustuce between our European & Brazilian participants, my co-organizer Jade Arbo & I went to visit some #castles

Starting soon @unicologne.bsky.sa: our 2-day hybrid symposium on " #Sustainability and #SocialJustice in #SpeculativeFiction" with scholars from Germany, Europe, and Brazil, co-organized with my #SFRA friend & colleague Jade Arbo (U Federal de Pelotas) & funded by @easlce.bsky.social 🇪🇺🙏🇧🇷

Gave a joint presentation with my Brazilian colleague Jade Arbo on #BeckyChambers' wonderful novella 'To be Taught, if Fortunate' at this year's EAAS Women's Caucus Symposium on 'The Gendered #Anthropocene'. I was only able to join online, but loved the event & all the amazing talks! #GenderStudies

🚀 Apply for the MSCA PF 2025 Postdoctoral Fellowships with the EUniWell Alliance! Explore our supervisors’ Hosting Offers, connect with a mentor, and develop a joint research proposal. Deadline: 𝟭𝟬 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 More info: www.euniwell.eu/news-events/... #CareerGrowth

Signed-up and looking forward to it! 🥳 Who else is going, apart from @spychalam.bsky.social, @chrismey2203.bsky.social, and @katrinhorn.bsky.social?

I'm only getting around to posting about this now, but earlier this week, I participated in the 'First Transatlantic Well-Being Summit' organized by @euniwell.bsky.social & Teacher College @columbiauniversity.bsky.social about the future of #TeacherEducation. I'm very excited about what is to come!

For people who read German: the first book in this series, 'Anarchie Deco'(2021), was awesome & this one will be too. Anarchie Deko is #BabylonBerlin meets #DarkAcademia but more diverse & with more science-art-magic. Also, in my opinion, all the books by @jcvogt.de should be translated into English

My author's copy of new 'Handbook of #AmericanPoetry' with my essay on "Poetry as #FeministCritique" (focused on the 1970s/80s) in which I read #SharonOlds, #AudreLorde & #SusanHowe but also discuss other poets has arrived! It is very thick & pretty #Feminism #GenderStudies #AmericanStudies #Poetry

Speaking of other adventures: today, I spontaneously decided to get off my train back from the Baltic coast in Dortmund for the world premiere of #RachelPortman 's new song cycle "Another Eve" performed by @joycedidonato.bsky.social + #Ilpomod'oro and it was GLORIOUS! So very, very beautiful! 💚

Sad to leave the gorgeous and quiet Baltic island of #Hiddensee. But there are other adventures to be had! So long!

It looks so unreal that it almost looks fake...

📣Calling all #ECRs who have completed their PhD, but who are not currently employed in a full-time academic post - the @bavs-uk.bsky.social @bars.bsky.social Nineteenth-Century Matters fellowship at the Uni of Edinburgh is now live! See below for details ⬇️ victorianist.wordpress.com/2025/03/17/n...

Today, I give you the softest of colors and the gentlest of oceans. I hope you get to have a gentle day with some room for softness. #ocean #seascape