Anna Wilson
@annapwilson.bsky.social
Assistant Professor of English @ Harvard. Medieval literature, queer theory, fan fiction & fan studies. She/her. Support trans rights.
http://www.drannawilson.com/
http://www.drannawilson.com/
Pinned
Anna Wilson
@annapwilson.bsky.social
· Nov 11
Hi new followers! I work on medieval literature, fanfiction, the history of reading and rewriting, adaptation, reception, medievalism, and queer theory. I'm currently writing a book about medieval writers who were fannish and their modern fandoms. #medievalsky
What I don't understand about the Olympics figure skating coverage is why everyone isn't talking about the fact that Ilia Malanin's free skate music features himself doing spoken word stuff, and that someone should have definitely stopped him from doing that.
February 9, 2026 at 12:13 AM
What I don't understand about the Olympics figure skating coverage is why everyone isn't talking about the fact that Ilia Malanin's free skate music features himself doing spoken word stuff, and that someone should have definitely stopped him from doing that.
Reposted by Anna Wilson
You can't expect me, with all your talk about superb owls, not to remind you of Louis Wain's 1904 "The Cat's Nightmare" (hint, that nightmare is owls).
February 8, 2026 at 5:42 PM
You can't expect me, with all your talk about superb owls, not to remind you of Louis Wain's 1904 "The Cat's Nightmare" (hint, that nightmare is owls).
Reposted by Anna Wilson
This is rather special. Marc Bloch was a titan of modern historiography, and a big influence on me as a young history student. He was a brilliant French medievalist murdered by the Gestapo for both his Jewishness and his contribution to French resistance, but they couldn’t kill his work
Marc Bloch, historien et résistant juif, entrera au Panthéon le 23 juin
Marc Bloch, historien et résistant juif, entrera au Panthéon le 23 juin
La date du 16 juin avait été dans un premier temps pressentie pour son entrée au Panthéon, mais la cérémonie a dû être décalée de quelques jours en raison du G7 à Evian-les-Bains.
www.lemonde.fr
February 8, 2026 at 6:23 PM
This is rather special. Marc Bloch was a titan of modern historiography, and a big influence on me as a young history student. He was a brilliant French medievalist murdered by the Gestapo for both his Jewishness and his contribution to French resistance, but they couldn’t kill his work
Out here keeping alive the important cultural memories, like which spice girls had sex with each other www.teenvogue.com/story/what-i...
February 8, 2026 at 12:45 AM
Out here keeping alive the important cultural memories, like which spice girls had sex with each other www.teenvogue.com/story/what-i...
My brilliant mum @anigone.bsky.social wrote about using the Question Formulation Technique in her workshops with researchers on critical writing, formulating a research question, and developing a scholarly voice. rightquestion.org/blog/explori...
Exploring critical reading and writing at the graduate level with the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) - Right Question Institute
What does my PhD supervisor mean when they ask me to write more critically? It’s […]
rightquestion.org
February 2, 2026 at 6:48 PM
My brilliant mum @anigone.bsky.social wrote about using the Question Formulation Technique in her workshops with researchers on critical writing, formulating a research question, and developing a scholarly voice. rightquestion.org/blog/explori...
Reposted by Anna Wilson
would anyone care to peruse my Thoughts On Yaoi™ ? great i knew you would. anyway here's why Heated Rivalry blew up and i'm right and everyone else is wrong
tchotchke.substack.com/p/everyone-i...
tchotchke.substack.com/p/everyone-i...
January 16, 2026 at 6:04 PM
would anyone care to peruse my Thoughts On Yaoi™ ? great i knew you would. anyway here's why Heated Rivalry blew up and i'm right and everyone else is wrong
tchotchke.substack.com/p/everyone-i...
tchotchke.substack.com/p/everyone-i...
HEATING IS FIXED HOORAY. Back to sauna-level temperatures. No, there is no medium.
January 6, 2026 at 3:16 PM
HEATING IS FIXED HOORAY. Back to sauna-level temperatures. No, there is no medium.
My child goes back to school tomorrow and I would be SO excited to get back to the office if only my office heat was working.
January 5, 2026 at 9:51 PM
My child goes back to school tomorrow and I would be SO excited to get back to the office if only my office heat was working.
Reposted by Anna Wilson
For any medievalists attending MLA in Toronto:
All MLA conference attendees are encouraged to come to the LLC Chaucer Cash Bar on Saturday, January 10, 7:15-8:30 pm at the Fairmont Royal York--Manitoba room. One drink ticket per person and appetizers will be provided. We hope to see you there!
All MLA conference attendees are encouraged to come to the LLC Chaucer Cash Bar on Saturday, January 10, 7:15-8:30 pm at the Fairmont Royal York--Manitoba room. One drink ticket per person and appetizers will be provided. We hope to see you there!
January 5, 2026 at 7:36 PM
For any medievalists attending MLA in Toronto:
All MLA conference attendees are encouraged to come to the LLC Chaucer Cash Bar on Saturday, January 10, 7:15-8:30 pm at the Fairmont Royal York--Manitoba room. One drink ticket per person and appetizers will be provided. We hope to see you there!
All MLA conference attendees are encouraged to come to the LLC Chaucer Cash Bar on Saturday, January 10, 7:15-8:30 pm at the Fairmont Royal York--Manitoba room. One drink ticket per person and appetizers will be provided. We hope to see you there!
Reposted by Anna Wilson
In this in-depth interview Billie Jean Sweeney — a former editor at The New York Times — details how the paper shifted towards openly promoting anti-trans hatred, why this was directed from the very top, how some staff pushed back and the immense damage done by the NYT legitimizing bigotry.
'A directive from above': Former NYT editor lays out how the paper pushes anti-trans bigotry
In this in-depth interview, former New York Times editor Billie Jean Sweeney details how the paper shifted towards openly promoting anti-trans hatred, how some staff tried to stop it, how it's directe...
transnews.network
January 1, 2026 at 6:32 PM
In this in-depth interview Billie Jean Sweeney — a former editor at The New York Times — details how the paper shifted towards openly promoting anti-trans hatred, why this was directed from the very top, how some staff pushed back and the immense damage done by the NYT legitimizing bigotry.
The students in my first-year fanfiction seminar gave presentations on their final projects today and I was blown away by the range and creativity. Topics included the migration of a fandom from a dying website; Star Trek filk; fanfiction on canonical literature on the AO3. Such a good group.
December 2, 2025 at 5:29 PM
The students in my first-year fanfiction seminar gave presentations on their final projects today and I was blown away by the range and creativity. Topics included the migration of a fandom from a dying website; Star Trek filk; fanfiction on canonical literature on the AO3. Such a good group.
Reposted by Anna Wilson
Made it to the Starsky and Hutch episode where hutch is forcibly addicted to heroin, which seems to be a pretty solid trope in 70s-90s cop shows and something something the cis masculine fantasy of giving up all control something something the eroticism of caretaking
November 9, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Made it to the Starsky and Hutch episode where hutch is forcibly addicted to heroin, which seems to be a pretty solid trope in 70s-90s cop shows and something something the cis masculine fantasy of giving up all control something something the eroticism of caretaking
Reposted by Anna Wilson
Peak BlueSky: you see a random downthread comment and you think they're talking about a senior academic you probably know, but it turns out they're talking about Henry VIII.
What an ass, all in the pursuit of control. What I understand from the little I've read, he was somewhat brilliant in his younger days, then something went terribly wrong.
November 25, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Peak BlueSky: you see a random downthread comment and you think they're talking about a senior academic you probably know, but it turns out they're talking about Henry VIII.
Reposted by Anna Wilson
I will add the following: our students lack the research skills required to audit an LLM essay for errors. They don’t arrive on campus with these skills; we teach it to them over four long years. So throwing freshmen in the deep end and saying “swim your way to a shore of rectitude” is folly.
November 24, 2025 at 1:23 PM
I will add the following: our students lack the research skills required to audit an LLM essay for errors. They don’t arrive on campus with these skills; we teach it to them over four long years. So throwing freshmen in the deep end and saying “swim your way to a shore of rectitude” is folly.
Reposted by Anna Wilson
Welcome to ASU @platanoclassics.bsky.social!
“Dan-el Padilla Peralta is in the vanguard of scholars working to ensure that the complexities of the past are not flattened in service to the monochrome myths of our day,” said Jeffrey Cohen, dean of humanities at ASU.
news.asu.edu/b/20251112-d...
“Dan-el Padilla Peralta is in the vanguard of scholars working to ensure that the complexities of the past are not flattened in service to the monochrome myths of our day,” said Jeffrey Cohen, dean of humanities at ASU.
news.asu.edu/b/20251112-d...
November 21, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Welcome to ASU @platanoclassics.bsky.social!
“Dan-el Padilla Peralta is in the vanguard of scholars working to ensure that the complexities of the past are not flattened in service to the monochrome myths of our day,” said Jeffrey Cohen, dean of humanities at ASU.
news.asu.edu/b/20251112-d...
“Dan-el Padilla Peralta is in the vanguard of scholars working to ensure that the complexities of the past are not flattened in service to the monochrome myths of our day,” said Jeffrey Cohen, dean of humanities at ASU.
news.asu.edu/b/20251112-d...
One day I'm going to write a very serious article about the podcast "The Worst Idea of All Time" in which two NZ comedians watch and review the same bad movie over and over. I truly believe it's one of the most exciting and interesting critical experiments out there.
November 20, 2025 at 9:48 PM
One day I'm going to write a very serious article about the podcast "The Worst Idea of All Time" in which two NZ comedians watch and review the same bad movie over and over. I truly believe it's one of the most exciting and interesting critical experiments out there.
"Out on the worldwide web, signed language is routinely co-opted by non-deaf social media influencers for clout, so much so that fake ASL taught on TikTok has begun to infiltrate real-world communities, emboldening e-learners to approach deaf people only to sign gibberish or curse words."
I will not fight with people on Threads about Makaton. I will not fight with people on Threads about Makaton. I will not thebaffler.com/outbursts/si...
Signed Away | Sara Nović
The hearing world continues to pillage and caricature the deaf community—most recently with the proprietary, sign-based system Makaton.
thebaffler.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:56 AM
"Out on the worldwide web, signed language is routinely co-opted by non-deaf social media influencers for clout, so much so that fake ASL taught on TikTok has begun to infiltrate real-world communities, emboldening e-learners to approach deaf people only to sign gibberish or curse words."
Reposted by Anna Wilson
I'm so excited that this piece is out!! I've always found fandom roleplaying to be weirdly under-discussed (in media, academia) considering how much crossover there is w/ fic spaces. And @mossheadlives.bsky.social took an initial sort of explainer draft to such a beautiful essay in the end—read it!
Our November piece is live! ✨ @mossheadlives.bsky.social writes about text-based roleplaying in fandom—and about using these existing characters to explore their gender identity.
Read the piece or listen to an audio version (and check out the gorgeous art by @thebeanbaguette.bsky.social):
Read the piece or listen to an audio version (and check out the gorgeous art by @thebeanbaguette.bsky.social):
Alternate Universes — Fansplaining
Through fandom text-based roleplaying, I’ve lived so many other lives—and experienced so many other bodies.
www.fansplaining.com
November 19, 2025 at 4:59 PM
I'm so excited that this piece is out!! I've always found fandom roleplaying to be weirdly under-discussed (in media, academia) considering how much crossover there is w/ fic spaces. And @mossheadlives.bsky.social took an initial sort of explainer draft to such a beautiful essay in the end—read it!
Reposted by Anna Wilson
I have been WAITING for a journalist to write this story.
I specialize in manuscripts produced in England between 1300 and 1500. If this had occurred in the midst of writing my dissertation or first book, it would have exploded my career.
I specialize in manuscripts produced in England between 1300 and 1500. If this had occurred in the midst of writing my dissertation or first book, it would have exploded my career.
I’ve written a piece on the curious lack of media and political interest in the issues faced by our national @britishlibrary.bsky.social. This is strange given we live in a world where ideas, knowledge and research are a long-term source of innovation and insight
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
The British library is in crisis: why does nobody care?
The widespread indifference to the British Library's crippling cyberattack demonstrates a perilous failure to value the knowledge infrastructure vital for national prosperity
www.cityam.com
November 18, 2025 at 1:48 PM
I have been WAITING for a journalist to write this story.
I specialize in manuscripts produced in England between 1300 and 1500. If this had occurred in the midst of writing my dissertation or first book, it would have exploded my career.
I specialize in manuscripts produced in England between 1300 and 1500. If this had occurred in the midst of writing my dissertation or first book, it would have exploded my career.
It should be absolutely clear to everyone at this point that "DEI" in the language of this administration means "anything that reveals or criticizes the racist structures and histories in which we [the federal government] are invested."
Jaw dropped. Trump Administration Removes Report on Missing and Murdered Native Americans, Calling It DEI Content
Trump Administration Removes Report on Missing and Murdered Native Americans, Calling It DEI Content - Oklahoma Watch
The Trump administration removed a congressionally mandated report on missing and murdered Native Americans from the DOJ website, citing compliance with an executive order against DEI. Senators who ch...
oklahomawatch.org
November 17, 2025 at 4:17 PM
It should be absolutely clear to everyone at this point that "DEI" in the language of this administration means "anything that reveals or criticizes the racist structures and histories in which we [the federal government] are invested."
Reposted by Anna Wilson
How was the hipstere knighte moost grievouslye woundid?
Wore the chainmail bifor it was coole.
Wore the chainmail bifor it was coole.
November 15, 2025 at 4:16 AM
How was the hipstere knighte moost grievouslye woundid?
Wore the chainmail bifor it was coole.
Wore the chainmail bifor it was coole.
Really appreciate this statement from ACLS director Joy Connolly about federal attempts to suppress certain scholarly fields, including gender & sexuality studies. Love to see scholarship funding bodies speak up in explicit and pointed ways about their ideals. www.acls.org/news/speakin....
Speaking Out for All Studies: November 12, 2025 Advocacy Update
Joy Connolly shares how ACLS is standing with scholars and societies defending academic freedom and humanistic inquiry against censorship, defunding, and political interference.
www.acls.org
November 13, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Really appreciate this statement from ACLS director Joy Connolly about federal attempts to suppress certain scholarly fields, including gender & sexuality studies. Love to see scholarship funding bodies speak up in explicit and pointed ways about their ideals. www.acls.org/news/speakin....
Reposted by Anna Wilson
In an ideal world, the next Director General of the BBC would scrap the BBC's dedicated News channel, replace all of BBC News's political correspondents, and commission a load of new scripted drama and comedy along with a set of brand new music-orientated shows.-
November 9, 2025 at 6:39 PM
In an ideal world, the next Director General of the BBC would scrap the BBC's dedicated News channel, replace all of BBC News's political correspondents, and commission a load of new scripted drama and comedy along with a set of brand new music-orientated shows.-
I've been promoted to Associate Professor! (this is not tenure at Harvard, which tenures at full.) Yay!
November 6, 2025 at 4:54 PM
I've been promoted to Associate Professor! (this is not tenure at Harvard, which tenures at full.) Yay!
Reposted by Anna Wilson
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT: Conference on "Early Modern Asexualities," in person at Victoria College at the University of Toronto (and streamed online), January 5-7, 2026.
Get previews of chapters in the collection edited by myself, @catherineclifford.bsky.social, and @omaraphd.bsky.social. 💜🤍🌪️🖤
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Get previews of chapters in the collection edited by myself, @catherineclifford.bsky.social, and @omaraphd.bsky.social. 💜🤍🌪️🖤
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November 5, 2025 at 11:14 PM
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT: Conference on "Early Modern Asexualities," in person at Victoria College at the University of Toronto (and streamed online), January 5-7, 2026.
Get previews of chapters in the collection edited by myself, @catherineclifford.bsky.social, and @omaraphd.bsky.social. 💜🤍🌪️🖤
1/
Get previews of chapters in the collection edited by myself, @catherineclifford.bsky.social, and @omaraphd.bsky.social. 💜🤍🌪️🖤
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