NEW BLOG POST 🤩Our James Malcolm Rymer expert, Rebecca Nesvet, reviews Birmingham Rep's production of Sweeney Todd and how it reveals 'the timeliness of penny dreadfuls': victorianpopularfiction.org/the-failure-...

The Failure of Institutions: Sweeney Todd Restages the Timeliness of Penny Dreadfuls

Birmingham Rep’s production reviewed by Rebecca Nesvet Victorian melodrama was not a purely escapist genre, nor was it necessarily conservative. With its mix of epic action and often plebeian chara…

victorianpopularfiction.org

Listening to Clare, Claudia, and Sarah talk about pathways to readership and professorship, and I feel like there’s so much good info here for PGRs and ECRs as well. Already thinking of new VPFA professional development panels! #BAVS2026

There’s something so satisfying about seeing a pretty presentation slide 🤣 If you’re undecided on which panel to attend this morning, might I suggest Panel 3E? 🥰 #RSVP26 #PrintInMotion

An emotional week... The fabulous @vpfa.bsky.social Conference #VPFAPublics full of fascinating papers, wine, and time with old and new friends! Then my last Sat teaching with Saturn Dance full of kind words, hugs, and tears (mostly mine!). A sensible if sad decision to scale back. Thank you all 🥹

Truly honored and deeply grateful to have been awarded the Greta Depledge Prize for best postgraduate paper, given by @vpfa.bsky.social at its 18th annual conference for my paper on Arthur Machen’s manipulative storytelling. This award means more to me than I can put into words. Thank you ❤️

What a fantastic three days at #VPFAPublics in Liverpool! I had an amazing time in one of the most beautiful venues I’ve ever seen. Such a joy to learn more about Victorian popular fiction while catching up with old friends and meeting new ones. Can’t wait for next year!

Welcome to our new VPFA co-President, Claudia Capancioni! #VPFAPublics

Helen McKenzie talking about M.E. Braddon's letters of recommendations to the Royal Literary Fund. Her letters frequently emphasise the innocence of the writer, and use very physical language #VPFAPublics

#VPFAPublics: Helen McKenzie: more of the literary labor force: Mr. William Tinsley is "an untiring *****worker**** in the field of literature," said Braddon. His RLF app was rejected. (Emphasis Helen's.)

#VPFAPublics Braddon recommended to the RLF the "praiseworthy life and intellectual labour" of writer Miss Edith Heraud.

#VPFAPublics Helen McKenzie: The RLF and Braddon's letters of recommendation. Wrote about 1/2 for women writers, who "toiled and fought" - breadwinners and a frighteningly modern literary precariat.

Learning about William Holman Hunt’s orientalist religious works set in front of this beautiful backdrop. Absolute perfection. #VPFAPublics

My art does not stand up to the setting but was a fun and thought-provoking way to start the day, thanks @luciejones83.bsky.social, before great papers, Neo-Victorian author roundtable, and discussions over tea and coffee. An all round wonderful Day One at #VPFAPublics See you tomorrow!

Thank you to @vpfa.bsky.social for inviting me to give my 1st (pedagogy focused) keynote where I playful thought about What the Victorians Taught Me About Teaching? I focused on creative production, emotion, sociability&wellbeing. I shared some of my students creative work too. #vpfapublics

absolutely incredible 😍#VPFAPublics

Bethany Dahlstrom@cryingtheoretic.bsky.social · last mo.

I’m sorry, I get to present in THIS GORGEOUS ROOM?! #VPFAPublics

Absolutely thrilled to share the programme for the study day that I am co-organising on the "Critical Age" in Victorian Popular Fiction. Registration link in the comments. All welcome @vpfa.bsky.social @bavs-uk.bsky.social @cncsi.bsky.social

In a new VPFA Blog Post, Helena Esser interviews Roy Reads Anything (@edgerat.bsky.social) about his Neglected Victorian Bestsellers project. There's Marryat, Lytton, Corelli, Ouida, and more! Read the post here: victorianpopularfiction.org/neglected-vi... Roy's YouTube: www.youtube.com/playlist...

Neglected Victorian Bestsellers with Roy Reads Anything

Helena Esser interviews Roy Bayfield about the most VPFA book club ever On YouTube, Roy Reads Anything heads up a year-long read-along that will be right up the VPFA members’ alley: We’ve got Marry…

victorianpopularfiction.org

Join us on the 16th April at 6pm for an amazing interactive workshop led by Dr Catherine Pope, author of How to Publish Your PhD! Catherine will discuss the many steps of turning your thesis into a book. This event is open to VPFA members only, and space is limited to 30 people - check your emails.

With all the hype around Wuthering Heights since Emerald Fennel's (wild?) adaptation, we thought that this would be a great opportunity for a discussion of Emily Brontë's classic novel for a VPFA collaboration with the Society of Young Publishers.

CfP for VPFA's 18th Annual Conference is now live and the topic is 'Victorians and their Publics'. To read the CfP and full submission guidelines online, please head to: victorianpopularfiction.org/vpfa-annual-....

Join the VPFA for a workshop on publishing Victorian Popular Fiction! ✅ Turning your thesis into a monograph. ✅ Writing a winning book proposal. ✅ Insights from the VPFJ editorial committee. ✅ Handling peer review & rejection 📅 26th February at 6pm 🔗 See your emails for the registration link!

For those of you who need some mid-week inspiration, why not join us for our next virtual writing retreat? It is the perfect opportunity to get some work done in two solid writing blocks. 11 Feb 2-4pm (GMT) Free for all VPFA members - check your emails for more information on how to register!

New VPFA Study Day Announcement 📢: 'Out of this World: Science Fiction in the Victorian Period'. Read the CfP on our website: victorianpopularfiction.org/out-of-this-.... @bavs-uk.bsky.social @rs4vp.org @thevicsoc.bsky.social @global19c.bsky.social

The next special issue of Victorian Popular Fictions Journal is “Human–Animal Relations in Victorian Popular Literature and Culture” and will be guest-edited by Dr Bethany Dahlstrom & Dr Helena Esser. For full CFP and submission guidelines, please see: victorianpopularfiction.org/wp-content/u...

VPFA's Third Sex Reading Group are back with their first session of 2026! In this session, co-hosted by Crescent Rainwater, they will be discussing Netta Syrett's The Victorians. If you would like to attend or be put on the mailing list,please email vpfareadinggroup@gmail.com with 'FAO: Third Sex'.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT SERIES 🔦 : Claudia Sterbini, whose PhD traces the history of asexuality through the construction of ‘nonsexuality’ in fin de siècle sexology and literature. Check out her new article on non-sexual patients and doctors in The Island of Doctor Moreau: academic.oup.com/jvc/advance-...

The deadline for abstracts for 'The Victorian Short Story' VPFA Study Day has been extended to 16th January! We would love to see your proposal in our inbox at vpfaconference@gmail.com

Victorian Popular Fiction Association@vpfa.bsky.social · 9mo ago

We are Study Day MAD: 'The Victorian Short Story: Influence, Innovation, and Legacy'. 🌏 Online 📅 19th April 2026 💰 Fee for non-members Full CfP: victorianpopularfiction.org/the-victoria... Send abstracts (250-300) for 20-min papers and bio (50) to VPFAconference@gmail.com by 20/12/25

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT! 🔦 : Milly Harrison. Milly has been a VPFA member since 2021. Her thesis, 'Deviant Cartographies', examines how British Weird fiction allowed late-Victorian authors to explore deviant masculinity. Harrison recently published in Gothic Studies: www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/...

Christopher Columbus! I've written a new blog post for @vpfa.bsky.social, this time on the Christmassiness of Little Women adaptations... It was much harder than anticipated. I changed the ranking many times. I began to question everything. I still am... victorianpopularfiction.org/christmas-wo...

Christmas Won’t Be Christmas without ‘Little Women’…

A subjective ranking of Christmassiness by Emma Butler-WayIn my years of teaching Little Women in adaptation, the one question I have never asked either myself or my students is: ‘And what about ho…

victorianpopularfiction.org

This is the first of many Member Spotlights. We want to make this a fortnightly series, where we highlight any achievements of our Members, because YOU are the heart and soul of VPFA. Email vpfamedia@gmail.com with any achievements and a photo of yourself and we will be delighted to share.