Life imitates art in unexpected ways, especially when it comes to dystopias. From the realms of science fiction to the harsh realities of today, we witness the convergence of fiction and fact: robots and AI, surveillance states, global wars, government oppression, natural disasters and mass poverty.
The Liverpool University Special Collections and Archives: Science Fiction Hub is Europe’s largest catalogued collection of science fiction material with over 35,000 books, 2,500 critical works and 2,500 periodical titles.
WoW partnered with Liverpool University to explore dystopian literature, taking participants on a journey through the evolution of dystopian literature and how authors and artists eerily predicted our present and future.
Participants entered the archives and explored dystopian literature spanning from the 1800s to the contemporary era. They also engaged with hands-on presentations featuring rare materials, gained insights into the evolution of dystopia and our collective imagination.
Additionally participants crafted their own dystopian narrative in a workshop with a seasoned science fiction writer. How do you think the world will end?
Tom Dillon is the Science Fiction Collections Curator at the University of Liverpool, where he cares for a wide array of science fiction materials and aids researchers in accessing the collections. Tom’s academic research focuses on the material contexts of science fiction magazines and completed a thesis on New Worlds magazine at Birkbeck, University of London. Tom is a member of the queer science fiction research collective Beyond Gender and a former co-director of the London Science Fiction Research Community.
Monday 13th May 2024
Various times between 11am and 5pm (11am, 1pm and 3pm sessions)
£5
Special Collections and Archives: Science Fiction Hub, Sydney Jones Library, L7 7BD
Date: May 13, 2024
Time: 11:00 am
Ends: 5:00 pm
Join us for the fourth session of the Writer’s Bloc 2024! IMPORTANT: Please do not turn up to a Writer’s Bloc session without registering and being invited. Numbers are limited and session attendance is by invite only. We are unable to allow entry if you have not been accepted onto the session.
Date: September 6, 2024
11:00 am
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Join us for the fourth session of the Writer’s Bloc 2024! IMPORTANT: Please do not turn up to a Writer’s Bloc session without registering and being invited. Numbers are limited and session attendance is by invite only. We are unable to allow entry if you have not been accepted onto the session.
Date: August 16, 2024
11:00 am
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Join us for the second session of the Writer’s Bloc 2024! We are thrilled to welcome acclaimed Liverpool novelist and poet, Ashleigh Nugent. Ashleigh will be talking about his debut novel, Locks and sharing his journey of turning personal experiences into compelling stories. The session will take place on Friday 14th June at Toxteth Library. Please sign …
Date: June 14, 2024
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Date: May 13, 2024
11:00 am
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Tony Wailey's latest book, Lights Bearing West, is about memory, place and distance, messages sent, delivered, picked up, put down, kept or discarded. Going away, having adventures and coming home, whether these adventures are first hand or tenth hand, is part of everyone’s trilogy in Liverpool – even for those who have never left the river.
Date: May 22, 2024
7:00 pm
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Date: May 23, 2024
7:00 pm
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