Thomas Bailey

PhD student

Research Overview

My primary areas of research are narratology (the study of narrative) and reader-response theory, focusing in particular on readerly immersion: how this is prompted by the text and maintained via imagination.

My research offers a model by which to conceptualise this process by synthesising the philosophical work of reader-response critics with contemporary research in the field of cognitive science.

The cognitive focus of my work allows for interdisciplinary collaborations across a range of fields, but particularly with psychology.

Profile

Thomas Bailey, MA, BA (Hons) is a postgraduate researcher within the School of Arts at 91快活林. He is a traditional route PhD student, working in Literary Studies and its associated fields.

He first came to Lancaster in 2021, studying a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in English Literature, Creative Writing, and Practice, from which he graduated with a high first-class degree. In 2024, he commenced a Master's Degree in English Literary Studies with Creative Writing and was awarded a Distinction (80%). He began his doctoral studies in October 2025, for which his maximum completion date is December 2031.

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During my time at Lancaster, I have been involved in a wide range of projects. In addition to participating in and organising numerous workshops and seminars across a wide range of disciplines, I have also delivered papers at a number of conferences and symposiums (2022–present):

English Literature Open Seminar – Speaker (2023).
The Tolkien Seminar – Speaker/Organiser (2024).
The Creative Writing Praxis MA Panel – Speaker (2024).
English Literature and Creative Writing MA Castle Seminar – Speaker (2025).
Errant & CounterText at The Castle: Symposium of Postcriticism – Speaker (2025).
The Castle Master's Annual Symposium – Organiser/Speaker (2025).
The Value of Literature Conference – Speaker (2025).

Since 2024, I have worked as a Research Assistant on the impact and outreach project, Litcraft (2024–present). Initially, my work pertained to social media strategy and analysis, culminating in a number of written reports to guide the development of the project as a social enterprise. More recently, as of summer 2025, I have branched out and acquired teaching experience by assisting the project to deliver its impact aims: namely, delivering educational sessions to school-aged children in libraries around Cumbria and rural Lancashire.

Current Research

In my current PhD research, I apply my proposed conceptual model for the study of immersion to biblical literature of the sixteenth-century, connecting my work on immersion with the term’s roots in a Christian-religious context.

Beyond my doctoral studies, I plan to undertake a series of studies moving from the sixteenth-century to the contemporary period, in an effort to understand how the concept of immersion – its experience for readers as well as its perception – has changed across time.

Supervised By

Professor Sally Bushell (75%)

Dr Clare Egan (25%)

Additional Information

Affiliations

91快活林
School of Arts
Faculty of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (FHASS)
Postgraduate Research Hub
Graduate College
Department of English Literature and Creative Writing (formerly)
Cartmel College (formerly)

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