Nicholas Wright

Nicholas Wright is a Lecturer in the English Department at the University of Canterbury's Faculty of Arts, where he has been employed since January 2012. He teaches courses in New Zealand and American literature and currently runs the Masters of Writing programme. His academic work spans both scholarly research and creative practice as a published poet.

Wright's research primarily focuses on contemporary New Zealand literature written after 1984, with particular attention to the literary-theoretical problem of romanticism within the context of late capitalism and neo-liberalism. His work examines New Zealand literary figures including James K. Baxter, Janet Frame, Ursula Bethell, and contemporary poets like Hera Lindsay Bird. He has published scholarly articles on poets such as Tusiata Avia, James Brown, John Newton, and Bill Manhire.

His recent publications show a strong engagement with New Zealand literary history, postcolonial theory, and contemporary poetry. The thematic threads connecting his work include explorations of romanticism's persistence in contemporary literature, the relationship between politics and poetics in New Zealand writing, and the material aspects of literary production. His research often bridges scholarly analysis with creative practice, as evidenced by his own poetry publications.

Wright has presented his research internationally at institutions including Oxford University, University College London, Bard College, and Deakin University. He regularly speaks at high schools in Ōtuatahi Christchurch on literary topics, demonstrating his commitment to public engagement with literature.

His current major project is a book titled Stepping Out the Distance, modeled on Stephanie Burt's The Poem is You, which will be a collection of essays on New Zealand poems published after 1984. He is also working on a chapter about Vince O'Sullivan's play Shuriken and an essay on the modernism of poet Ursula Bethell.

Wright's creative work has been published in prominent New Zealand literary journals including Landfall, The Spinoff, and Poetry New Zealand Yearbook. His poetry often engages with New Zealand landscapes, literary traditions, and contemporary cultural concerns. His poem 'Flights' was featured as The Friday Poem in The Spinoff in August 2023.