Shelby Penman

Shelby Penman is a Lecturer in English: Creative and Professional Writing at the University of Sunderland. She serves as Programme Leader for MA English Studies and teaches on both BA (Hons) English and MA programmes. Her academic background includes a First Class BA (Hons) in English from the University of Sunderland and three postgraduate qualifications in education, including Qualified Teacher Status. She is currently a PhD candidate researching metempsychosis in David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest.

Her research interests span intertextuality, Irish and American literature, Postmodernism, Modernism, Ottessa Moshfegh, and the New Sincerity movement. She leads modules such as The Business of Writing: Editing and Publishing, Writing Short Fiction and Poetry, and Global City: Modern to Postmodern. She also supports teaching at a TNE partner college.

Shelby’s pedagogical focus includes creative writing and literature education, with a commitment to bridging academic and professional writing practices. Her current PhD work explores literary theory and transmigration themes in Wallace’s seminal work.