Hywel Dix

Hywel Dix is Professor in English at Bournemouth University, Faculty of Media and Communication, where he teaches across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes including BA English, BA Communication and Media, MA Creative Writing, and supervises doctoral research in English, Creative Writing, and History. He plays a significant leadership role in academic quality assurance as a leading member of the Quality Assurance and Enhancement Group (QAEG), chairing programme reviews across all faculties. He is also the Faculty Lead for TeachBU, supporting staff in achieving Fellowship of AdvanceHE.

• PhD in English, University of Glamorgan, 2006
• MA in Literatures of Conflict, University of York, 2003
• BA (Hons) in English, University of Cambridge, 2001

Hywel Dix’s research centers on autofiction, life writing, cultural memory, and the intersection of literature with social and political change. He is a leading international scholar in autofiction, particularly through his edited collection Autofiction in English (2018) and monograph The Late-Career Novelist (2017), which applies Career Construction Theory to literary careers. His recent work explores cultural identity in post-Brexit Britain, as seen in Compatriots or Competitors? (2022) and Autofiction and Cultural Memory (2023). He also investigates the therapeutic potential of creative writing for mental wellbeing.

His recent publications (2020–2025) show a strong focus on autofiction, cultural memory, national identity, and narrative theory, with increasing interdisciplinary reach into psychology, education, and political discourse. Articles and books examine Welsh, Scottish, and Northern Irish writing in the context of Brexit, trauma and colonial memory, and the role of narrative in personal and professional development.

• Raymond Williams Research Fellowship (University of Glamorgan, 2003)
• Grant from Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TUBITAK), 2025 (on Salman Rushdie’s memoirs)

Hywel Dix has supervised numerous PhD students and is actively involved in staff development through Action Learning sets and TeachBU. He has secured competitive research grants and leads public engagement projects such as Write Your Future Self and Telling (My) Stories, which explore narrative and wellbeing. His work bridges academic research, pedagogical innovation, and community outreach.

He is affiliated with the Centre for Journalism, Culture and Community at Bournemouth University and is a member of professional associations including MeCCSA, the Association for Welsh Writing in English, and the American Comparative Literature Association. He regularly delivers invited lectures and keynotes internationally, including at Goldsmiths, University of London, Bard College Berlin, and UNICAMP, Brazil.