Roslyn Nicole Smith

Roslyn Nicole Smith is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at the University of Memphis. Her research focuses on speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, and womanist literary theory. She holds a B.A. from Spelman College (1995), an M.A. (2007), and a Ph.D. (2019) from Georgia State University, with a specialization in African American literature and gender studies.

Her work bridges contemporary Black feminist thought with speculative narratives, examining themes of memory, identity, and resistance in texts like Octavia Butler’s Lilith’s Brood and Alexis Pauline Gumbs’s poetry. Smith’s publications explore the intersection of womanist theory and science fiction, emphasizing marginalized voices in speculative genres.

Recent articles analyze Afrofuturist representations in media (e.g., Star Trek’s Uhura) and pedagogical approaches to contemporary Black women writers. She contributes to interdisciplinary dialogues on race, gender, and futurism in literature and popular culture.