School of Creative Arts, Film and Media (SCAFM)

I work as Senior Lecturer and Course Leader in Creative Writing, combining this with my ongoing output of novels, poetry and plays.  My PhD thesis, entitled Where ideas come from: towards an ontology of inspiration in creative writing, with particular reference to the Muses of mythology, will be the first practice-led research based doctorate in Creative Writing awarded by the University of Portsmouth. My own example consists of a full-length novel and a thesis of around 40,000 words, both of which address the question: where do writers get their ideas from? Following this, I shall help to build SCAFM’s postgraduate student community, continuing to define and develop the interface of creative and critical writing at doctoral level.

Current Research

Books^{[Back to top]}

Habens, A. (In preparation). The nine Muses. This will be a history and a theory of divine inspiration in literature, aiming for a broader readership than current Creative Writing textbooks.

Habens, A. (In preparation). The oldest stories in the book. A monograph based on my ‘Writing Stories: Telling Tales’ teaching.

Habens, A. (In preparation). The true picture. An historical novel aimed at the commercial market.

My literary agent is offering my PhD novel, Translating the Muse’s tale, to fiction/fantasy publishers in 2010.

Publications^{[Back to top]}

Publications since 2008 coming soon

Books^{[Back to top]}

Habens, A. (2003). Lifestory. London: Allison & Busby. ISBN 978-0749006518.

Habens, A. (1996). Family outing. London: Secker & Warburg. ISBN 978-0436202063.

Habens, A. (1994). Dreamhouse. London: Secker & Warburg. ISBN 978-0436202049.

Articles^{[Back to top]}

Habens, A. (2007). The student muse: creative ways of teaching talent.  New writing: the international journal for the practice and theory of creative writing, 4(1), 49-58.

Book Chapters^{[Back to top]}

Habens, A. (1993). Olive invites you to see her change colour. In M. Bradbury & A. Motion (Eds.), New Writing (pp. 239-265). London: Minerva.

Habens, A. (2005). Dreamhouse revisited. In B. Greenway (Ed.), Twice told tales: the influence of childhood reading (pp. 147-148). London: Routledge.