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Dr Aksel Dadswell

Lecturer

Staff Member Details
Telephone: +61 8 9780 7634
Email: a.dadswell@ecu.edu.au
Campus: South West  
Room: BU5.122A  
ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7137-3443

Aksel is a lecturer with the School of Arts and Humanities. Aksel teaches in Creative and Professional Writing and other Arts offerings at ECU South West and Mt Lawley campuses.

Current teaching

  • CCC3109 - Speculative Fiction
  • CCC3102 - Writing the Real
  • WRT1101 - Language and Writing
  • WRT1103 - Creativity and Writing
  • WRT3120 - Biographical and Autobiographical Writing
  • Coordinator - CCC3102, CCC3109, WRT1103, WRT3120

Background

Dr Aksel Dadswell is a horror writer and researcher with a PhD in Creative Writing. His fiction often explores supernatural and human monsters, with a focus on race and gender. His research examines the social impact and value of speculative fiction.

Aksel is the recipient of a number of awards in creative writing and poetry. His short fiction has been published in horror anthologies such as Test Patterns: Creature Features (2018), and Hymns of Abomination: Secret Songs of Leeds (2021).

Awards and recognition

Short Fiction

  • Dadswell, A. (2021). Open Call. In J. Burnett (Ed.), Hymns of abomination: Secret songs of Leeds. Silent Motorist Media.
  • Dadswell, A. (2018). Something Hungrier Than Love. In D. Pesice (Ed.), Test patterns: Creature features. Planet X Publications.
  • Dadswell, A. (2014). The Silent Architect (excerpt from Honours thesis). In D. Mazza, V. McKenzie, & R. Mundy (Eds.). Edith Cowan University South West Arts Graduate Catalogue 2013. Edith Cowan University.
  • Dadswell, A. (2013). Lamprey. In D. Bird (Ed.), Fire: A collection of stories, poems and visual images. Margaret River Press.
  • Dadswell, A. (2012). The Skin is the City. In P. Calleja, J. Crombie, A. Dadswell, A. Hendradjaja, L. Skesteris, & M. Smith (Eds.), Ant hill: Community writing 2012. Edith Cowan University.

Poetry

  • Dadswell, A. (2006). In the Belly of a Flea. Voiceworks, 67(4). Express Media.
  • Dadswell, A. (2005). The Clock Thief. In N. Coetzer (Ed.), Boundaries of the heart: An anthology of Australian verse. Galaxy Publications.

Awards

  • The Beautiful Nightmares of Merrick Underwood (short fiction) – Highly Commended for the 2013 Katharine Susannah Prichard Speculative Fiction/Fantasy Award.
  • Edgar’s Thesaurus (short fiction) – 1st Prize Winner of the 2008 Billabong Valley Short Story Competition.
  • The Dead Cathedral (poem) – 1st Prize Winner of the 2008 FAW Colin Thiele Poetry Award.
  • In the Belly of a Flea (poem) – 1st Prize Winner of the 2005 John Marsden Poetry & Short Story Prize for Young Australian Writers – Published in Voiceworks magazine, issue #67 (see above).

Research areas and interests

  • Speculative fiction that explores contemporary and systemic social issues.
  • Subgenres of horror that explore the darker aspects of the human condition and the monstrous (cosmic horror, folk horror, body horror, gothic).
  • Horror fiction that challenges colonial narratives and utilises fresh narrative perspectives.
  • Scholarly examinations of storytelling in different forms and genres.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Edith Cowan University, 2019.
  • Bachelor of Arts with First Class Honours, Edith Cowan University, 2013.
  • Bachelor of Arts Major in Literature and Writing, Edith Cowan University, 2012.

Research Outputs

2024

Book Chapters

  • Dadswell, A. (2024). Candyman, Candyman, Candyman, Candyman, Candyman: Black Bodies, Black Stories, and Evolving Perspectives in the Supernatural Slasher. Toxic Nostalgia: Undead Memory in the 21st Century (161-175). Lexington Books.

Research Projects

  • Run-down: Short fiction from a fading hotel in regional Western Australia, Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries, Arts Projects for Organisations, 2024 ‑ 2025, $76,077.

Research Student Supervision

Current Supervisions

Co-principal Supervisor

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Harvest Highway: A practice-led exploration of post climate crisis in the South West of Western Australia

Associate Supervisor

  • Doctor of Philosophy, The Wound Model, a novel & Under sterile conditions: The depiction of surgery in contemporary fiction.

Completed Supervisions

No data available
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