Hello everyone! I’m Garry McLaughlin and I’ve just taken over the SGSAH blog. I’ll be here for the next 6 months and, to kick things off, I figured it would be useful to introduce myself and my research and give you an idea of what you can expect while I’m looking after things here.

I’m approaching the end of my 3^rd year of an SGSAH-funded PhD at the University of Dundee, with co-supervision at the University of St. Andrews. I’m based in the Comics Studies Unit of the English Department in the School of Humanities. I’m researching queer temporalities in comics and graphic novels, looking at the unique ways in which the system of comics handles non-chronological and transtemporal narratives. Using the theoretical concept of queer temporalities, and building upon the work of comics creators like Alison Bechdel and Grant Morrison, I argue that queer creators intuit these strange temporal dynamics and use them in novel and innovative ways.

As a practising illustrator and writer for around 15 years, I’m undertaking a practice-based thesis, the key component of which is a comic book called PRAXIS. This creative interrogation of the X-Men (and similar) books through a critical, queer lens, is designed to test my thesis research and is currently underway. I’ll write more about my research over the next 6 months. You’ll see some process work, an explanation of my methodologies, and field notes that describe how my research has also become practice-led, in some respects, as well as more detail on the distinction between the two.

While I’m looking after the blog, there are some key things I’d like to do. Firstly, I want to make sure to continue the great series of guest posts the blog has featured. The blog seems to work when the voice of the current intern is balanced by providing a platform for the many, varied perspectives PhD researchers and others can share with you. I’m particularly interested in hearing topic and guest article suggestions from members of marginalised groups and your experiences of PhD life and academia – both good and bad! I also hope to invite guest posts from some non-academics, mainly creative practitioners whose work I find interesting and useful to the broad audience.

Next, I’d like to bring some of my own experience to the blog. Expect future articles to tackle topics like entering academia as a mature student, bridging the gap between research and practice, and subjects like making your way in art and academia when you are/were working class. There will also be a useful range of broad tips and guides to help you through your research journey.

Lastly, I also want to mix things up a bit. I intend to deliver some posts as audio recordings and possibly vlogs, and that will apply as much to guest posts as my own. I’m also interested in guests who’d like to share some concrete outputs of their thesis, whether that’s in visual or community arts, creative writing, curatorship, or any other form of practice.

With all that said, it’s time for me to get to work planning the content calendar for the next 6 months. So, I’d like to hear from you. Do you have any suggestions for article topics you’d like to see covered? Would you be interested in being a guest writer? Get in touch by leaving a comment here, contacting me through Twitter at @sgsahblog, or emailing me at garry.mclaughlin@glasgow.ac.uk. I’m excited to hear from you, and I hope you enjoy my run as caretaker of this little island of wisdom and serenity, floating in an ocean of internet noise!

Before I go, I just want to say a big thanks to Vesna for her wonderful run as blogger. I’m sure many of you will be sad to see her go, and I for one am really grateful for the warm and wise tips and advice she gave me during our handover. Hopefully, I can keep up the good work! All the best Vesna (and let me know if you ever get the itch and want to be a Super Special Returning Guest Blogger!).

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