About
I am an Assistant Professor (Research) of Cognitive Linguistics, based in the Centre for Arts, Memory and Communities at Coventry University. My main research interest lies in the analysis of figurative language production to provide insights into physical, psychological and social experiences, with a current focus on the experience of grief and bereavement.
I also teach modules in Stylistics and Critical Discourse Analysis in the School of Humanities, and supervise dissertations at undergraduate and postgraduate level. I am also on the supervision team for a number of PhD students based at both Coventry University and the University of Birmingham.
I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and Secretary of the Association for Researching and Applying Metaphor.
My background
I fell in love with languages in secondary school, and graduated from the University of Birmingham in 2009 with a first class BA (Hons) degree in Modern Languages (French, Spanish, and Japanese). I had wanted to become a professional translator, but after studying some translation theory in my final year, I became fascinated by linguistic theory instead, so pursued a Masters in Special Applications of Linguistics at the University of Birmingham, graduating with a Distinction in 2010. From there, I went on to gain my PhD in English Language in 2014. My thesis was entitled The Development of Metaphorical Competence in French and Japanese Learners of English, supervised by Professor Jeannette Littlemore at the University of Birmingham and funded by an ESRC DTC Doctoral Award in Applied Linguistics. I also gained valuable teaching experience throughout my PhD.
After my PhD, I moved to Japan to work at the University of Tokyo as a Project Assistant Professor on their academic English courses, before returning to Birmingham in 2016 to take up a postdoctoral research fellowship. I joined Coventry University in 2018, first as a Lecturer then as an Assistant Professor, and moved to my research-focused role in 2022.
