Perhaps Ph.D. students producing their dissertations face the same frustrations and mystery as a protagonist in a Gothic novel. At least that was what resonated with English alumna Anna Williams ’08 while she prepared her doctoral research at the University of Iowa.

Williams then did what no other doctoral student has done before: She created a dissertation about writing a dissertation, through the lens of Gothic literature, and did so in a seven-episode podcast series. Her work, titled “My Gothic Dissertation,” has since received attention in both the academic and podcast worlds, and it helped jump start Williams’ career in digital media.

Since earning her Ph.D. in 2019, Williams moved to Queens and entered the New York City podcast and radio scene as a freelance podcast producer. She’s worked with oral history projects created by the Queens Public Library and with shows like “Steve Forbes: What’s Ahead.” And her work is focused on people and their stories – the very thing she came to Birmingham-Southern to study.

Williams first chose a psychology major because she wanted to learn about humanity. She made quite the dent in the coursework before taking her first English class and feeling like she “discovered something in literature.”

“It was coming at the same subject matter from a different angle,” she says. “I realized in the English department that I really like the humanities approach rather than the social sciences approach.”

Williams with Chappell at her graduation from the University of Iowa.

After graduating from BSC in 2008, Williams went on to earn her master’s degree in English literature and language from the University of Alabama, where she met her husband, Joseph Chappell (son of another English alumna, Lane Heinrich Chappell ’69). She then moved to Nashville, where Chappell was working, and began working in Vanderbilt University’s alumni office and as an adjunct professor at Belmont University.

At Belmont, Williams realized she still wasn’t done in the classroom. She began applying to Ph.D. programs and was accepted to the University of Iowa, a school known for its Writers’ Workshop and for prestigious professors like one of Williams’ favorite writers, Kurt Vonnegut. The day after her acceptance, Chappell proposed, and they were off to Iowa for the next six years.

Williams decided to study 19^th century British literature and began to question if academia was really for her after all. During this time, she would take long walks and listen to her favorite podcasts like “This American Life” and “Invisibilia.” She eventually realized that the scholarly, humanity-centered focus of these shows was an approach she wanted more of in her own academic life.

“I loved studying the humanities because I want to gain a better understanding of the human experience and all of its diversity,” she explains. “I thought the traditions of academic study, research, and writing were very disconnected from actual humans. You write for journals that only other professionals in your field ever read – it was defeating the purpose for me.”

So she saw the potential to translate her humanities study into a podcast that would reach listeners beyond her own academic circle. Williams developed her dissertation prospectus while teaching courses at the university and completing an internship at Iowa Public Radio.

She pitched the podcast dissertation, her committee signed off, and writing and production began. “My Gothic Dissertation” covers Ann Radcliffe’s “The Mysteries of Udolpho,” Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” and Charlotte Bronte’s “Villette,” and includes discourse about the research process and recorded clips from her prospectus defense and dissertation defense meetings. The format allowed Williams to be innovative in presentation and content as she discussed the graduate school experience alongside Gothic literature.

“My peers and I were having tense experiences feeling like we weren’t worthy of being academics,” she says. “I was feeling frustrated that all of these smart, talented people weren’t able to flourish. The system was shutting down all kinds of innovation and creativity – and Gothic is essentially a genre about people feeling trapped in a system where they have no control.”

Williams later converted a portion of “My Gothic Dissertation” into an article that was published in “Gothic Studies,” and the Modern Language Association published a Q&A about her work. The project, while encapsulating her love of the humanities, then led to her move to New York.

Williams says the professional world hasn’t quite adapted to what she’s doing – academia still expects her to publish a book, and the radio world doesn’t always recognize the assets of her Ph.D. This hasn’t stopped Williams from actively making space for work like hers and pursuing the kind of humanities career in which she sees value. She was invited to give a virtual talk at the Public Humanities Hub at the University of British Columbia and is co-authoring a book chapter about the value of non-traditional dissertations for a Modern Language Association publication.

“If you’re an undergrad student and you’re drawn to the humanities, and if you feel like there might not be a strong career path, think broadly about the skills you’re acquiring through humanities inquiry,” Williams says. “Be bold and take risks.”

This story was included in a special humanities edition of From the Hilltop, Birmingham-Southern’s alumni email newsletter.

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