I'm a 28 year old guy from Perth, Western Australia, any my wife and I have two beautiful kids. I'm a Christian and try to take an active role in the church we attend.

I've recently completed my Honours in English and Creative Arts at Murdoch University with a thesis titled Of Rats and Withered Geraniums: Towards a Theory of the Weird in Contemporary Fantasy Literature. I argued that much fantasy literature published post-2000 is beginning to demonstrate what I described as a modern world view and that the kind of texts this produced differed radically to previous 'nostalgic' fantasies such as The Lord of the Rings. My super-sly reference to M. John Harrison in the title is an acknowledgement that there are some precedents for a modern world view pre-2000.

As of September 2009, I have accepted a scholarship to undertake a PhD, again at Murdoch, this time looking at the narratological basis of transmedia stories and their reception and function within popular culture. I'll make sure to squeeze in a SF/F case study or two...

I love books, film and music. Everyone does, I guess, but these have been my passion for as long as I can remember and by taking on a PhD, it's my goal to pursue them at a professional level and I'm aiming to make fantasy and science fiction in particular a speciality.

 This site, A Ruminating Ghost, simply represents a opportunity for me to write about some of these things and to share them with whoever happens to stumble by. At the moment it's mainly a space for film reviews, but I'm determined to up the number of fiction reviews as well. So, if that's your bag, and you don't mind a site that's haphazardly updated, then you've come to the right place.

Here's what I'm currently reading (thanks to the very snazzy Shelfari):