Hi there!
My name is Marc Brüseke. I'm a South African optimist, academic, writer, guerrilla publisher, and artist of mixed ancestry from Cape Town. I live in Yorkshire, England.
Optimist
My general outlook on life is fuelled by a fusion of existential philosophy, stoic practice, buddhist sensibilities, Taoist sentiment and Japanese poetics.
Academic
I'm in the final stages of a PhD in English Literature and Creative Writing. My general area of study is creative non-fiction with a focus on life writing. Drawing on the theories of Roland Barthes, my research makes use of a practice-led approach to deliver a methodology for the use of photography in life writing. I incorporate novel applications of Guy Debord's concept of dérive (interpreted through Roland Barthes), as well as Barthian concepts of biographical nebulae, biographemes, and the album. My project argues, through practice, that the fragment be considered a valid vehicle in the construction of a life writing text.
I'm a part-time lecturer at York St. John University, where I teach English Literature and Creative Writing.
I have a MA in Sociology and Global Change from Manchester Metropolitan University (2013) and a BA (hons) in Media and Communication from York St. John University (2011)
In April 2023 I will deliver a talk titled How I Started My Own Boutique Publishing Operation at York St. John University's Research Active Workshop (RAW) In the talk I will outline both my practical and philosophical approach to small press publishing.
In December 2022 I delivered a talk titled Writing a Hybrid Memoir at York St. John University's Research Active Workshop (RAW) In the talk I outlined a practice-led approach to life writing that embraces hybridity and fragmentary literary construction.
In April 2022 I delivered a talk titled Notes on the Fragment: A Fragmentary Approach to Life Writing at York St. John University's Research Active Workshop (RAW) In my talk I argued for the validity of a fragmentary approach to life writing.
In March 2022 I delivered a talk titled States of Drift: Applying Guy Debord's Dérive to the Practice of Life Writing at York St. John University's Research Active Workshop (RAW) The talk focused on my interpretation of dérive (through way of Roland Barthes) in the context of personal identity formation, space and place in memory, and the resting state of a text.
In October 2021 I delivered a conference paper titled Photography and Life Writing at York St. John University's Eat. Sleep. Research. Repeat conference. My paper was a showcase of my visual literary practice, arguing for a methodology that seeks to extract textual fragments and life narratives from private photography.
Writer
My work ranges from reflective academic inquiry to creative non-fiction, fiction, and poetry. I have published ten pamphlets and three books. In 2023 I plan to publish my PhD, a fragmented hybrid memoir titled Cape Town/ International, as a printed text.
Guerrilla Publisher
I'm the founder of Analog Submission Press, a guerrilla style small press outlet that specialises in short run publications of poetry and prose. Through Analog Submission Press, I have edited, designed, and typeset over 160 publications.
Artist
My visual artwork has been presented in four solo exhibitions in the UK.