Chloë Houston

Confessions (2025) In September 2025, I invited friends and family members to record themselves reading a 20-second passage from Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Confessions (1782).

Confessions (2025) -- a film!

open.substack.com/pub/adamsmyt...

Hooray to @thespectator1828.bsky.social and to Frances Wilson for nominating THE BOOK GAME, by elusive but deserving (and unrelated) Frances Wise, as a Book of the Year for 2025!

@4thestatebooks.bsky.social @chloehouston.bsky.social

The History of English Studies in Britain: a Symposium

We are delighted to host a major international symposium occasioned by the publication of 'Literature and Learning: A History of English Studies in Britain' by Stefan Collini

⏰Thurs 30 Oct 2025, 2-7pm

📍Senate House, London

The event is free to attend

BOOK NOW ⤵️
ies.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

Warwickshire friends, please come to Waterstones Leamington Spa next Thursday and hear me and @adamwithbooks.bsky.social talk about The Book Game - I’d love to see you! Tickets via the link below, or message me.

www.waterstones.com/events/in-co...

For one day only! The Book Game on Kindle for just 99p!

Wisdom of Salomon

'Bacon’s utopian scientists have achieved miracles: they create artificial rain, snow and meteors.'

Chloë Houston on a scientific utopia admired by tech bros today

Thanks to the brilliant Frances Wilson (author of Electric Spark: The Enigma of Muriel Spark) for these kind words about THE BOOK GAME
@chloehouston.bsky.social
@4thestatebooks.bsky.social

@oldfortunatus.bsky.social

We do have a naked swimming scene and a forest so it’s not too far off 🙂

“ever” is a long time

Thanks so much James! That’s lovely to hear & I’m delighted you enjoyed it.

Writers behaving badly Inside the minds of writing duo Adam Smyth and Chloe Houston, about the creation of their debut mystery The Book Game, jointly written as Frances Wise.

bookanista.com/frances-wise...

Here "we" are -- that is, the two sides of Frances Wise -- signing THE BOOK GAME at beautiful Goldsboro Books off Charing Cross Road.

Fast work. We got through a *lot*.

@goldsborobooks.bsky.social @chloehouston.bsky.social

Just finished the excellent The Book Game by Frances Wise. Highly recommend. Witty, observant, nicely satirical, knowing without being arch. Bravo,
@adamwithbooks.bsky.social @chloehouston.bsky.social

That’s so lovely to read, Emma; thank you very much indeed.

The Book Game is out today! Available in all good bookshops… @adamwithbooks.bsky.social

Out one week today!

Novel! With my friend Chloë Houston, I’ve written a novel and it’s about to be published.

adamsmyth.substack.com/p/novel

Could *you* construct an ideal society? 🛠️ 🌇

Craft your perfect world using past visions of utopias in art & literature at @chloehouston.bsky.social's stand The Utopia Experiment at the #CommunityFestival2025

Find out more about the festival! 🔗 rdg.ac/3AUYDdZ

And beyond delighted that the hardback of The Book Game has landed 💥💚🦚🌳 Out June 5th. @adamwithbooks.bsky.social @4thestatebooks.bsky.social

Delighted to have our edited collection in my hands today! Huge thanks to Laetitia Sansonetti, our series editor, and our commissioning editor Guy Carney at Brepols - and to our brilliant (and patient) contributors. And from me to my co-editors Ladan and Sophie, super colleagues both.

Happy birthday 🙂🎂

Thanks very much to Tolhurst organic farm for having me over on Thursday to talk about utopias and the land. The first time I have discussed More’s men-eating sheep in close proximity to the real thing. #TheUtopiaExperiment #NotAllSheep

Out 5th June, delighted to see The Book Game in @thetimes.com & looks like we have a new subtitle #shagginginthefolly

It was a pleasure to deliver a keynote talk at the inaugural interdisciplinary symposium of the Utopia Experiment at the University of Reading yesterday! Special thanks to @chloehouston.bsky.social for the kind invitation. A great variety of papers and thought-provoking discussions!

Thank you to all of our fantastic speakers at the Utopia symposium today, especially our keynotes @atasoyemrah.bsky.social and Chris Coates, talking here about his experience of living in communes & intentional communities. An inspiring day 😊

We are thrilled to be welcoming Dr Emrah Atasoy and Chris Coates to deliver keynote addresses at the inaugural symposium of The Utopia Experiment tomorrow at the University of Reading! Join us in Chancellors G04 or online (DM for link).

Accidentally walked into an Eric Ravilious painting today and it was magic.

Delighted to be speaking at the 2025 Ceræ conference on Dreams, Visions and Utopias on 26 & 27 April. Do come or have a listen later. (And how marvellous is this detail from Bosch’s The Garden of Earthly Delights?😍)