Heather Blakey is a writer and scholar at the University of Western Australia. Her work examines intersections between technology, intimacy, and the environment in video games, literature, and virtual worlds.

Heather is presently completing her doctoral thesis in literary studies, which comprises the first fulsome academic study of the work of the award-winning San Francisco-based game design studio Supergiant Games. 

Heather has published academic articles and chapters on intimacy and aesthetics in video games, and she is commissioned for arts and literature coverage for publications including Australian Book Review, The Conversation, ArtsHub and Sydney Review of Books. Her poetry has been published nationally and internationally. In 2023 Heather was awarded the UWA Convocation Matilda Award for Cultural Excellence in Literature. She has been shortlisted for the Letter Review Prize and is presently shortlisted for the Heroines Prize for Women’s Writing. Prior to her PhD, Heather worked as a publisher in Australia and the UK.

Heather also co-hosts the game studies podcast Meaningful Play, which is available via Spotify and Apple podcasts and is recorded here in our Humanities building.