William Robert Adamson has both authored and edited books and articles on subjects as diverse as the 18th century Scottish novelist Tobias Smollett, the American crime writer Raymond Chandler, film studies and language skills for university students of English. He is Head of the English Department at the University of Ulm in Germany where he specialises in poetry and creative writing. He is the Assistant Director of the Gerard Manley Hopkins Society of Newbridge, Ireland, and is also a past president of the Raymond Chandler Society, Germany. In 2007 he was the recipient of Recipient of the O'Connor Cup presented by the Gerard Manley Hopkins Society.