home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- Path: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!newsswitch.lcs.mit.edu!news-spur1.maxwell.syr.edu!news.maxwell.syr.edu!nnxp1.twtelecom.net!newsfeed.cs.wisc.edu!uwm.edu!alpha1.csd.uwm.edu!bj
- From: bj@alpha1.csd.uwm.edu (B J Kuehl)
- Newsgroups: alt.vampyres,alt.answers,news.answers
- Subject: [FAQ] The alt.vampyres VAMPIRE LITERATURE faq
- Followup-To: alt.vampyres
- Date: 3 Nov 2003 05:26:55 GMT
- Organization: University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
- Lines: 416
- Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU
- Message-ID: <bo4ouv$kos$1@uwm.edu>
- NNTP-Posting-Host: 129.89.7.201
- Summary: A collection of Frequently Asked Questions about vampire
- literature
- Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu alt.vampyres:129399 alt.answers:70023 news.answers:260648
-
- Archive-name: paranormal/vampyres/vampire-lit-faq
- Posting-Frequency: monthly
- Last altered: 15 August 2002
- Copyright: (c) 2001 BJ Kuehl
-
- [NOTE:The alt.vampyres VAMPIRE LITERATURE faq may be downloaded for
- personal use. However, any publication, webhousing, or reposting of this
- faq must be with the writer's permission, and the copyright must remain
- intact.] Citations may be attributed to: Kuehl, B.J. (2000). The alt.
- vampyres VAMPIRE LITERATURE Faq. Retrieved (date) from Usenet newsgroup:
- alt.vampyres.]
-
- FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) on alt.vampyres
- about Vampire Literature
-
- This is the alt.vampyres VAMPIRE LITERATURE FAQ. Comments, corrections,
- additions to this FAQ should be directed to the newsgroup. For other
- versions of alt.vampyres faqs, consult the faq archives on the HoMePaGe
- of the newsgroup at http://altvampyres.com/
-
- Last altered: 15 Aug 2002: Added 2.06 re: where to get _Varney the
- Vampire_.
- 7 June 2002: Added Wm. Mark Simmons to 2.05.
- Created: 16 Jun 2001 as a spinoff from the alt.vampyres VAMPIRE faq.
-
- CONTENTS -
- PART 1: QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS NEWSGROUP
- [1.01] What is this newsgroup about?
- [1.02] Is there some form of netiquette I should follow if I post?
- [1.03] Is there a homepage for the alt.vampyres newsgroup?
-
- PART 2: QUESTIONS ABOUT THE VAMPIRE IN LITERATURE
- [2.01] Can you recommend some good vampire books?
- [2.01.1] Vampire Series
- [2.01.2] Vampire Novels
- [2.02] Did Bram Stoker ever write a sequel to _Dracula_?
- [2.03] Are there any stories that treat the vampire in a comedic vein?
- [2.04] Was _Dracula_ the first vampire fiction story to be written?
- [2.05] Has anyone from alt.vampyres written a book about vampires?
- [2.06] Where can I get a copy of the classic _Varney the Vampire_?
-
- PART 3: WHO HAS MADE THIS FAQ POSSIBLE?
- [3.01] Special thanks to these contributors who provided ideas,
- answers, and corrections.
-
-
- PART 1: QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS NEWSGROUP
-
- [1.01] What is this newsgroup about?
-
- Alt.vampyres is for the discussion of vampire lore in any culture,
- ancient or modern. This group is also for the discussion of vampires in
- fiction, such as novels, stories, poetry, comics, movies and television,
- as well as for sharing original vampire fiction. Finally, alt.vampyres
- is a place for the discussion of theories about biology, psychology,
- and sociology with respect to the legendary vampire.
-
- [1.02] Is there some form of netiquette I should follow if I post?
-
- It is not the purpose of the a.v VAMPIRE LITERATURE faq to be a primer
- for Usenet or newsgroup etiquette. If you are interested in that, search
- out one of the newuser newsgroups, e.g. news.newusers.questions. For a
- quick look at how to post to alt.vampyres, see the Posting Guideline
- which is posted to the newsgroup at the beginning of each week. In
- truth, if you join in with the same friendliness and respect you would
- give to any group of people engaged in conversation, you'll be fine.
-
- [1.03] Is there a homepage for the alt.vampyres newsgroup?
-
- There certainly is. The alt.vampyres homepage [http://altvampyres.com]
- was created by DrLucadra when she was the faqkeeper between 1996 and
- 1998. After a two year medical absence during which she literally died
- three times, DrLuc returned to a.v. and redesigned the site, reviving
- the newsgroup's homepage as our place, that is, belonging to those who
- frequent the newsgroup. Here you will find copies of other a.v. faqs,
- hard-to-find pre-20th century vampire stories, vampire puzzles and
- poetry, a Dracula quiz, MSTings of bad vampire movies, and a huge
- number of links to other vampire websites.
-
-
- PART 2: THE VAMPIRE IN LITERATURE
-
- [2.01] Can you recommend some good vampire novels?
-
- Following are the results of a poll I took a few years ago. I asked
- readers from various vampire groups to name their favorite vampire
- books. These are the ones they mentioned most frequently. Any of them
- would probably provide you with good reading.
-
- [2.01.1] Favorite Vampire Series
-
- The most votes went to Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. The majority
- of the respondents recommended _Interview with the Vampire_ and
- _The Vampire Lestat_, but their interest fell off with _Queen of the
- Damned_, _Tale of the Body Thief_, and _Memnoch the Devil_. Since
- then, Rice has added _The Vampire Arrmand_ to the Chronicle series and
- begun the New Tales of the Vampires with _Pandora_ and _Vittorio the
- Vampire_.
-
- The second most favored series was the Anita Blake vampire hunter books
- by Laurell K. Hamilton. The series currently has nine books: _Guilty
- Pleasures_, _The Laughing Corpse_, _Circus of the Damned_, _The Lunatic
- Cafe_, _Bloody Bones_, _The Killing Dance_, _Burnt Offerings_, _Blue
- Moon_, and _Obsidian Butterfly_.
-
- In third place was Brian Lumley's Necroscope series, with the first
- book, _Necroscope_ being mentioned most often. There are three groups
- to the Necroscope series. Series 1 (The Necroscope series) includes
- _Necroscope_, _Vamphyri!_, _The Source_, _Deadspeak_, and _Deadspawn_.
- Series 2 (The Vampire World) includes _Blood Brothers_, _The Last
- Aerie_, and _Bloodwars_. Series 3 (The Lost Wars) includes _The Lost
- Years_ and _Resurgence_.
-
- Other series mentioned as favorites include the following:
-
- The Bunnicula series by James Howe (includes _Bunnicula_, _The Celery
- Stalks at Midnight_, _Howliday Inn_, _Return to Howliday Inn_,
- _Nighty-Nightmare_, and _Bunnicula Escapes_.)
- The Cold Fire trilogy by C.S. Friedman (includes _Black Sun Rising_,
- _When True Night Falls_, and _Crown of Shadows_).
- The Saint-Germaine series by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (includes _Hotel
- Transylvania_, _The Palace_, _Blood Games_, _Path of the Eclipses_,.
- _Tempting Fate_, _Out of the House of Life_, _Darker Jewels_, _Better
- in the Dark_, "Manions of Darkness_, _Writ in Blood_, _Blood Roses_,
- _Communion Blood_, _Come Twilight_, _A Feast in Exile_, and _Night
- Blooming_. _Midnight Harvest_ will be out in Fall 2003).
- The Blood series by Tanya Huff (includes _Blood Price_, _Blood Trail_,
- _Blood Lines_, _Blood Pact_, and _Blood Debt_).
- The Family Dracul series by Jeanne Kalogridis (includes _Covenant with
- the Vampire_, _Children of the Vampire_, and _Lord of the Vampires_).
- The Vampire Files by P.N. Elrod (includes _Bloodlist_, _Lifeblood_,
- _Bloodcircle_, _Art in the Blood_, _Fire in the Blood_, _Blood on
- the Water_, _A Chill in the Blood_, _The Dark Sleep_, and _Lady
- Crymsyn_).
- The Austra Family series by Elaine Bergstrom (includes _Shattered
- Glass_, _Blood Alone_, _Blood Rites_, and _Daughter of the Night_),
- The Vampire Diaries by Lisa Jane Smith.
- Christopher Golden's series: _Of Saints and Shadows_, _Angel Souls and
- Devil Hearts_, and "Of Masques and Martyrs_.
- The Sonya Blue series by Nancy Collins (includes _Sunglasses After
- Dark_, _In the Blood_, _Paint it Black_, and _A Dozen Black Roses_.).
- The Don Sebastian Series by Les Daniels (includes _The Black Castle_,
- _The Silver Skull_, _Citizen Vampire_, _Yellow Fog_, and _No Blood
- Spilled_).
-
-
- [2.01.2] Favorite Vampire Novels
-
- _Dracula_ by Bram Stoker just narrowly edged out _Salem's Lot_ by
- Stephen King. Third place was a tie between _Lost Souls_ by Poppy Z.
- Brite, _I, Strahd: Memoirs of a Vampire_ by P.N.Elrod, and _I Am
- Legend_ by Richard Matheson.
-
- Other novels mentioned included:
-
- _Blood Hunt_ and _Bloodlinks_, both by Lee Killough
- _Bloodsucking Fiends_ by Christopher Moore
- _Carrion Comfort_ by Dan Simmons
- _Children of the Night_ by Mercedes Lackey
- _Children of the Night_ by Dan Simmons
- _The Children's Hour_ by Douglas Clegg
- _Companions of the Night_ by Vivian Vande Velde
- _A Deeper Hunger_ by Sabine Kells
- _The Delicate Dependency_ by Michael Talbot
- _The Dragon Waiting_ by John M. Ford
- _The Dracula Tapes_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _Fevre Dream_ by George R.R. Martin
- _The Gilda Stories: A Novel_ by Jewelle Gomez
- _The Hunger_ by Whitley Strieber
- _The Keep_ by F. Paul Wilson
- _Live Girls_ and _Lot Lizards_, both by Ray Garton
- _The Night Inside_ aka _Kiss of the Vampire_ by Nancy Baker
- _The Secret Life of Laszlo, Count Dracula_ by Roderick Anscombe
- _The Silver Kiss_ by Annette Curtis Klause
- _The Stake_ by Richard Laymon
- _A Taste of Blood Wine_ by Freda Warrington
- _They Thirst_ by Robert McCammon
- _Those Who Hunt the Night_ by Barbra Hambly
- _The World on Blood_ by Jonathan Nasaw
-
- [2.02] Did Bram Stoker ever write a sequel to _Dracula_?
-
- No, although he did publish a short story called "Dracula's Guest"
- which some say was originally written to be the first chapter in
- _Dracula_ (this is being disputed). A copy of "Dracula's Guest" can
- be downloaded from the alt.vampyres homepage (q.v. 1.03). You'll be
- happy to know, however, that other authors have added to the novel
- with a number of prequels, sequels, retellings and alternative
- timelines. These include:
-
- Prequels to _Dracula_:
- The Family Dracul series by Jeanne Kalogridis (includes _Covenant
- with the Vampire_, _Children of the Vampire_, and _Lord of the
- Vampires_)
- _The Secret Life of Laszlo, Count Dracula_ by Roderick Anscombe
- _Dracula Began_ by Gail Kimberly (@Roger Elwood)
- _Crimson Kisses_ by Asa Drake
- _I am Dracula_ by C. Dean Anderson (rewrite of Drake)
-
- Sequels, retellings, anthologies, etc. to _Dracula_:
- _Mina_, by Marie Kiraly
- _Blood to Blood_ by Elaine Bergstrom
- _Anno Dracula_ by Kim Newman
- _Dracula the Undead_ by Freda Warrington
- _The Holmes-Dracula File_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _The Dracula Tape_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _An Old Friend of the Family_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _A Matter of Taste_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _A Question of Time_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _Seance for a Vampire_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _A Sharpness in the Neck_ by Fred Saberhagen
- _Dracula in Love_, John Shirley
- _Dark Destiny III: Children of Dracula_, ed. Edward E. Kramer
- _Rivals of Dracula_, eds. Weinberg, Dziemianowocz, & Greenberg
- _Dracula: A Symphony in Moonlight and Nightmares_, ed. Jon J. Muth
- _The Dracula Collection_, no author given
- _Dracula Unborn_ by Peter Tremayne
- _The Revenge of Dracula_ by Peter Tremayne
- _Dracula My Love_ by Peter Tremayne
- (NOTE: The Tremayne stories were also published together under
- the title of _Dracula Lives_)
- _The Darker Passions: Dracula_ by Amarantha Knight
- _The Adult Version of Dracula_
- _Dracula: Prince of Darkness_, ed. Martin H. Greenberg.
- _The Mammoth Book of Dracula_, ed. Stephen Jones
- _Drakulya_ by Earl Lee
- _Drakulya_ by P.C. Doherty (omnibus of two previously published
- books, _The Prince Drakulya_ and _The Lord Count Drakulya_)
- _Vlad the Undead_ by Hanna Lutzen
- _Quincey Morris, Vampire_ by P.N. Elrod
-
-
- [2.03] Are there any stories that treat the vampire in a comedic vein?
-
- I recommend _The World on Blood_ by Jonathan Nasaw. he deals with
- Vampires Anonymous, the 12-step program for vampires. It's quite funny!
- Also Chetwynd-Hayes wrote _The Monster Club_ which has that very funny
- story about the werewolf and the vampire. There's a short story in
- _The Ultimate Dracula_ entitled "A Little Night Music" that had me
- rolling over in laughter (it's about a rock band called Vlad and the
- Impalers). And you can include Saberhagen's _The Dracula Tape_ in the
- "humor" category. He did start to write it as a joke [Elizabeth Miller].
-
- Vampires appear in several Terry Pratchett books, i.e., _Carpe Jugulum_
- and _The Fifth Elephant_. _Reaper Man_ has Count Notfaroutou, who
- inherited the title suddenly, and whose wife insists that he wears
- opera dress the whole time (to keep up appearances). "Witches Abroad_
- has an unnamed vampire who gets hit by a thrown garlic sausage and then
- eaten by a particularly brutal cat. Then there's Otto Chriek in _The
- Truth_, a vampire Black Ribboner - one who's signed The Pledge and who
- now has to make do with black pudding, a cup of cocoa and a rousing
- sing-song. And Dragon King of Arms in _Feet of Clay_; he's not
- terribly funny, but he's an interesting interpretation of how a vampire
- might find a niche in human society. There's another unnamed vamp who
- insists that he has the right, without discrimination, to work in such
- places as a holy water factory, a pencil factory, testing sunglasses.
- [Mike Kew].
-
- I recommend the comic parody _Blood and Roses_ by Sharon Bainbridge,
- although not all readers might recognize it as such. P.D. Cacek's
- _Night Prayers_ and _Tabitha fffoulkes_ by John Linssen are humorous,
- or at least intended to be. Mark Ivanhoe's novel _Virgintooth_ is meant
- to be a satire, but I'm not sure how humorous it's intended to be. Are
- you interested in books for children? Books for children *meant* to be
- funny include _The Vampire Who Came for Christmas_ by Dian Curtis Regan
- and _Monster of the Year_ by Bruce Coville [Cathy Krusberg].
-
- You might also want to consider the "Bunnicula" series of children's
- books by James Howe, about a vampire rabbit who drains vegetables of
- color. There are (IIRC) 6 of them, all still in print and readily
- available. [Richard Morrison]
-
- In Germany we have the _Little Vampire_ Series by Angela Sommer-
- Bodenburg that is very popular. It has even been translated (or rather
- adapted) for the American market, not something to happen frequently
- to German books. [Birte Lilienthal]
-
- You mustn't forget _Vampire Blood Bank_ by Harry Zelenko which is about
- a Jewish hemophiliac bitten by a rabbi vampire in Central Park. One of
- the side effects of Zelenko's vampires happens to be a perpetual
- erection. It isn't great literature but I enjoyed the hell out of it.
- "Count Dracula" is a short story by Woody Allen in the anthology
- _Vampires, Wine & Roses_ where the poor Count mistakes an eclipse for
- nightfall and leaves his sanctuary. In _Vampire Junkies_ by Norman
- Spinrad, the Count visits New York and becomes addicted to heroin
- after feasting on a junkie hooker shortly after he arrives [Kitsune].
-
- _Vampire Detectives_ (ed: Martin Greenerg) includes William Saunder's
- "The Count's Mailbox." It's an epistolary story about Dracula's efforts
- to publish a book about his life. [Bill Thompson]
-
- _Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story_ by Christopher Moore is a humorous
- vampire story of note. [Lord Ruthven]
-
- [2.04] Was _Dracula_ the first fictional vampire story to be written?
-
- Vampires were popular in fictional literature even before _Dracula_.
- Here's a smattering of some of the books and short stories written
- about vampires pre-Dracula:
-
- 1748 "The Vampire" Ossenfelder (verse)
- 1797 "The Bride of Corinth" by Goethe (verse)
- 1798 "The Old Woman of Berkeley" by Robert Southey (verse)
- 1810 "The Vampyre" by John Stagg (poem originally published in Stagg's
- _Minstrel of the North_)
- @1815 "The Bride of the Grave" by Johann Ludwig Tieck
- 1816 "A Fragment" aka "The Burial" by Lord Byron
- 1816 "The Vampire" by John Stagg (poem)
- 1819 "The Vampyre" by John Polidori
- 1819 _Lord Ruthven ou les Vampires_ by Berard (said to be the first
- vampire novel)
- 1820 "Wake Not the Dead" attributed to Johann Ludwig Tieck (may be by
- Ernst Raupach)
- @1820 "Lamia" by John Keats (verse)
- @1820 "La Belle Dame sans Merci" by John Keats (verse)
- @1820 "The Giaour" by Lord Byron (verse)
- 1828 "The Skeleton Count, or the Vampire Mistress" by Elizabeth Grey
- 1830 "The Dead Lover" by Theophile Gautier
- 1835 "Viy" by Nikolai Gogol
- 1845 _Varney the Vampyre, or, the Feast of Blood_ by James Malcolm
- Rymer
- 1800s "A Visit to the Theatre" by Alexandre Dumas
- 1849 "The Pale Lady" by Alexandre Dumas & Paul Bocage
- 1860 "The Mysterious Stranger", anonymous
- 1860 "The Cold Embrace" by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
- @1860 "Carpathian Castle" by Jules Verne
- 1867 "The Last Lords of Gardonal" by William Gilbert
- 1872 "Carmilla" by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
- 1880 "The Fate of Madame Cabanel" by Eliza Lynn Linton
- 1881 "The Man-Eating Tree" by Phil Robinson
- 1884 "The Family of the Vourdalak" by Alexis Tolstoy
- 1887 "Ken's Mystery" aka "The Grave of Ethelind Fionguala"
- by Julian Hawthorne
- 1887 "The Horla" by Guy de Maupassant
- 1887 "A Mystery of the Campagna" by Anne Crawford
- 1890 "The Tomb of Sarah" by Frederick George Loring
- 1890 "Let Loose" by Mary Cholmondeley
- 1893 _Vikram the Vampire_ ed/Richard Burton
- 1894 "The Parasite" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- 1896 "Good Lady Ducayne" by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
-
- [2.05] Has anyone from alt.vampyres ever written a book about vampires?
-
- Sure. In her position as professor of English at Memorial University
- of Newfoundland, Dr. Elizabeth Miller (://www.ucs.mun.ca/~emiller/) has
- written several articles and papers and has authored four nonfiction
- books about Dracula. These include _Reflections on Dracula_, _Shade
- and Shadow_, Dracula: Sense and Nonsense_, and _Dracula_.
-
- In the fiction department, visitors to alt.vampyres have included
- Lois Tilton (://www.darkspawn.com) who has written three books about
- vampires, including _Darkness on the Ice_, _Vampire Winter_, and
- _DarkSpawn_. Thomas J. Hardman, Jr. (://earthops.org) is the author
- of _In Darkness' District_. Don Harstad came out with _Code Sixty-
- One_ in January 2002. William Meikle (://www.williemeikle.btinternet.
- co.uk) just sold the first two books (_Watchers of the Wall_ and
- _Berserker_) in a Scottish vampire trilogy.
-
- Other visitors to alt.vampyres who have authored vampire books include
- Poppy Z. Brite (://www.poppyzbrite.com/ and ://www.negia.net/~pandora),
- author of _Lost Souls_ and editor of _Love in Vein_ and _Love in Vein
- II_, Konstantinos (_Vampires: The Occult Truth_), and Michael Romkey
- (http://www.thevampire.com), author of Vampire_, _The Vampire Papers_,
- _The Vampire Princess_, _The Vampire Virus_, and _The London Vampire
- Panic_. David Dvorkin has given us _Insatiable_ and _Unquenchable_, and
- Nancy Collins (://www.concentric.net/~syllabub) her Sonya Blue series.
- Karen Taylor, author of the Vampire Legacy series, recently breezed
- in and out, along with Karen Koehler (://www.khpindustries.com), the
- author of the _Slayer_ series, Cary Rainey, author of _Stacy's Heart_,
- and Wm. Mark Simmons, who published _One Foot in the Grave_ and who
- is coming out soon with the sequel _Dead on My Feet_.
-
- [2.06] Where can I get a copy of the classic _Varney the Vampire_?
-
- E-copies can be downloaded from:
- http://www.unicorngarden.com/misc.htm
- http://varney.50megs.com
-
- Dover published a 2 volume paperback version in 1972, which is currently
- out of print. Copies may occasionally pop up at auction on eBay. Serious
- collectors say that this is the version of choice as it was essentially
- photographed from the original book, so it has all the artwork.
-
- Ayer Co. Publishers has put out two hardcover versions, one published
- in 1970 with a forward by Devendra Varma and Margaret L. Carter, and a
- second edition [publishing date unknown]. Both of these consist of three
- volumes. Contact Ayer Co. Publishers for more information at:
-
- 1 Lower Mill Road N.
- Stratford NH 03590
-
- [information provided in part by Cathy Krusberg]
-
-
- PART 3: WHO HAS HELPED TO MAKE THIS FAQ POSSIBLE?
- In order to give thanks where thanks are due, the names of faq
- contributors appear in brackets following the passages they have
- written. If your contribution appears uncredited in the a.v. VAMPIRE
- LITERATURE faq, please contact the faqkeeper with the details.
-
- [3.01] Special thanks to these contributors who provided ideas, answers,
- and corrections.
-
- Cathy Krusberg
- Elizabeth Miller
- Bill Thompson
- Birte Lilienthal
- Lord Ruthven
-
-
- ^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
-
- A copy of the most recently-posted version of this faq may be obtained at
- ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet-by-hierachy/alt/vampyres/vampire-lit-faq
-
- ^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
-