FAQ for alt.vampyres Frequently Asked Questions - alt.vampyres Version 2.0 - Last Update: 17 Jan 1995 16:02:15 GMT This is a list of Frequently Asked Questions seen on the alt.vampyres newsgroup and their answers, as given by those who post to the newsgroup. This FAQ was originally written by Travis S. Casey and is now maintained by Robert D. Herrick II. All comments and revisions should be sent to: herrick@sunchem.chem.uga.edu This FAQ is supposed to be a representation of the newsgroup as a whole and not just my undead ramblings. If you see something that is inaccurate or should be added, even if it is as minor as a grammatical error, EMAIL ME!! I don't pretend to be the authority on the vampiric. This FAQ can only be as good as we as a newsgroup want to make it, so send me your contributions and receive your immortality (assuming, of course, that you haven't already achieved it through vampiric methods...) This document is posted on the closest weekday to the 17th of every month. Email inquiries to the address above can also win you a copy of the latest version of this FAQ. A quick word about version numbers: the version number will change every time I feel I have made a significant change to the FAQ, like the addition of a section. If the version number doesn't change, you can be assured that nothing of importance will be missed if you don't download this. Contents: Part 1 -- Questions about this newsgroup 1. What is this newsgroup about? 2. Why do you spell "vampyre" with a "y?" 3. Do you REALLY think that vampires exist? 4. So-and-so can't be a vampire! He's posting during the day! Part 2 -- Questions about vampires 1. What powers are commonly ascribed to vampires? 2. What vulnerabilities are vampires subject to? 3. How do physical illnesses affect vampires? 4. How can one kill a vampire? 5. How does one become a vampire? 6. What types of vampire exist? 7. How can I find a vampire? 8. What is porphyria, and why is it called "the vampire disease?" 9. What is a "psychic vampire?" 10. Will a "real" vampire please come and turn me into a vampire? Part 3 -- How to get more information about vampires 1. What books about vampires are out there? 2. What movies about vampires are worth seeing? 3. Are there any organizations about vampires that I can join? Part 4 -- Miscellaneous vampire stuff 1. How can I find out more about Forever Knight? 2. Have you seen Interview with the Vampire? Wanna talk about it? 3. Have you ever heard of White Wolf's Vampire: The Masquerade game? 4. What are some other Internet vampire resources? Part 1 -- Questions about this newsgroup 1. What is this newsgroup about? This group is for discussion of the vampire mythology and the distribution of original fiction, such as stories or poetry, related to vampires. 2. Why do you spell "vampyre" with a "y?" "Vampyre" is an older spelling of vampire, which was used in the 1700's and 1800's. Its use in the group's title is to provide a more "gothic" feel and to help keep newbies from finding this group. :-) 3. Do you REALLY think vampires exist? It would depend upon your definition of 'vampire.' If you mean people who eat blood as a source of nourishment, then yes, vampires exist. There are many organizations that are dedicated to the teaching and practice of bloodeating. However, if by 'vampire' you mean the supernatural beings found in movies and literature, then no, most of the people here do not believe in vampires; we just like to talk about them. The people on this group who write as if they were vampires are not intending to mislead anyone; they are doing it purely for entertainment, creating a sort of interactive story in this group. Unfortunately, like most of the groups that discuss fiction or myth from a non-academic standpoint, we occasionally get some idiot who feels that anyone who would discuss something that (in his/her/its opinion) does not exist must be stupid or have some psychological problem. Do not reply to these people. There are two reasons for this: (1) There are people out there who, when they find someone who has accidentally left their account logged in, will use it to post this kind of stuff to a group. In this case, your reply will probably never be heard by the person who actually posted the stuff. (2) Those who do this from their own accounts are generally looking for attention in their own twisted way. Replying to them will only encourage them to keep on. Just hope that the losers will go back to harrassing the people on alt.fan.jesus-christ instead of us. We know that what we are discussing is worth our time. If someone can't accept that, that's his/her/its problem. 4. So-and-so can't be a vampire! He's posting during the day! The idea that vampires have to sleep all day is not universal; Dracula was active during the day in Bram Stoker's novel, and many vampires in myth and legend were active during the day. (See question 2.2) Secondly, how do you know the vampire is posting during the day? Don't you think time stamps can be altered? Maybe that's just what they _want_ you to think... :-) Part 2 -- Questions about vampires 1. What powers are commonly ascribed to vampires? There are many, many different versions of the vampire myth, both in legend and in fiction, so just about any ability you could name has probably been ascribed to vampires at some point. If you want to know about the powers of specific vampire types, take a look at question 2.5, and at the non-fiction books listed under question 3.1. With that said, here are some of the powers traditionally ascribed to European vampires: * The ability to change their shape--common forms assumed are wolf, bat, rat, cat, owl, fox, weasel, raven, spider, scorpion, and fly * Strength, speed and sensory perception far greater than that of humans * The ability to summon and control animals, particularly rats and wolves * The ability to control weather--summoning rainclouds and fog * The ability to control the minds of mortals--commanding them, striking fear with a look, and causing selective amnesia 2. What vulnerabilities are vampires subect to? * Weakened or harmed by sunlight Although this vulnerability seems very prevalent, there are notable exceptions to it. As mentioned above, Dracula was relatively unaffected by sunlight. Poppy Z. Brite's vampires were only sensitive to the sun, not harmed by it. Even Anne Rice's vampires could move during the day--only _direct_ sunlight harmed them. * Repelled/harmed by religious symbols This appears to be a subject of great debate. A very prevalent belief is that the symbol itself is useless unless the wielder possesses a strong faith in the efficacy of his symbol as a dispeller of evil. As such, the symbol is just the vehicle for the faith of its wielder, and the actual symbol need not be religious. * Repelled by garlic and/or wolvesbane Again, this doesn't seem to be universal. Its inclusion in the vampire mythology may be due to the belief that since wolvesbane supposedly repelled werewolves, it would exert a power on vampires (which are lumped in with lupines for some reason) as well. * Unable to cross running water, except at the ebb and flow of the tide * Can't enter the home of someone without an invitation * Cannot pass a thicket of wild rose or a line of salt * Has to stop and count every grain in a pile of grain he/she encounters (type of grain varies) * Does not cast a reflection In some areas, vampires are believed not to show in photographs, and in some, they are believed not to cast shadows. 3. How do physical illnesses affect vampires? It has been proposed that vampires are subject to illnesses, viruses, and other nasty bugs much the way mortals are. At the very least, the victims of an infected vampire will contract the illness or virus. However (and this is only my opinion), because the mythology generally considers the vampire to be 'undead,' a vampire would be an unsuitable host for any nasty bugs, which tend to prefer warm, wet and living tissue, unlike vampire flesh. The catagory of nasty bugs should include (again, in my opinion) the AIDS virus and any organism that is incapable of living outside of a host for a long period of time. 4. How does one kill a vampire? Although it never a good practice to harm vampires, let alone kill them, some of the more favored methods of destroying a vampire include: * Immobilized/destroyed by driving a stake through the heart Some legends say the stake must be of a particular type of wood (generally ash, hawthorne, maple, blackthorn, buckthorn, or aspen), and some say that the stake must be driven through in one blow. * Cutting off the vampire's head Some legends say this must be done with a gravedigger's shovel. * Burning the vampire This seems to be a relatively universal method of destroying vampires (although Lestat de Lioncourt was burned and somehow managed to survive). * Cutting out the heart and burning it It should be realized that although these practices are supposed to harm a vampire, they also tend to put a hurting on mortals as well. Make what you will from that. 5. How does one become a vampire? Again, there are many different possible routes of becoming a vampire in the mythology. Some of these are: * Suicide * Excommunication, dying unbaptized/apostate, or anything else that puts one "outside of the church." * Being a wizard/witch * Having been a werewolf * Having your parents curse you, as in "May the earth reject you!" * Being born with teeth or with a caul (sometimes specifically a red caul). In this case, it may be possible to prevent the change by burning the caul and feeding the ashes to the baby. * Dying and having a cat or other animal jump over the corpse before it gets properly buried * Possessing red hair * Being a victim of unavenged murder * Being a seventh son * Being sexually promiscuous * Being the offspring of a woman and a demon or an incubus * Being bitten by a vampire In some versions, the victim has to die from the bite to become a vampire; in others, three bites are necessary * drinking the blood of a vampire If it is suspected that someone is likely to become a vampire, it is possible to prevent the occurrence by using one or more of the methods for destroying vampires listed above or by burying the suspect body face downwards. In eastern Europe, it was common to periodically check suspect bodies to see if they showed any signs of vampirism. Similarly, in China potential vampires were not buried until after they had decayed considerably. 6. What types of vampires exist? This is a "sampler" of vampire legends from around the world. For more variations on the vampire myth, take a look at some of the books listed under the non-fiction category of question 3.1. Asanbosam: African. Asanbosam are normal vampires except that they have hooks instead of feet. They tend to bite their victims on the thumb. Baital: Indian. These vampires natural form is that of a half-man, half-bat creature roughly four feet tall. They are otherwise unremarkable. Bajang: Malaysian. The bajang normally take the form of polecats. They could be enslaved by sorcerors and forced to kill the sorceror's enemies, and some families were believed to be hereditarily stalked by the bajang. Baobhan Sith: Scottish. The baobhan sith (pronounced buh-van she) are evil fairies who appear as beautiful young women and will dance with men they find until the men are exhausted, and then feed on them. The baobhan sith can be harmed and destroyed by cold iron. Callicantzaros: Ancient Greece. According to Greek legend, a child born on Christmas will become a callicantzaros. These vampires often appear in half-human, half-animal shapes. Ch'ing Shih: Chinese. Ch'ing shih appear livid and may kill with poisonous breath in addition to draining blood. If a Ch'ing Shih encounters a pile of rice, it must count the grains before it can pass the pile. They can be harmed and destroyed by normal weapons and by sunlight. Their immaterial form is a glowing sphere of light, much like a will-o'-the-wisp. Civateteo: Mexican. These vampire-witches held sabbaths at crossroads and were believed to attack young children and to mate with human men, producing children who were also vampires. They were believed to be linked to the god Tezcatlipoca. Dearg-due: Irish. The dearg-due is a standard European vampire, except that it cannot shapeshift and may be defeated by building a cairn of stones over its grave. Empusa: Ancient Greece and Rome. Empusas appear as either beautiful women or ancient hags. They are strongly related to the incubi and succubi (q.v). Ekimmu: Assyrian. These are vampires of the spirit variety. They are naturally invisible and are capable of possessing humans. They can be destroyed by using wooden weapons or by exorcism. Hanh Saburo: Indian. These creatures live in forests and can control dogs. They will attempt to lure or drive travellers into the forest to attack them. Incubus: European. Incubi (plural of incubus) are sexual vampires. They are spirit vampires of a demonic nature. They may enter homes uninvited and can take on the appearance of other persons. They will often visit the same victim repeatedly. A victim of an incubus will experience the visits as dreams. The female version of an incubus is a succubus. Jaracara: Brazilian. Normally appearing as snakes, jaracara are said to drink the milk of sleeping women as well as their blood. Krvopijac: Bulgarian. Krvopijacs (also known as obours) look like normal vampires except that they have only one nostril. They can be immobilized by placing wild roses around their graves. One way to destroy a krvopijac is for a magician to order its spirit into a bottle, which must then be thrown into a fire. Lamia: Ancient Greece and Rome. Lamias are exclusively female vampires. They often appear in half-human, half-animal forms and eat the flesh of their victims in addition to drinking their blood. Lamias can be attacked and killed with normal weapons. Loogaro: West Indies. Appearing as old women, these vampires go abroad at night as blobs of light, much like the will-o'-the-wisp. Mulo: Serbian. Mulos normally appear as people wearing white clothes. They are active both day and night, and can assume the shapes of horses or sheep. They eat their victims in addition to drinking their blood. Mulos are also known as Vlokoslak. Nachzerer: German. These are ghosts of the recently dead which return to kill their families. Nosferatu: Central and Eastern European. The "traditional" vampire described in Dracula. Most vampires appearing in movies and books are of this sort. Rakshasa: Indian. The Rakshasas are powerful vampires of the spirit variety. They usually appear as humans with animal features (claws, fangs, slitted eyes, etc.) or as animals with human features (flattened noses, hands, etc.). They often appear as tigers. In any form, rakshasas are powerful magicians. They eat the flesh of their victims in addition to drinking blood. Rakshasas may be destroyed by burning, sunlight, or exorcism. Strige: Eastern European. These are "birds of ill omen" who will attack people at night, with a whole flock of strigoi sometimes attacking a single victim. The strigoi use their long, sharp beaks to peck holes in their victims and drink their blood. Vampyr: Serbian. The vampyr is naturally invisible, but can be seen by animals or by a dhampir. A dhampir is the (living) offspring of a vampyr, and is capable of seeing vampyrs and of harming them physically. Dhampirs would often hire out to destroy vampyrs. Vampyrs cannot shapeshift. Vrykolakas: Medieval Greece. Described as being "swollen" and "distended," vrykolakas can walk in daylight without being harmed. The vrykolakas may only call to be let into a specific house once a night. In addition to sucking blood, vrykolakas also cause nightmares. They may be destroyed by exorcism or burning. In Crete, they are called kathakano. Wampir: Polish and Russian. Wampiri appear exactly as normal humans and have a "sting" under their tongue rather than fangs. They are active from noon until midnight. A wampir may only be destroyed by burning. When the wampir is burned, its body will burst, giving rise to hundreds of small, disgusting animals (maggots, rats, etc.). If any of these escape, then the wampir's "spirit" will escape as well, and will later return to seek revenge. These creatures are also called vieszcy and upierczi. Of course, this list is not exhaustive. Some other regional variants on the vampire are: dracul (Austrian), kwakiytl (American Indian), lobishomen (Brazilian), murony (Wallachian), ogolgen (Bohemian), otgiruru (African), oupir (Hungarian), owenga (African), strigoi (Romanian), talamaur (Melanasian), vapir (Bulgarian), avarcolac (Romanian), sharabisu (Babylonian), brucolacas (Greek), kattakhanes (Singhalese), khadro/dakini (Tibetan), kalika (Hindu), aulak (Arabic), akharu (Assyrian vampiress), swawmx (Burmese), vikodlak (Slavic), vrikolak (Russian), and mullo (gypsy). 7. How can I find a vampire? Tracking a vampire is like tracking any other animal; you must start by going to the native terrain of your target. In the case of a vampire, these are places where sources of food, namely humans, congregate and can be relatively easily induced to slip off alone together for a bit. Thus, you should go to bars, dance clubs, and other such places, preferably in large cities (greater variety of prey). Once there, watch the patrons. Look out for other people who are watching the patrons. If the place(s) you choose are preferred haunts of one or more vampires, then you should eventually notice a pattern; someone who routinely slips off with a person, but rarely with the same person twice. Once you've got a few possible suspects, you can begin applying standard tests for vampirism; look at their skin, try to discreetly follow them a bit, see if they show up in mirrors. Of course, some of these tests may just be myths, so they don't have to meet all of them. Once you're fairly sure someone is a vampire, you can begin the approach. Try to get to know them in a social context. This is the hardest, and potentially the most dangerous, part. Reasonably, most vampires will not want to be discovered for what they are, and if they think someone suspects, they will either move on or eliminate that person. Should you succeed in this step, then you can begin to raise the subject of vampires. Be subtle. Don't come right out and ask, "Are you a vampire?" Instead, bring up the subject of vampires in a conversation, and see what he/she says about it, if anything. Of course, you could always try the easy way: try to get one of us to respond to you over the net. You never know--it could happen. But don't be surprised if the vampire decides that you are too much of a risk to leave alive... Good Luck. 8. What is porphyria, and why is it called "the vampire disease?" Porphyria is actually a group of diseases, all of which have to do with the metabolism of porphyrin, an essential ingredient in metabolising iron. It is a genetic disorder, and is in no way contagious. In 1964, in an article in the _Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine_, L. Illis proposed that porphyria might be an explanation for werewolf legends. More than 20 years later, in 1985, David Dolphin presented a paper at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science proposing that porphyria might be an explanation for vampire legends. What about porphyria made them make these statements? One of the varieties of porphyria, congenital erythropoietic porphyria, has among its possible symptoms severe light sensitivity, reddish-brown urine and teeth, mutilation of the nose, ears, eyelids, and fingers, an excess of body hair, and anemia. In addition, some kinds of porphyria are associated with epilepsy. However, there is no evidence that porphyrics have any sort of craving to drink blood, and, although it has been conjectured that eating garlic might be harmful to them, it is not. In short, the hullaballoo over porphyria and vampirism that went on for a short time was simply a typical media overreaction to anything that might heighten circulation/ratings. :-) 9. What is a "psychic vampire?" A psychic vampire is a living person who "drains" others emotionally. Depending on the version, this may be an empathic drain (i.e., literally feeding on the emotions of others) or it may be a metaphorical drain (someone who "takes" emotionally without giving anything back; a "user"). The victims of a psychic vampire become lethargic and depressed, and, should they be drained too much, may become suicidal. The vampire itself is generally represented as fairly normal except for its ability; depending on who you ask, psychic vampires may or may not be aware of what they do. 10. Will a 'real' vampire please come and turn me into a vampire? _If_ vampires do exist, they may not be exactly what you have been led to expect from books, films, and role playing games. So if you make such a request you are publically expressing a desire to escape into the fantasy world you have seen in these media. Don't embarrass yourself. You should also consider that someone who _truly_ believes he/she is a vampire is more likely to be a criminally insane than undead. Do you really want to invite a dangerous psychopath to come and suck your blood out? Part 3 -- Where to get more information about vampires 1. What books about vampires are out there? Fiction: For a list of vampire fiction, see David C. Mudie's (mudie@eecs.berkeley.edu) _Suggested Reading for alt.vampyres_, posted to alt.vampyres on a monthly basis. Non-fiction: All opinions were written by Travis S. Casey unless stated otherwise. Barber, Paul. _Vampires, Burial, and Death_ THE book to read if you're at all interested in the origins of the vampire myth. Barber takes several actual accounts of vampire plagues, analyzes the various popular theories on where the vampire myth came from in light of them, and comes up with his own theory. Along the way, he touches on many other areas of legend and gives a great deal of detail about how bodies tend to decompose. Masters, Anthony. _A Natural History of the Vampire_ A very good book, especially in the area of covering different regional versions of the vampire myth. More accessible than Summers' books, and dealing more with the vampire myth than Barber's. Summers, Montague. _The Vampire_ and _The Vampire in Europe_ Two extensive works which have been used as source material by almost every non-fiction work on vampires since. Slow going, but occasionally lightened up by Summers' credulity; the man seems to be willing to believe almost anything. The following info comes from Alyce Wilson; some of it overlaps with what Travis Casey has written. The info has been reformatted to fit better into this FAQ, but the content has not been changed. Recommended Vampire Reading List (Non-Fiction) This list may be reposted as long as this header is retained. Compiled by Alyce Wilson [amw108@psuvm.psu.edu]. Updates/corrections should be e-mailed to above address. >:-[ (I vant to suck your e-mail account time!) Aylesworth, Thomas G. _Vampires_and_Other_Ghosts_. Circa 1975. A surprisingly complete children's guide to vampires (with some inaccuracies by way of omission -- lack of space). Brosnan, John. _The_Horror_People_. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1976. A general overview of the history of horror films (primarily in America). Concerned with the *people* involved in horror films -- actors and producers/directors. Features a large section on the Hammer vampire films starring Christopher Lee. Bunson, Matthew. _The_Vampire_Encyclopedia_. New York: Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1993. A compendium of vampire lore and theory. Lists movies, myths, literary references. Carter, Margaret L., ed. _'Dracula':_The_Vampire_and_the_Critics_. Ann Arbor, Michigan and London: UMI Research Press, 1988. A collection of critical essays about Stoker's _Dracula_ and its connotations in society as a myth and as a novel. Cox, Greg. _The_Transylvanian_Library:_A_Consumer's_Guide_to_Vampire_ _Fiction_. San Bernadino, CA: Borgo Press, 1993. A comprehensive guide to English vampire fiction, from the seminal Polidori's _The_Vampyre_ (1819) through Ellen Datlow's 1989 collection of vamp stories, _Blood_is_Not_Enough_. Rates each work from 1 to 4 bats. Includes a brief history of the vampire and definitions for various types of literary vamps. Dresser, Norine. _American_Vampires:_Fans,_Victims,_and_Practitioners_. New York and London: W.W. Norton and Co., Inc., 1989. Explores the myth of the American vampire; data collected through questionnaires to students, porphyria patients and vampire fans. Additional data was taken from the media. Documents how Americans identify with and imitate vampirism. Glut, Donald F. _The_Dracula_Book_. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1975. Expands on Dracula material from his previous book. Discusses the vampire image in respect to Count Dracula. A self-proclaimed contribution to the "Draculamania" of the 1970's -- the "years of the bat." Jones, Stephen. _The_Illustrated_Vampire_Movie_Guide_. Vol. I London: Titan Books, 1993. It does what it says. It says what it does. A comprehensive guide to all international movies with a vampire theme or something approximating one. Even includes movies where vamps make brief appearances (such as _The_Magic_Christian_). Rates each movie from 1 to 5 bats. Leatherdale, Clive. _Dracula,_The_Novel_and_the_Legend:_A_Study_ _of_Bram_Stoker's_Gothic_Masterpiece_. Wellingborough, Northamptonshire: Aquarian Press, 1985. Traces the vampire legend through myth and literature. Provides analytical perspectives on Dracula's role in culture and sociology. McNally, Raymond T. _A_Clutch_of_Vampires:_These_Being_Among_ _the_Best_from_History_and_Literature_. 1974. A collection of factual accounts of (so-called?) actual historical vampires, as well as some fictional stories. [McNally also wrote excellent book on historical Vlad Tepes, a.k.a. Dracula.] Ramsland, Katherine. _The_Vampire_Companion:_The_Official_Guide_to_ _Anne_Rice's_The Vampire Chronicles. New York: Ballantine Books, 1993. A cross-referenced guide to Rice's vampire books, as well as _The_Witching_Hour_, which shares some characters with _The_ Vampire_Lestat_ and _Tale_of_the_Body_Thief_. Recommend reading the chronicles *and* TWH before reading this guide. Senf, Carol. _The_Vampire_in_Nineteenth_Century_Literature_. Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1988. Examines the progression of vampires from myth to gothic villain, to modern literature. Summers, Montague. _The_Vampire:_His_Kith_and_Kin_. New York: E.P. Dutton and Company, 1929. Classic work by the noted vampirologist. Although a little difficult to read by modern standards, a valuable work because of its extensive documentation. Twitchell, James B. _The_Living_Dead:_A_Study_of_the_Vampire_in_ _Romantic_Literature_. Durham, N.C.: Duke U.P., 1987. Looks at female and male vampires in poetry and prose of the Nineteenth century. Good for understanding of evolution of vampire myth in literature. 2. What vampire movies are worth seeing? A review list of vampire movies is kept by Jason Puckett (lawjdp@gsusgi2.gsu.edu), and is posted to alt.vampyres on a regular basis. 3. Are there any organizations about vampires that I can join? The following list of vampire organizations is taken from the alt.gothic FAQ, maintained by Peter Wake (peterw@cs.man.ac.uk). I have no personal knowledge of any of these organizations, so if you get ripped off, don't blame me. Most of the vampire magazines listed come from nytshadow@genie.geis.com. The Vampyre Society: Annual membership 12 pounds sterling, which gives you four issues of 'The Velvet Vampire', free small ads and invitations to various social events including weekends in Whitby. Alice Pinder P.O. Box 68, Keightley, West Yorkshire, BD22 6RU ----------------------- The Vampire Information Exchange Newsletter P. O. Box 328 Brooklyn, New York 11229-0328 ----------------------- Nocturnal Extacy Vampire Coven 4527 South Troy Chicago, IL 60632 ----------------------- Secret Order of the Undead T. J. Teer 155 East C Street Suite 323 Upland, CA 91786 ----------------------- Vampire Research Institute send: S.A.S.E. P. O. Box 21067 Seattle, WA 98111 ----------------------- "Good Guys Wear Fangs" fanzine Mary Ann B. McKinnon, Editor 254 Blunk Avenue Plymouth, Michigan 48170 (Note: She will answer correspondence, but it may be slow) ----------------------- Temple Of The Vampire Box 3582 Lacey, Washington 98503 The information packet fee is $5.00; Membership dues are $10.00 per month These people have a hierarchical organization that seems to be almost a religion of bloodeating but won't tell me enough info without me paying them the five bucks for me to write a decent review of them. ----------------------- Temple of Set POB 470307 San Francisco, California 94147 ----------------------- Order Of The Vampyre Ambrose 235 A.B.T.B. Lewes, DE 19958 Dues: Postage cost. Membership Includes: Correspondence, newsletters and bulletins, information clearinghouse. Possible invitation to the inner society. Interested in hearing about (fluff alert) vampire stories (fluff alert), fantasies, attacks, etc. ----------------------- The Dracula Society The Honourable Secretary Waterside Cottage 36 High Street Upper Upnor, near Rochester Kent ME2, 4XG England ----------------------- The Bram Stoker Society: John C. Leahy, Secretary Bram Stoker Society 4 Nassau Street Dublin 2 Republic of Ireland ----------------------- (Supposedly the two above don't get along together). ----------------------- VAMPIRE ARCHIVES $30/year for around 12 issues. Publishing c/o Jule Ghoul Schedule is erratic, but constant. 2926 West Leland Ave $4/each issue. Chicago, IL 60625-3716 ----------------------- SHADOWDANCE $2/each issue, $10/year - bimonthly. Michelle Belanger Annual price may have changed...Send PO Box 474 SASE/IRC for info Hinckley, OH 44233 ----------------------- THEE VAMPIRE GUILD Send IRC for information. Phill White 82 Ripcroft Portland, Dorset DT5 2EE ENGLAND ----------------------- SHADOWS OF THE NIGHT This one is finally getting active Nightmist Magazine again. Due to deaths in the family PO Box 17006 & personal problems, things were on Rochester, NY 14617-0306 hiatus, but work has now begun on Nightmist #2 from what I've heard. $15/year - 4 issues. ----------------------- Part 4 -- Miscellaneous vampire stuff 1. How can I find out more about Forever Knight? The following information was culled from a post by Steve Fellows: Forever Knight is a television series starring Geraint Wyn Davies as Toronto Metropolitan Police Detective Nicholas Knight, an 800 year old vampire. Apparently the show is still being made and broadcast. Check your local listings for times and days of broadcast. Fan Club Information: To be part of the Forever Knight fan club, send $15 (US) to: Forever Knight Fan Club c/o Lora Haines P.O. Box 1228 Boston, MA 02130 USA For more information through Internet: Try the email listserver: for information: send mail to JAP8@PSUVM.PSU.EDU or LMS5@PSUVM.PSU.EDU to subscribe: send message [SUBSCRIBE FORKNI-L first-name last-name] to listserv@psuvm.psu.edu Plus, there are two newsgroups dedicated to Forever Knight on Internet: alt.tv.forever-knight alt.tv.forever-knight.spoilers This first newsgroup has a FAQ maintained by Steve Fellows. It is probably possible to get a copy of it by emailing to st1450@siucvmb.siu.edu and asking nicely. 2. Have you seen Interview with the Vampire? Wanna talk about it? Yes, we've all seen it; no, we don't want to talk about it. We have gone through many threads concerning the casting of IWTV, the overall opinions on ITWV and psychological support groups created because there are so damn many posts about IWTV. In short, we have grown tired of talking about the movie. Starting a new thread may get you a few nasty letters in return. However, for more information about Anne Rice and her writing, try the newsgroup at alt.books.anne-rice or try the email listserver: for information: send mail to annerice@psuvm.psu.edu to subscribe: send message [SUBSCRIBE ANNERICE first-name last-name] to listserv@psuvm.psu.edu 3. Have you ever heard of White Wolf's Vampire: The Masquerade game? Yes, we've all heard of it. Most, if not all, of us have played it. Material relating to the game should only be posted if it is not rules-oriented; that is, feel free to discuss vampire society, physiology, psychology, etc., but don't ask questions about the rules or discuss them here. If you do want to discuss rules, please do so in alt.games.whitewolf or rec.games.frp.misc. Once again, there is an email listserver that you may join: to subscribe: send message [SUBSCRIBE VAMPIRE-L first-name last-name] to listserv@wizards.com 4. What are some other Internet vampire resources? There is, of course, the ubiquitious email listserver (did you see this one coming?) that talks about all aspects of vampiric stuff to subscribe, send message [SUBSCRIBE VAMPIRE-L] to promail@ethr.protree.com There is loads of stuff on the World Wide Web. For general vampire info, check the two following URLs: Vampyres: created by Brian Combs http://www.quadralay.com/Combs/Vampyres/home.html Vampyres Only: created by Vlad III http://www.wimsey.com/~bmiddlet/vampyre/vampyre.html For vampire fiction on the web: Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles: address: http://www.maths.tcd.ie/pub/vampire/intro.html Bram Stoker's Dracula: address: http://www.cs.cmu.edu:8001/Web/People/rgs/drac-table.html The text of Dracula is also available by FTP from ftp.world.com, in the directory /obi/Bram.Stoker. This version is compressed with the Unix compress program. Lastly, those with gopher can get it fromthe gopher at world.std.com; look under OBI (The Online Book Initiative) Dark Shadows: synopses of the first 300 episodes address: http://www.wimsey.com/~bmiddlet/vampyre/faqs/dkshadow.html For more vampire and related things on the web: http://acacia.ens.fr:8080/home/granboul/Vampire/index.html http://www.teleport.com/~caseyh/horror/horror.html http://gothic.acs.csulb.edu:8080/Gothic http://coe1.engr.umbc.edu/~vijay2/home.html ^ Note: this is a ONE--not an L!! Finally, for more newsgroups, try: alt.gothic Not dedicated to vampires, but are there some interesting topics that come up from time to time alt.horror Does what it says--talks about the horror genre Special Thanks go to: Travis S. Casey Peter Wake Alyce Wilson Steve Fellows Erika Michele Tatsuhwa Gary Lee Hoke David C. Mudie Vlad III Cathy Krusberg