A Vampire Personal Curriculum From Folklore to Lestat
A friend of mine is writing a vampire urban fantasy. She’s been working on it since she was sixteen, and she’s Romanian, so the folklore she’s putting into it is her own.
Every time we talked about it, I kept circling the same question. For most of the last century, the vampire’s default address was Transylvania. Then somewhere along the way he packed up and moved to New Orleans. I’ve been reading vampires for decades and I had never once stopped to ask when that happened, or why.
So I went looking, and one question turned into twenty. This vampire personal curriculum is what came out of that rabbit hole. And you can copy it if you want more vampires in your life.
It runs from the folklore to Booktok. There are five required reads that each changed something, electives sorted by the mood you’re in, a watchlist, three games and a deep dive. There are no deadlines. I don’t assign homework. Do it at your own pace.
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Start here (and it’s free)
Dracula is the book people start with. It’s told entirely in letters and diary entries, and the middle drags. There’s a free fix if you want to consume that, and it’s such a creative way into this whole subject.
Dracula Daily is a free newsletter that sends you the novel in pieces, on the actual dates the diary entries happen. Jonathan Harker’s first entry is on May 3. The last one is November 7. Matt Kirkland started this in 2021 with about 1,600 subscribers and by 2023 it had passed 240,000.
Time: this will take you about ten minutes every week from May to November, or binge the backlog whenever you start. Free.
The second free thing: the Open University has a short course called Spectres, Monsters, Fairies and Vampires: An Introduction to the Irish Gothic. It’s introductory, it covers Carmilla and Dracula, and it pulls on a thread that I found fascinating and I don’t see explored often. Sheridan Le Fanu and Bram Stoker were both Dubliners and Stoker’s first job was reviewing plays, unpaid, for a Dublin paper Le Fanu co-owned.
Time: a few hours, and you can dip in and out. Free.
And let me just add to the three list the public domain novels you’ll find in the required reading below. They are the foundation of the curriculum and they cost you nothing.
The required five
These are the five books where something important shifted and they left a mark on how the vampire is perceive. The three that are free is because they’re out of copyright.
The Vampyre by John Polidori, 1819
This was the vampire’s first glow up. It’s less than 100 pages and it was written during the same ghost story contest at Lake Geneva that produced Frankenstein. In that story, the village revenant becomes Lord Ruthven: a nobleman, charming, moving through London drawing rooms and seducing as he goes. Polidori modeled him on Lord Byron, the most famous bad boy in England. If you want all the gossip behind that summer, my friend Victoria is covering the bookish scandals of classic authors, Polidori included, over on Bibliolifestyle.
Free on Project Gutenberg.
Time: an hour. Free.
Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, 1872
A novella, published twenty-five years before Dracula. Laura is living in a remote castle when a girl her own age arrives after a carriage accident, and the two of them fall into something the book never quite names. It is often cited as the first sapphic vampire story
Free on Project Gutenberg.
Time: you can get through it in one evening. Free.
I read it for the first time this September. It’s a quick read and the writing is so much easier to get through than a lot of classics. The characters pulled me in and the story kept me turning the pages (or the audiobook, as it were), but the plot never goes very far for me and I was left thinking there could’ve been more. I’m sure it was groundbreaking for 1872. Also, the vampire is not a man or an aristocrat and I liked that.
If you wan, you can grab the same hardcover copy I have that combines The Vampyre and Carmilla (foreword by V.E. Schwab) or the paperback of Dracula.
Dracula by Bram Stoker, 1897
The one everyone thinks about and you definitely need to read it for the structure alone. The whole novel is a case file put together by the people hunting the Count. And you’ll be surprised by how many things we’ve come to know of the famous version are actually not in the book.
I’m listening to the new audiobook narrated by Jonathan Bailey and the narrators do such a wonderful job. But remember, Dracula is not boyfriend material.
Free on Project Gutenberg, through Dracula Daily, or the Jonathan Bailey Dracula audiobook.
Time: give yourself a week, or six months if go the newsletter pace.
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice, 1976
This is where things start to turn. Louis tells his story and the vampire becomes a little bit more human. I read her back in high school in the ’90s and then watched the movie when it came out. I was done for. I wanted everything vampire I could get my hands on. I even put New Orleans on my bucket list of places to see before I died. I made it there in 2014 and of course I went outside her house in the Garden District.
And yes, Lestat. I think loving Lestat is pretty much a universal experience. If this is something you want to explore more, check out the Vampire Chronicles reading order to make it less intimidating and see all the interconnected series. Or check out other books like Interview with the Vampire. It’s a great time to dive into the series as we celebrate 30 years since its release!
Time: a weekend to read the original book. Grab a copy of Interview with the Vampire.
Dark Lover by J.R. Ward, 2005
If you don’t read this one, you are missing out on a pivotal moment where the vampire became a true romance hero. Wrath is the blind king of a dying race of vampires, Beth is a half-vampire who has no idea what she is. This birthed the whole Black Dagger Brotherhood and even more paranormal romances where we fall for the vampire as the intense romance hero. Yes, there were vampires before, but this book and series marked such an important rise in their popularity.
If you’re not sure where to start with the series after Dark Lover, check out my Black Dagger Brotherhood reading guide.
Time: a weekend to read the original book. Grab a copy of Dark Lover.
Electives: Pick Your Mood
This is where you customize the curriculum to fit you. This isn’t about the history or the impact, it’s about exploring everything the vampire has to offer.
If you want it funny
The funny vampire came in two waves. The 2000s was all about urban fantasies, first person, sarcasm and usually a woman who got turned against her will and is furious about it. The 2020s wave is all about the romcom. They’re softer and more likely to involve an awkward roommate than a war for the vampire throne. I love both.
Undead and Unwed by MaryJanice Davidson, 2004. Betsy Taylor dies, wakes up a vampire and she’s mostly upset about her shoes. She’s the vampire narrator, her boyfriend Sinclair is the vampire that spends the series trying to keep up with her. Grab it on Amazon.
Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs by Molly Harper, 2009. Jane Jameson gets fired, gets shot and gets turned, roughly in that order. The humor sometimes is a bit over the top and you have to warm up to Jane. But the series is a fun time. Grab it on Amazon.
When Life Gives You Vampires by Gloria Duke, 2022. The perfect funny vampire for the modern romance reader. If you’re a fan of Julie Murphy or Tessa Bailey, you’ll want to read this one. Lily gets turned against her will, by accident, by Tristan. And since it’s against vampire law, they now have to work together to cover their butt. Grab it on Amazon.
My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine, 2023. Cassie needs somewhere to live and Frederick has a spare room and some unusual house rules. This is one of the authors that put the paranormal romcom back on the map. Grab it on Amazon.
Bride by Ali Hazelwood, 2024. A vampire bride handed to a werewolf pack as a political arrangement. It’s more romance than comedy but Ali Hazelwood is great at banter. Grab it on Amazon.
If funny turns out to be your jam, I’ve got even more recommendations you can check out. Start with the paranormal romantic comedy standalones, for one and done out in a weekend. If you want a series with some humor to get lost in, then my funny paranormal romance series if where you need to go next. But if Betsy Taylor and Jane Jameson did it for you, I have more funny urban fantasy books with snark and maybe not always romance.
If you want it scary
A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson, 2021. Dracula’s first bride writes to him about what he did to her and to the two who came after. If you read the classics and it left you thinking if only the wives could talk, this is the book. Grab it on Amazon.
House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson, 2022. Blood-drinking nobility and the bloodmaids who serve them. Marion takes a post in the House of Hunger and ends up the countess’s lover. This one has some of those French period Lestat and Armand vibes. Grab it on Amazon.
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix, 2020. A 1990s Charleston book club versus a polite predator. It’s funny until it isn’t. Grab it on Amazon.
If you want a little more romance, but still the gothic atmosphere
The Darkness Bites Back by Laura R. Samotin and Ben Alderson, 2026. Romeo and Juliet with vampires in modern day Oxford. Tobias wants revenge on the head of Britain’s most powerful vampire clan and then he meets the man’s son. Grab it on Amazon.
Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab, 2025. Three women across five centuries. I know you’ve heard about it and it you want a lyrical experience, this is one not to miss. Grab it on Amazon.
If you want it literary
The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez, 1991. A Black lesbian vampire novel that opens with a girl escaping slavery in 1850s Louisiana and runs all the way to 2050. It won two Lambda Literary Awards. Grab it on Amazon.
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Fledgling by Octavia Butler, 2005. Butler’s last novel. Shori wakes up badly burned with no memory and turns out to be a genetically engineered vampire. Butler is all about consent, dependence and what counts as family. Grab it on Amazon.
Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, 2016. Mexico City, vampire cartels and several vampire species with completely different biologies. Our guest reviewer Dusty gave it 5 stars, basically saying “move over, Bram Stoker.” Read her full review here and grab it on Amazon.
If you want a long series to fall into
Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton, 1993. Anita Blake raises the dead for a living and has a license to kill vampires. Jean-Claude is the vampire that has to keep up with her. Urban fantasy with lots of steam! Grab it on Amazon.
Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris, 2001. Sookie is a waitress in small town Louisiana who can hear people’s thoughts and then she meets the Vampire Bill. This is the series that got me truly back into reading. The early books are the best of it. Grab it on Amazon.
Minion by L.A. Banks, 2003. Damali Richards is a spoken word artist and a vampire huntress. This series ran 12 books through the 2000s at a major publisher with a Black cast. Not many were doing that at the time. Banks died in 2011 and I don’t think I see enough people talking about it. Grab it on Amazon.
Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost, 2007. Cat is half vampire, Bones is all vampire, and they hunt the bad vamps side by side. Then there’s Vlad, yes Dracula, and one of my favorite heroes of all time. There are interconnected series, so you may want to check out the Night Huntress reading order to have the whole thing mapped out. Grab it on Amazon.
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead, 2007. A royal Moroi princess, her half-human guardian, and the friendship (and love for her mentor) that carries the whole series. This is the YA vampire boom at the best expression.Fun fact, Blood Promise was the first book I ever reviewed online. Grab it on Amazon.
If you don’t want western vampires
Silver Under Nightfall by Rin Chupeco, 2022. Remy, a disgraced vampire hunter, ends up working with a vampire couple, Zidan and Xiaodan, to track a plague killing humans and vampires alike. The romance between the three of them is amazing. Our guest reviewer Mariya gave it 4.5 stars and called it the perfect spooky season read. Read her full review here and grab it on Amazon.
Electives: what to watch
Some of the most iconic moments on the screen. This may be where you met the vampire for the first time.
Sinners, 2025. The modern pick and the one to watch right after the required five because it puts the whole history of the curriculum on screen. Ryan Coogler sets his vampires in 1932 Mississippi, around the blues, and the film is about race and the American South as much as it’s about fangs. The vampire left Europe and became American.
Nosferatu, 1922. The vampire is a vermin, closer to the folklore. Watch it next to Dracula and notice how little they have in common.
Dracula, 1931. This is where the cape, the accent and the medallion come from. A 1924 stage play, this film invented the costume everyone wears at Halloween. This is also where we start to romanticize the vampire.
Queen of the Damned, 2002. It’s not a faithful adaptation, but I’m going to defend it anyway. Aaliyah as Akasha and Stuart Townsend as Lestat, plus a soundtrack that made this movie iconic.
Interview with the Vampire, AMC show, 2022 on. The best adaptation of anything Rice wrote. Not because it’s accurate, but because it captures the essence I got away from the books and characters. Louis is a Black businessman in 1910s Storyville and his relationship with Lestat is out on screen.
Twilight, 2008. The one that turned vampires into a global phenomenon and then spent fifteen years being apologized for. Bad as it may be, it was a vibe, from the cinematography to the cheesy lines, and at the time I loved every second of it.
Nosferatu, 2024. Robert Eggers version. You can watch it right after the 1922 movie and draw your comparisons.
Something vampire to play
Reading and watching aren’t the only ways to spend time with a vampire. These are three games you’ll love getting lost in.
Moonlight Peaks. A cozy life sim where you play Count Dracula’s kid, who would rather farm than take over the family business. You inherit an abandoned homestead and bring it back with farming, fishing, foraging, potion making and a little witchcraft.
I’ve been playing this one since the demo came out and I love the color palette of the game, the whole thing is cute and adorable. It can feel a little clumsy at times to get around compared to other games but I just love the vibe.
Vampire Therapist. You play Sam Walls, a vampire and reformed Wild West gunslinger who becomes a therapist in a gothic nightclub. A 3000 year old mentor teaches him real cognitive behavioral techniques, and he uses them on vampire clients from across history.
Fun fact, they actually had real therapist collaborate on building this is it’s all accurate.
Thousand Year Old Vampire by Tim Hutchings, 2019. A solo journaling game where it’s just you, a notebook and some dice. You create a vampire, roll your way through numbered prompts and write the centuries of their life as they happen. The catch is memory. Your vampire can only hold five memories at a time, so as the centuries pile up you decide what they forget, or you write it down in a diary they can lose.
This one pairs perfectly with Interview with the Vampire.
The PDF is all you need to play but you can also get a gorgeous hardcover with all the instructions.
The deep dive shelf
Optional, of course, and depending on how much time you want to dedicate to this project. Some of these are also out of print and you may need some more time to dig them up and find them.
Vampires, Burial and Death by Paul Barber, 1988. What people actually saw when they dug up a suspected vampire, which turns out to be ordinary decomposition read as evidence. Find it on GoodReads.
Our Vampires, Ourselves by Nina Auerbach, 1995. Every era gets the vampire it needs, traced decade by decade. Her line is that vampires go where the power is. Grab it on Amazon.
Reading the Vampire by Ken Gelder, 1994. The academic version of how the vampire became American, with a chapter on Anne Rice. Find it on GoodReads.
Dracula, Sense and Nonsense by Elizabeth Miller. The debunking book. Read it if you want to stop repeating things about Dracula that aren’t true, starting with Vlad the Impaler. Grab it on Amazon.
A few questions before you start
Do I have to read these in order?
No. Read in whatever order you want. If you want to see differences, maybe do the required 5 in order. But there’s no requirement.
Is Dracula hard?
Not really, the struggle is the pacing. If that’s you, maybe Dracula Daily gives you an easier to consume bite size portion.
What’s the fastest way to start?
Polidori and Camilla. Both are free or available at the library and you can read them in one sitting. Two evenings and you’ll feel like you’re making progress.
Where are the 90s?
Mostly on screen. The 1994 Interview movie made New Orleans the vampire city, Buffy started in 1997 and Anita Blake in 1993. You can definitely do those as part of the 90s vamp education.
Was Dracula based on Vlad the Impaler?
Actually, it has been found to be false. Stoker’s notes show he found the name in a library book in Whitby in 1890 and copied down a footnote saying it meant devil. There’s no Vlad in the notes, no impaling and none of the atrocities. This connectino came from a 1972 bok whose authors later backed away from the claim.
Where to go from here?
You have your required reads, as many electives as you want, a watchlist to keep you busy and a farm to run if you’d rather play. The whole foundation is free and the required five are finishable in short time.
If you’d rather continue reading about vampires, check out even more vampire romance books.
Now tell me, which vampire got you first? Mine was probably Lestat followed closely by Angel in Buffy, when I was in high school and before I moved on to urban fantasies.
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