The Forbidden Planet International Blog Log

Leah Moore and John Reppion will be taking part in this spring’s One City, One Book reading campaign in Dublin (which, from what I can gather, is similar to the Edinburgh City of Literature campaign who did the recent Lost World campaign and the Stevenson graphic novels in previous years and other such highly laudable events which promote our literary heritage and encourage reading). The book chosen for this year is by Dublin-born Bram Stoker, his triumph of Victorian Gothic horror Dracula, a book which remains incredibly popular and influential to this day and hasn’t been out of print since it was first published in 1897. It certainly wasn’t the first vampire novel by any means, but it did bring together all of the elements we now associate as the key components of the vampire literary mythos, as well as carrying a pulse of barely repressed Victorian sexuality and longing beating like a pulse of warm blood under the skin.

(cover to the first issue of Dynamite’s Complete Dracula by Leah Moore and John Reppion, illustrated by Colton Worley, cover art by John Cassaday)

While the historical Vlad Dracul may not have been an immortal undead (or was he?!?!) Stoker’s creation has become one of the true immortals of modern culture, stalking readers, then theatre audiences and later film and comics audiences through their nightmares for more than a century. Leah and John are tackling this iconic figure for Dynamite and will be talking about the Complete Dracula in the enitrely appropriate environs of the Dublin Writer’s Museum on Saturday 18th of April at 3pm. I’ve long had an abiding fascination for Stoker’s Dracula (the novel itself is interesting – unusually structured for the time with the typed diary and phonograph entries by characters and bringing a Gothic character out of the usual dark castle setting in a remote land and into the middle of modern London) and the vampire mythology and literature in general (one of the oldest and most universal mythic archetypes in human culture) and I strongly suspect John and Leah will draw on something special from that well. In related news John and Leah have recently had their MooreReppion site revamped, so go swing by for a visit. (via Newsarama)

Oh and one more thing – despite the fact Stoker’s book has been read by millions I’m sure there are many who have never picked it up, thinking, I already know this story from the films and TV productions, so why bother? Actually, if you haven’t read it, you don’t know it, and you should do yourselves a favour and pick up the actual novel; as with Stevenson’s Jekyll and Hyde, which came from the same period, the original prose is far more than the film and TV adaptations offer; its deeper, its darker and it will live inside your head long after you finish reading. Why not use this is a good excuse to read the book then enjoy Leah and John’s upcoming comic?