Tuesday, February 14, 2017

...Vampire’s Day Soiree- a book inspires clothing and a conference...

“There is a reason why
all things are as they are.”
~Bram Stoker, Dracula
While this is my third year participating in the Vampire’s Day Soiree thrown by Holly at Holly’s Horrorland, this is the Sixth Annual Vampire’s Day Soiree.  In lieu of Valentine’s Day, bloggers focus on all things Vampires! I always seem to focus on my love for vampires.

This week students in my Introduction to Literature course and I are wrapping up our reading and discussions of Dracula.  I delight in that I am able to both read and share this book with students annually. I also amuse myself by dressing the part. Rather it is a small brooch ensemble, a cluster of necklaces, a dress, or a full outfit, I always try to channel the day’s teaching into my attire.

Recently, when my fella and I were out for a dinner date, we strolled into the local Barnes & Noble and noticed that some employee had a great time setting up their displays (pictured above). 

This seems like the perfect display for the Vampire’s Day Soiree. This is how Dracula resides in my head but my actual Norton Critical Edition has seen a great deal of love. Along with annotations (and it seems like I’m always finding more to comment on), there are wine stains, wax droplets, and tape (because it’s falling apart and I refuse to admit that I need a new copy). It’s a great visual aid when I tell my students to be active readers, not passive, delicate readers. We’re English Majors! We’re supposed to get into texts and grapple with words and phrasing.

Although teaching Dracula this semester is coming to an end, I already am starting to think about the summer. I know that a hot, Virginia summer does not make most folks consider vampires; however, this summer I’m teaching my course, Vampires in Literature, Film, and Pop Culture; and, I will be taking a little trip down to Texas for the World Dracula Day Symposium 2017 at North Central Texas College, a two-day event to celebrate the 120th Anniversary of the publication of Bram Stoker's brilliant text. Along with an evening keynote address by Dacre Stoker, great-grand-nephew of Bram Stoker, to kick off the event, the speakers will include John Edgar Browning, Gordon Melton, Nancy Rosenberg England, Elizabeth Richmond-Garza, Thomas Garza, and Dax Stokes along with local vampire-fiction authors.
 
I’m thinking about the trip a lot this week since the airline changed the flight schedule and I had to cancel the entire purchase. After they refund me, I will start again in hopes that scheduling this trip doesn’t suck the life out of me ;D (I so amuse myself)


Happy Vampire’s Day!




11 comments:

  1. OH SHARON!!! SQUEE!!! I have no words ... I adore the fact that you "eat" your books, too. Annotations, flags, stains, underlines, etc. I KNEW IT! We are two peas in a pod -- I do the exact same thing to my books. I eat them. Rip them apart. Digest everything. sigh ... that's a beautiful sight right there. Oh, and you're adorable, too. ;)

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  2. I think it's totally cool of you to teach literature and in particular, discussing Dracula. And a talk by Bram Stoker's great, grand nephew? All I can say is, well done!

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  3. You are so lucky to be able to attend these conferences! I also think it is so cool that your class covers Dracula. How I wish I could be one of your students!

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  4. Loving the idea you dress to suit the text you are teaching. The World Dracula Day Symposium sound wonderful, I hope you get your trip sorted and have a brilliant time, please write and tell us about it on your blog. Your own book looks so well loved with all the additions you have made.

    Have a Happy Vamp Day.

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  5. Oh those leggings are to die for mwahahahaha....and my roses seriously need a few gravestones to set them off properly :D XXX

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  6. Very interesting. The Symposium is in my neck of the woods. :)

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  7. Love the belt and the way you approach the study of vampire literature. And most of all, I love the sight of a book that has loved so much that it has developed its own personality. Love, love that.

    I hope you get the chance to re-plan your trip and that the new arrangements are even more favorable than the last.

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  8. Oh, my! I wish I'd had teachers like you! I love your vamp-y accessories, and the Dracula symposium just sounds to die for! (I so amuse myself too! ;D )

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  9. You are totally right, books should be handled with that much intensity and love as you have your Norton Critical Edition! :D I would love to attend one of your literature courses, they sound like so much fun. ^_^

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  10. I didn't know there was a World Dracula Day or con to go with it. That sounds like so much fun!

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  11. You have fangtastic fashion sense my fellow Virginian vampire lover! I'd love to attend one of your courses! Thanks for attending the Soiree again!

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