Please join me with Amber Benson and friends from the cast of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” for a performance of the short play “Asylum” from DRACULA IN LOVE, and then party with us from venue to venue through Halloween evening. The music, food, and entertainment gets better as the night goes on. If you haven’t sampled the delicacies and wine at Allston Yacht Club yet, you haven’t lived!
http://bhliteraryescape.com/join-us-weekend-incredible-book-club-experiences
NEW ORLEANS FRIENDS! See below for book events leading up to Halloween.
OCTOBER 31. AMBER BENSON & FRIENDS FROM BUFFY WILL PERFORM “ASYLUM” FROM DRACULA IN LOVE AT A LOCATION TBA WITH A PARTY AFTERWARDS. STAY TUNED!
SAN FRANCISCO, NOVEMBER 3:
Karen Essex’s Dracula In Love
7:30p
Books Inc.
1344 Park St.
Alameda, CA 94501
In-store performance of scenes inspired by Karen Essex’s Dracula In Love, entitled Asylum Scene. Participating in this event are student actors from Encinal High as directed and supported by Teacher Gene Kahane.
NEW ORLEANS:
Wednesday, October 27th, 4-7pm
Boutique du Vampyre
Location: 633 Toulouse Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Program: Reading and Signing
Contact: Marita Jaeger, maritavampire@yahoo.com, 504.561.8627
Thursday, October 28th, 6:30pm
Octavia Books
Location: 513 Octavia Street, New Orleans, LA 70115-2055
Program: Reading, Q&A, Asylum Performance, Signing
Contact: Tom Lowenburg, tom@octaviabooks.com, 504.899.7323
Friday, October 29th, 7:00pm
Vampire Film Festival
Location: Shadowbox Theater, 2400 St. Claude Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117
Program: Reading from Dracula in Love, followed by an introduction to film screening (The Thirst for Blood — A Collection of Vampire Shorts)
Contact: Asif Ahmed, asif@reelenergy.com, 626.616.6771
Saturday, October 30th, 3:00pm
Vampire Film Festival
Location: Shadowbox Theater, 2400 St. Claude Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117
Program: Panel (Why Do Women Write Bloody-Good Vampire Fiction? Rice, Meyer, Harris and Beyond with Sue Dent, Karen Essex and Gabrielle Faust) , Q&A, Signing, followed by Reception with the authors
Contact: Asif Ahmed, asif@reelenergy.com, 626.616.6771
Thanks to all for your support. It’s been so much fun to catch up with so many of you around the country.
Above, just some of the readers from Kathy Louise Patrick’s Pulpwood Queens & Timberwood Guys Book Club (the largest book club in the world, people!) who turned out in costume for our Victorian banquet in Jefferson TX. That’s Kathy’s daughter dead center, who read the Mina role when we performed ASYLUM, and she was phenomenal! Kathy, the Queen herself, is in the hat next to her daughter in the splendid steampunk hat.
Hope to see you on the road!
As ever—
Karen
Thanks to everyone who attended the DRACULA IN LOVE book launch party on September 20th. We are just revving up for the fall, so please check the calendar below for upcoming events in your part of the world.
Thanks to all stalwart readers who came out yesterday in the sub-Sahara climate to attend the WEST HOLLYWOOD BOOK FAIR. In addition to the panel, I chatted with Amber Benson (Tara on BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER), who is going to perform the ASYLUM piece with me on Halloween! See below for details. Also chatted with Julie Robinson who organizes the BEVERLY HILLS LITERARY ESCAPE WEEKEND in October. I’ll be involved all weekend in various events and lunches, and Julie has generously given me tickets to the event to raffle. Stay tuned for details!
LOS ANGELES WOMEN: Join me at HOITY TOITY BOUTIQUE on Friday, October 1st for a wine, book signing and fashion party. Hoity Toity’s unique, designer clothes will be featured with most on sale. This is a chance to get your goth’n’glam on for the fall season. From 6pm. Location below.
Thanks for all your support for my books, especially the book clubs and libraries that have been scheduling author skype chats. Book clubs are the life-blood of fiction, and clubs can sign up for chats on my website.
I hope to see you on the road.
As ever—
Karen
Dracula in Love By Karen Essex
Fall Events
September
Sep 26 9th Annual West Hollywood Book Fair
Sunday, September 26th, 2010
Panel: Breathing Life Into The Undead
Authors: Bryce P. Coleman (moderator); Dan Borchert (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and the Undead); Karen Essex (Dracula in Love); Vera Nazarian (Mansfield Park and Mummies);
Time: 3:00-3:55 p.m.
Location: West Hollywood Park, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Bookseller: Signing to follow panel at the Dark Delicacies booth
October
Oct. 1 Hoity-Toity Boutique
4381 Tujunga Ave
Studio City, CA 91604-2752
(818) 766-2503
6-9 pm.
Book signing and clothing sale.
Join us for wine and fashion!
Oct. 8-10 Southern Festival of Books
Nashville, TN
Program: Solo presentation, followed by book signing.
The short play ASYLUM based on a scene from DRACULA IN LOVE will be performed and filmed by Vanderbilt Students.
3:00-4:00 pm, Senate Chambers
Oct. 12 The Pulpwood Queens and Timber Guys Book Clubs
Jefferson, TX
Location: Austin Street Bistro, downtown Jefferson, TX
Program: Victorian dinner party with book clubs @ 6:30pm
Oct. 13-14 Various media appearances in Dallas, TX, TBA
Oct. 15 826LA | Dead Author Reading
Location: Upright Citizens Brigade, 5919 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, CA 90028
Time: 7:00 pm
Program: This Is Your Life: Paul F. Thompkins (host) as H.G. Wells; Scott Aukerman as Bram Stoker
DRACULA IN LOVE is a tie-in to the October theme of Halloween and horror writers.
826LA | Dead Author Reading After Party
Location: La Poubelle, 5907 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, CA 90028
Time: 8:00 pm
Program: 826LA | After Party featuring “Bloody Mina” cocktails, author appearance and book signing. Proceeds to be donated to 826LA.
Bookseller: Stories Bookstore
Oct. 17 Dark Delicacies
Location: 3512 W. Magnolia, Burbank, CA 91505
Program: In-store signing with F. Paul Wilson (Fatal Error) and Harry Shannon (A Host of Shadows)
Oct. 22-24 The Beverly Hills Literary Escape
Program: Café Conversations
Authors: Karen Essex , Dani Shapiro, Robert Goolrick, Heidi Durrow, Michelle Huneven, Joyce Maynard, Michael Krasny
Time: 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Location: Saban Theatre, 8440 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Bookseller: Barnes & Noble
The Beverly Hills Literary Escape
Luncheon: Karen Essex with Robert Goolrick (A Reliable Wife)
Location: tbd
Time: 1:00 to 3:00 pm
Bookseller: Barnes & Noble
Oct. 27 Boutique du Vampyre
Location: 633 Toulouse Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Program: Reading and Signing
Time: 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Contact: Marita Jaeger, maritavampire@yahoo.com, 504.561.8627
Oct. 28 Octavia Books
Location: 513 Octavia Street
New Orleans, LA 70115-2055
(504) 899-7323
Time: 6:30 pm
Oct. 29 Vampire Film Festival
During an auction for the audio rights to my new novel, Dracula in Love, my editor forwarded me an e-mail from one of the bidders. “This book is so hot that I can’t wait to get home to my wife!” he proclaimed, and then outbid everyone else and presumably went home and made his wife happy.
We were delighted to hear that feedback because during the writing process, we had tortuous debates over just how much sex would be too much. My most trusted readers are my agent, my editor, and my manager (yes, I’m lucky), and each had very different responses. Without giving away proclivities, two on the team kept begging for more, though what one thought erotic, the other sometimes found terrifying. The third loved every sensual drop, but kept reminding us of the puritanical level of the basic American reader, specifically, the literary reader, that elite creature who relies on a host of signifiers to be distinguished from the genre reader. She pointed out that the book had the elements that discriminating readers look for in a literary work: a strong, authoritative voice, painstakingly composed prose, and serious themes. “This book is too rich to have its seriousness dismissed because of the sex scenes,” our cautionary voice reminded us. “You know how readers are! They see some sex on the page and assume it’s a bodice-ripper.”
In honor of the official publication date of Dracula in Love, the vampire’s muse has broken her century-long silence in an exclusive interview with Fangoria Magazine. Read what the once quintessential Victorian virgin has to say about 21st century rehab, Internet porn, and her nostalgia for velvet:
EXCLUSIVE: MINA HARKER SPEAKS!
Meanwhile, one of America’s top mortal voices, the esteemed Bruce Feiler, New York Times columnist, peripatetic historian, and repeated New York Times Bestseller list offender, has posted his thoughts about Dracula in Love on Amazon:
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