Dracula-related conferences
Bram Stoker Centenary, London, 18-20 Apr. 2012
I learned about the Bram Stoker Centenary Symposium too late to submit a presentation, but I had a stack of brand-new Ultimate Dracula books with me, set up a book table in the basement of Keats House and made many new friends during this event.
BBEC Dracula Workshop, Timișoara, 25-27 June 2015
By invitation of Marius Crișan, who I had met in London, I presented my findings about the true location of the Count's castle to the international Dracula Workshop. During this event, I met Magda Grabias, my team partner for organizing the Dublin and Brașov events.
IVFAF Conference, Sighișoara, 27-28 May 2016
After a trip to Poenari with Dutch national television VPRO, together with Dacre Stoker, I joined him to Sighișoara to speak at the Int. Vampire Film and Arts Festival. As the audience did not overlap with that of the BBEC conference, I talked about the place of Castle Dracula again.
HELION Circle SciFi Conference, Timișoara, 5-7 May 2017
Another invitation by Marius Crișan. At the Helion Circle , I spoke about the Swedish Count Drakulitz as the first vampire from outer space in literature. The conference proceedings resulted in a special double issue of the Helion Magazine, to which Magda and I contributed. Apart from the academic discussion, we enjoyed most pleasant evenings together with Sorcha and Marius.
Fourth World Dracula Congress, Dublin, 20-22 October 2016
I initiated this congress in Autumn 2015, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Transylvanian Society of Dracula, and organized it together with Magda Grabias and Daniela Diaconescu. We set up an impressive speaker roster and a walking tour through Dublin. At this event, I presented my latest findings about Makt myrkranna, the Icelandic version of Dracula.
COTN Int'l Dracula Conference, Brașov, 17-20 Oct. 2018
As the T.S.D. Europe decided to merge with the American Chapter, Magda Grabias, Florin Nechita and I organized a brand new international Dracula Congress series in Brasov in October 2016. We had speakers from Romania, Germany, the UK, Portugal, the US, Russia, Brazil and Japan, visited the Dracula Film Festival and explored the city of Brașov. Next event: 2021.
Due to the spread of COVID-19, the October 2020 conference had to be postponed and was turned into a virtual event. Next to the seven keynote speakers, we had 36 plenary speakers, so that the had to plan for three full days, instead of two. Moreover, we had more than 50 listeners who had registered for the event and who actively participated in the Question & Answer sessions. This turned the 2021 conference into a huge success and expanded our Children of the Night network significantly. For the first time, the congress not only offered a prize for the Best Gothic Costume, but also granted awards in other categories, such as "Most Original Research," "Best Visual Presentation" and "Best Educational Documentary." I am proud of what has become of my 2015 initiative and of the good cooperation with Magdalena Grabias of Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Poland, and Florin Nechita of Transilvania University of Brașov, Romania.
