Vampires Today: The Truth About Modern Vampirism by Joseph Laycock was released this week! Read more about this new nonfiction account of modern vampirism below…


The academic and sociological significance of this work can’t be underscored enough. Laycock offers a sweeping scholarly examination of the vampire community and the process of self-identification as a vampire. He counters many of the negative stereotypes of the vampire community and posits thought-provoking arguments regarding ontological diversity. I strongly encourage everyone to obtain a copy of this book and link to it as a resource for vampirism and the vampire community.


Buy on Amazon
Praeger Publishers
Religion Dispatches Article


Chapter 1: What Is a Vampire? or, The Varieties of Vampiric Experience
Chapter 2: Why Vampires?
Chapter 3: The Vampire Milieu
Chapter 4: Initiatory Vampire Groups: Vampirism as Apotheosis
Chapter 5: The Vampire Community
Chapter 6: Vampirism and Religion, a Dialogue
Chapter 7: Out of the Shadows
Chapter 8: Vampires and the Modern
Bibliography & Index


Names You May Recognize (Mentioned and/or Contributed Material):
Atlanta Vampire Alliance, Daemonox, D’Drennan, Don Henrie, Dozens of Groups/Houses/etc. (House Dark Haven, House Eclipse, House Kheperu, House of the Dreaming, House Pantheon, House Quinotaur, House Sahjaza, Temple of the Vampire, Order of the Vampyre, Ordo Strigoi Vii, etc.), Eclecta, Father Sebastiaan, Father Vincent, Goddess Rosemary, J. Gordon Melton, Kiera, Lady CG, Lady Dark Rose, Lord Alistair, Madame X, Maloryn, Martin Riccardo, Merticus, Michelle Belanger, Nicholas, Sanguinarius, Sarah Dorrance, Shadowlore, SoulSplat, SphynxCatVP, Stephen O’Mallie, Vlad & Sky, Voices of the Vampire Community, Vyrdolak, & Zilchy


Inside Cover:
Vampires are not just the stuff of folklore and fiction. This book explores the modern world of vampirism in all its variety. Around the globe, untold numbers of people are identifying as “vampires” and following the ways of “vampirism”. But what does it mean to be a vampire? Is vampirism a religion? Is it a fantasy? Is it a medical condition? Based upon extensive interviews with members of the Atlanta Vampire Alliance and others within vampire communities throughout the United States, Vampires Today looks at the many expressions of vampirism.


In the past two decades, modern vampirism has come under increased study, yet most scholarship has portrayed the vampire community as a cultural phenomenon or, at worst, as a religious cult. Having interviewed many vampires across the country, both “lifestylers” and “real”, even those “reluctants” who try not to be vampires, Laycock argues that today’s vampires are best understood as an identity group and that vampirism has caused a profound change in how individuals choose to define themselves. As vampires come “out of the closet”, either as followers of a “religion” or “lifestyle” or as people biologically distinct from other humans, their confrontation with mainstream society will raise questions about the definition of “normal” and what it means to be human.


In this book, readers will meet “lifestyle vampires”, who adopt a culture and a gothic ascetic associated with the vampires of art and legend. They will be introduced to “real” vampires, who feel that they must actually consume blood and/or psychic energy for their well-being. They will hear from members of the Atlanta Vampire Alliance, and they will learn about the Order of the Vampyre, the Ordo Strigoi Vii, and the Temple of the Vampire.


There is no doubt that anyone who reads this book will find the details of real vampire life — including vampire role-playing games, grimoires, “vampyre” balls, vampire houses like House Sahjaza and House Kheperu, the vampire “caste” system, and other details — utterly fascinating.

Tags: Atlanta Vampire Alliance, blood drinking, book, D'Drennan, Daemonox, Don Henrie, Eclecta, Father Sebastiaan, Father Vincent, Goddess Rosemary, History, House Eclipse, House Kheperu, House of the Dreaming, House Pantheon, House Quinotaur, House Sahjaza, J. Gordon Melton, Joseph Laycock, Kiera, Lady CG, Lady Dark Rose, Lord Alistair, Madame X, Maloryn, Martin Riccardo, Merticus, Michelle Belanger, Nicholas, Order of the Vampyre, Ordo Strigoi Vii, press release, psychology, Sanguinarius, Sarah Dorrance, Shadowlore, sociology, SoulSplat, SphynxCatVP, Stephen O'Mallie, Temple of the Vampire, vampires, Vampires Today: The Truth About Modern Vampirism, vampirism, Vlad & Sky, Voices of the Vampire Community, Vyrdolak

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