Rice initiated the shift from traditional vampire horror stories to something more akin to what we see today in the paranormal romance genre with her first novel Interview with a Vampire. I’ve discussed her before in my post on foundational female writers, but the mother of the modern vampire genre is an Irish American! Her heritage is apparent in her maiden name, “O’Brien,” and she grew up in an Irish neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana. He spent much of his adult life in England (partially because Bram Stoker stole his Irish sweetheart, fun fact) until persecution for his homosexuality drove him into exile, during which he took on the name Sebastian Melmoth (from Maturin’s novel-it’s all connected!). Like several of the writers mentioned above, Wilde was born in Dublin and studied at Trinity College. Wilde also wrote a short story parodying the ghost story genre, “The Cantorville Ghost,” which I discussed in my recent post on the gothic trope of the creepy housekeeper. However, The Picture of Dorian Gray-one of his most famous works-has strong Gothic elements, featuring unsettling supernatural occurrences, the corruption of innocence, and a gruesome murder. Oscar Wilde is generally thought of more as a writer of humor and satire than of Gothic horror. He soon became a celebrated writer in his own right, and aside from Dracula wrote a number of other novels, short stories, and a few nonfiction works. (And even fewer know that he graduated with a degree in mathematics from Trinity College!) Stoker got his start as a theater critic for a Dublin newspaper owned by Le Fanu. His writing was to be a major influence on our next Irish writer, Bram Stoker.īram Stoker is perhaps the most famous author of Gothic fiction, yet many are unaware that he was Irish, perhaps because he had moved to London by the time he wrote Dracula. Nonetheless, many of his works continued to be influenced by Irish folklore. While some of his earlier works were set in Ireland, his publishers encouraged him to appeal more to the English market by writing about England. His other famous novels include Uncle Silas and The House by the Churchyard. He penned my favorite early vampire tale, Carmilla, which I reviewed a while ago on this site. Joseph Sheridan le Fanu was prolific writer of Gothic, mystery, and ghost stories throughout the nineteenth century. Fun trivia fact: Maturin was the great-uncle of Oscar Wilde, and his most popular novel had a profound effect on the latter’s life, as you will see later in this post. The book is composed of several stories within stories all revolving around a Faustian figure named Melmoth who has sold his soul to the devil and travels the world looking for someone to take his place in the bargain. Though not as well known as other early Gothic writers like Horace Walpole, Ann Radliffe, or Mattew Lewis, Maturin is still appreciated today for his cult classic Gothic novel, Melmoth the Wanderer. Maturin was a resident of Dublin whose association with Gothic novels frequently interfered with his career as a clergyman. Maturin was a writer of Gothic plays and novels during the early nineteenth century. The Irish have been involved in gothic literature since the very beginnings of the genre. Read on to find out more about how the Irish have impacted gothic literature!

So you can thank the Irish for pretty much the entire vampire genre. In fact, without Irish writers, we wouldn’t have Dracula, Carmilla, or Lestat. Patrick’s Day is this week, and that means it’s time to celebrate all things Irish-like me! But your favorite gothic librarian aside, there are actually a whole bunch of Irish writers who have contributed significantly to the gothic genre. Paula Cappa on Folk Horror in Literature.TheGothicLibrarian on Folk Horror in Literature.

victoriagrimalkin on Folk Horror in Literature.Review of FINNA and DEFEKT-Retail Terror.The Quiet Stillness of Empty Houses Review.

Famous gothic literature authors