Christmas greetings from OGOM 2025 Sam and I and all the OGOM team wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Solstice and holidays, and a fabulous, magical New Year!! Watch out for OGOM events, news of our reseach and publications, and the CFP for our Sea Changes mermaids and selkies publications in the…

What to Read to Understand Vampires Friend of OGOM, Sir Chris Frayling, has put together three books that he believes will help readers to understand vampires, drawing on his earlier idea of vampire archetypes.… https://www.opengravesopenminds.com/ogom-news/what-to-read-to-understand-vampires/

New Frankenstein poem by Souhardya Roy Mary Shelley's annotations to the 1818 edition of Frankenstein owned by the Morgan Library and Museum I am teaching my undergraduate module Romantic Origins and Gothic Afterlives this semester and Frankenstein week is coming up next. One of the things we are…

Events & CFPs: Mermaids, vampires, folkore, fairy tales, Gothic, Romanticism, Victorian, science * Some deadlines, e.g. for CFPs, are very close! Sea Changes conference videos The Sea Changes conference at the British Library, September 2026 The videos of the online day of our September 2025…

OGOM PhD Success Congratulations to OGOM Doctoral Student Shabnam Ahsan @thebrownbronte who has passed her PhD Viva. I was Shabnam's primary supervisor. Her thesis 'Strange Creatures: National Identity and the Representation of the Other in British Fairy-tale Collections, 1878-Present’ is an…

We are a mere 8 members away from our target of 50 by Monday (when I pay the deposit). PictCon2: A Scottish sf & fantasy convention about sf and fantasy in Scotland. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 17th October 2026, Perth, with Guest of honour, editor & writer, Neil Williamson. Tickets at: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pictcon2-t...

Neil Williamson always has something interesting and perceptive to say, this alone would be reason enough to go to PictCon2.

Announcing #PictCon2 17th October 2026, Perth, Scotland. Guest of Honour, Neil Williamson neilwilliamson.blog/about/ Ticketing is open at Eventbrite. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1794793438...

BLOG: Will Monkeys Become Britain's New Big Cats? A rational look at the looming risk of loose primates in post-licensing Britain as 2026 brings changes to the law... #Cryptozoology #BritishLaw #Cryptids www.theghostgeek.com/p/will-monke...

Sam George, Older than Dracula: in search of the English vampire theconversation.com/older-than-d...

#HALLOWEEN As the veil grows thinner between our world & the spirit world & the witching hour approaches I'd like share my photos of the most uncanny landscape I know. This spookiness is entirely real. Cross Stone Graveyard in Yorkshire is unsettling & sublime #31daysofHalloween

SPOOKY READING Don't forget to browse the MUP Spooky reading List for #31daysofHalloween and access the intros to all three of our @OGOMProject books for FREE

OGOM HALLOWEEN NEWSLETTER www.opengravesopenminds.com/newsletter/o...

Events and CFPs: Fairytale ballads, water horses, ghosts, Romanticism, Victorian, Gothic others, science, Ann Radcliffe NB: The BARS… https://www.opengravesopenminds.com/cfp-conferences/events-and-cfps-fairytale-ballads-water-horses-romanticism-victorian-gothic-others-science-ann-radcliffe/

Events and CFPs: Fairytale ballads, water horses, Romanticism, Victorian, Gothic others, science, Ann Radcliffe NB: The BARS deadline is approaching--29 September!! The Singing Bones: Ballads for the Witching Season The Carterhaugh School, four weeks from 4 November, 2025; on line. A fascinating…

I'm in #KingsLynn tonight ahead of the SOLD OUT #fearinthefens festival. Looking forward to sharing my research on UK werewolf myths with film goers on Sat 25th at 3.00. Come and say hello if you have a ticket! there! #31DaysofHalloween @hertsresearch.bsky.social

SPOOKY NETSUKE (根付) White bats resemble ghosts in exquisite miniature sculptures popular during the Edo period in Japan. Reflecting important aspects of Japanese #folklore bats are often associated with good fortune #31DaysofHalloween

HALLOWEEN FAIRIES - by yours truly Fairies weren’t always cute – they used to drink human blood and kidnap children theconversation.com/fairies-were...

WOO HOO a chance to read the introductions to all 3 @ogomproject.bsky.social books for free for #31DaysofHalloween via manchesterup.bsky.social @hertsresearch.bsky.social @billbloodyhughes.bsky.social and I really enjoyed working on these!!

WOO HOO a chance to read the introductions to all 3 @ogomproject.bsky.social books for free for #31DaysofHalloween via manchesterup.bsky.social @hertsresearch.bsky.social @billbloodyhughes.bsky.social and I really enjoyed working on these!!

Open Graves, Open Minds: Halloween Newsletter 2025 Welcome to the Open Graves Open Minds Newsletter for October. We’re delighted to bring you our news and activities for the 2025 spooky season. We are trying out a new way of publishing the newsletter, directly from the website (other options are…

OGOM HALLOWEEN EVENTS You are cordially invited to our Halloween activities and events. Full listings over on the OGOM blog #31DaysofHalloween www.opengravesopenminds.com/events/ogom-...

If you look closely you will see my article on the vampire's lost reflection. Thank you to @helleborezine.bsky.social for the wonderful Mirror issue. Readers of these articles on fetches, changelings, doppelgangers and vampires will never look in the mirror in the same way again! #31daysofhalloween

FEAR IN THE FENS FESTIVAL Woo hoo I will speaking on ‘Becoming Wolf: The English Eerie and History of the UK Werewolf’ Sat 25th October, 3.00 at fearinthefens.com in Kings Lynn. There will be a showing of An American Werewolf in London #31DaysOfHalloween

JACK-O-LANTERNS Before the grinning pumpkins of #Halloween the folkloric versions or Jack-o-Lanterns, named after the Irish myth, were terrifying; carved from turnips or beets they had the appearance of shrunken heads, warding off uninvited guests

#AUTUMN BEAUTY I was struck by the unsettlingly dark beauty of the #Bronte family home & churchyard when I visited Haworth. Shrouded in mist among the #autumn leaves it was clear no coward soul could live here. Glorious in its gothic gloom.

AN ANCIENTE MAPPE of FAIRYLAND newly discovered and set forth. London: Sidgwick & Jackson, 1918. I have a copy of this map of fairyland by Bernard Sleigh in my study to ponder other worlds. It's filled with awe and wonder.

THE SPOOKY SEASON IS HERE at last! I will be taking part in #31daysofhalloween again from 1st October. Some vintage #Halloween #cats to celebrate! Black cats are lucky not unlucky of course! Can't wait to see all the #Halloween posts!

GOTHTOBER I encountered the perfect gothic scene on my way to teach Romantic Origins and Gothic Afterlives. Walking through the churchyard on the way to the station it was completely shrouded in mist! #31DaysofHalloween

The folkloric belief that reflections, portraits and shadows contain part of a person’s soul influenced two of the greatest Gothic novels of the 19th century. Read more in @coffinboffin.bsky.social ‘s piece for The Mirror Issue. Pre-order on helleborezine.com

THE HOLLY KING regains power at the #AutumnEquinox. His strength peaks during Midwinter, at which point the Oak King is reborn. His reign tells us #Autumn is finally upon us.

Excited to reveal I have a piece on the vampire's lost reflection in this issue on The Mirror. The artwork looks fantastic, and I can't wait to read the other contributions.

GHOST APPLES The uncanny name for when freezing rain settles on the fruit & ices over creating a frozen coating. The apple defrosts before the ice does & the rotting apple falls out of the bottom leaving its gothic icy 'ghost' behind! #FolkyFriday

Wo hoo the IGA is in Yorkshire this year and there's rumoured to be a trip to Whitby. Count us in!

📚 Now available! 📚 THE TIGER SKIN AND OTHER TALES OF THE UNEASY, published by @blpublishing.bsky.social I’ve wanted to bring Violet Hunt’s supernatural fiction back for a while now, so am happy to see these stories reach a wide audience again. Please share!

Thank you. Lovely to see you!

Thanks to all the wonderful delegates who attended our OGOM Project #SeaChanges event at the British Library. I particularly enjoyed seeing all the mermaid images on the screens for 'today at the library'. It gave me a real buzz to see our event get underway! Loved it!

Check out the new Open Graves, Open Minds Project page on @manchesterup.bsky.social Gothic MUP site. It gives an overview of the project, our publications & our forthcoming book on Gothic Fairies @hertsresearch.bsky.social ttps://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/the-open-graves-open-minds-project/

A big OGOM thank you to our star keynote @catherinespooner.bsky.social for bringing sparklefication to our discussion of #GothicMermaids #SeaChanges and for being such a wonderful long standing supporter of our research project for over 15 years!

On my way back from the fantastic #SeaChanges conference organised by @ogomproject.bsky.social. Best opportunity to present my project on #mermaids before I go into hiding for the last stretch of writing

So grateful to @ogomproject.bsky.social for bringing us together for the dream mermaid conference. A brilliant three days thinking about submarine fantasies 💦🧜‍♀️🩵

Although we couldn't attend the #seachanges conference this week, delegates can find out more about our @ogomproject.bsky.social books, and take advantage of a special 30% discount here... manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/the-open-gra... @billbloodyhughes.bsky.social

A big OGOM thank you to #SeaChanges keynote ‪@kgarner.bsky.social‬ so much helpful advice on humanities funding seamlessly interwoven with her research into Scottish #mermaids and Romanticism. We are sharing the slides with all our delegates. Wonderful to have you!

A big OGOM thank you to @betsycornwell.bsky.social for her insight into the Selkie myth and how it can be adapted into fiction and memoir #SeaChanges. A beautiful and memorable reading for everyone attending the online day. So glad you could stay for days 2 & 3 Betsy!

X is for XANA Nymph-like beings that inhabit rivers & lakes in Northern Spain. Part of Asturian folk tradition, their legacy endures today. XANA emerge on Saint John's Eve & they can use magic to shapeshift into dragons or Cuélebre. Image: P. Swan, Water Nymph 1907 #Seachanges

C is for CEASG In Scottish folklore the CEASG is #mermaid with the tail of a salmon. Said to grant three wishes to anyone who can catch her. She can be found in Scottish streams and rivers #SeaChanges #GothicMermaids 🎨Waterhouse's Mermaid 1900 has a silver salmon tail

Great day 2 at the Sea Changes conference @britishlibrary.bsky.social! #seachanges

Woo Hoo the box of printed programmes for @OGOMProject #SeaChanges conference has arrived!! Only a week to go. We're so excited to meet all the delegates. If you are going to be joining us join with our hashtags #SeaChanges #GothicMermaids @UHresearch

Woo hoo the Tote bags and Programmes have arrived for #SeaChanges looking forward to meeting all the delegates! #GothicMermaids