Welcome to the Vampire Studies community! We’re so happy you’re here and we want you take full advantage of the opportunities our new platform provides. Please read over the code of conduct so we can continue to ensure a safe and supportive space for all. Thank you for your dedication to the Popular Culture Association!

 

Annual National Popular Culture Association Conference

CALL FOR PAPERS:

PCA CONFERENCE 8-11 April 2026, Atlanta, GA

 

The Vampire Studies Area of the PCA welcomes papers, presentations, panels, and roundtable discussions that cover all aspects of the vampire as it appears throughout global culture.

 

Our theme for PCA 2026 considers how vampires and their narratives engage with play, remembrance, emergence, and yearning (P.R.E.Y.) across space and time. Endless transformations of novels such as Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897) or Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire (1976) illustrate the ways that vampire stories are constantly shifting and evolving to reflect audiences and cultures around them.

 

We also welcome submissions addressing media that focus on vampire narratives exploring issues of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality.

 

Papers, presentations, and panels can cover any of the following:

• P.R.E.Y.: Play, Remembrance, Emergence, Yearning in vampire tales
• The Global Vampire (i.e. Black, Asian, Latino/a/x, African, Aboriginal)
• The vampire on legacy television shows
• The vampire on recent television shows
• Legacy Cinematic vampires
• Recent Cinematic Vampires
• Long running vampire novel series
• Vampire Cultures and Contexts (i.e. vampire RPGs or other gaming universes, fan studies, art, graphic novels, Tik Tok & other social media platforms)
• Vampires and the Marginalized (i.e., race, gender, sexualities, national origin)
• Genres (i.e. Gothic Horror, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Steampunk, Early Readers, Children’s Picture Books, Young Adult, Erotica, Comedy)
• Historic and contemporary vampiric locations and geographies (i.e. cemeteries, castles, cities)
• Vampire Studies (i.e., the vampire in the classroom, vampire scholarship)

And anything and everything in between!

 

To have your proposal/abstract considered, please submit your proposal/abstract of approximately 250 words at the Popular Culture Association Website. We also accept complete panel proposals comprised of 4 people on a specific shared topic. The due date for all proposals is November 30, 2025.

 

We encourage you to get involved in our vibrant vampire community by joining one of our social media spaces and attending our conference events such as our business meeting, film screening, other roundtables, and sessions.

 

If you have questions, contact us at pcavampires@gmail.com. Also, join our Facebook groups PCA Vampire Studies and Vampire Scholars.

 

Co-Chairs:

U. Melissa Anyiwo, Ph.D. The University of Scranton & Lisa Nevárez, Ph.D. Siena College

 

Important Dates to Remember:

• Database opens for Submissions - Sept. 1, 2025
• Early Bird Registration Begins - Sept. 1, 2025
• Deadline for Paper Proposals - Nov. 30, 2025
• Travel Grant Applications Due - Dec. 15, 2025
• Early Bird Registration Ends for Presenters - Dec. 31, 2025
• Regular Registration Begins for Presenters - Jan. 1, 2026 
• Travel Grant Decisions / Notifications - Jan. 31, 2026
• Regular Registration Ends for Presenters - Jan. 31, 2026
• Late Registration Starts for Presenters - Feb. 1, 2026
• Late Registration Ends for Presenters - Feb. 15, 2026
  
• Preliminary Program draft available - Feb. 6, 2026

Presenters not registered by Feb. 15 w ill be dropped from the program.

 

CONFERENCE IN ATLANTA, GA - April 8-11, 2026