26. Harvest Hauntings
In perfect sync with the story, and my dear Lucy’s nightmares, I walked the 199 steps up.
“Dog days are over, and here comes September. Not autumn yet; simply September, which can be as sweltering as mid-July and as chill as late October, and usually manages to be both.”
from the New York Times, 30th of August (1942)
01/09/2025, London, UK
My dear,
Back from the land of the undead, I await dreaming1. My head rests on a pillow of straw, which my dark dreams intend to spin into gold. A sweet mythology of thorns. There are those influences at play; silent whispers that talk of vampires, ancient gods, the plight of a dreamwalker. August, silly six letter month, is a realm of fantasy. It gathers importance like stalks of wheat, it ripens itself for the escapism the year will undoubtedly need. Eight is the figure of the harvest; infinite looping ouroboros number, wreath on the may-queen head of summer, dying like a beauty queen ought to. Now that this resplendent feast table is complete, the interpretative action is all yours.
To me, the dying stars hold importance for my own chart; my birthday falls on the 10th of September. Virgo sun, gemini moon, scorpio rising2. Don’t be mistaken, my dear, these placements’ exclusion here is entirely used as psycho-analytical bait. In other words, the trap is set. Intrude on my privacy if you like; it is only a plaid to luxuriate on. There is always space for one more. Anyhow, the colder months are only a cocoon for us, golden harvest-children. September’s lovely initiates. The new year is only unfolding itself, not collapsing, not crumbling.
This month’s newsletter is largely an unadorned affair. At least, to the degree I can resist ornamentation, which means not at all. Don’t ever be lulled into a false sense of boredom, my dear. Or worse still, brevity. I spent my August wandering, and so this letter concerns itself with wandering as well. There is the physical wandering, the travel, the steady stream of events to report back on. And there is escapism, in a list of fantasy book recommendations tucked neatly into the third section of today’s spread. The hot weather always makes me itch for detachment, annotating escape routes into the margins.
So let us now undo our stitches, and weave a journey of postcard stamps…
‧₊˚🖇️ ✮⋆˙ ₊˚💌⊹⋆｡𖦹 ° This newsletter contains the following sections:
I. Archive Sources (Dracula-themed) // II. Notes from August’s Voyage // III. Books for Daydreaming (escapist fantasy recommendations) // “On the List” September // Outro
I. Archive Sources
“If you're doing nonsense it has to be rather awful, because there'd be no point. I'm trying to think if there's sunny nonsense. Sunny, funny nonsense for children—oh, how boring, boring, boring. As Schubert said, there is no happy music. And that's true, there really isn't. And there's probably no happy nonsense, either.”
by Edward Gorey, in response to being called gothic, from an interview with the New Yorker (1992)
Let me not deceive you, my dear. The past month (as you will soon see) has been much too eventful to open a book for longer than an hour at best. Try as I might, a restless mind is not fertile ground for concentration. All I had time to devour, in between outings and happenings, was little sections of “Dracula” (1897), synchronised in real-time with the book’s events. Bite-sized hypnosis on the go. As Mina and Lucy wandered the Whitby streets, so did I, forming an elusive kinship and curiosity with the latter, my fellow sleepwalker. It fascinated me, that sweet and tragic portrait of Lucy, always cut out of the novel’s many adaptations. Though this letter may not be about “Dracula” per se, my travels gave me a perfect hunger for the novel’s many layers. Which explains today’s menu of academic sources, of course.
“Vampiric Seduction and Vicissitudes of Masculine Identity in Bram Stoker's ‘Dracula’” - link
This paper looks at Johnathan Harker’s character arc throughout “Dracula” (1897) and its reflections of masculine attitudes and identity formation. In the early chapters of the novel, Johnathan takes on the Gothic ideal of the heroine kept prisoner, gender-bent ever so slightly to be a portrait of male-on-male violence perfectly coinciding with Harker’s bristling with the traditional masculinity he is expected to grow into as a young career man, and as fiancé to Mina. In a way, Dracula as vampiric threat is an argument crafted to be fought and then dutifully revoked, invalidating no opinion along the way. His threat to masculinity is only ever so important as to settle Harker into his own, and strengthen his resolve. Harker’s looming identity crisis in the novel is effectively sparked and solved by the trauma of its events.
“[…] Harker's reluctant sexual and professional development - hindered by his servile relation to Dracula, occasional feminine identification, and glimpses of homoerotic desire - is symptomatic of a deeper psychic process in which Harker's ego, in response to external pressures of his impending initiation into business and marriage, allows its own limited, temporary destabilization in order to be re-stabilized in a modified form which can accommodate these external pressures. […] the process of seduction.”
“Feminism, Sex Role Exchanges, and Other Subliminal Fantasies in Bram Stoker's ‘Dracula’” - link
As a piece of writing, this paper inventories Victorian sexual attitudes and taboos, in contrast to their subtle appearances in “Dracula”. All the salacious stuff is here, my dear. Homosexuality, group sex, struggles of dominance. There is a good bit about my beloved Lucy as well, and her treatment in the plot as woman/angel before her inevitable demise. I especially enjoyed the author pointing out that Lucy “never brings the experience [of Dracula’s plots on her] into her own consciousness”.
“But, the butchering of Lucy and the vampire women takes on curious overtone considered from this point of view. Reminiscent of knights of the Round Table, the men gather in chivalry around ultra-pure, sweet, good, frail Lucy and--incongruous heroism--slaughter her. […] Again, Stoker manages to have it both ways--these butcherings are presented as ultimate chivalry because they release the woman to goodness.”
“Vampiric Affinities: Mina Harker and the Paradox of Femininity in Bram Stoker's ‘Dracula’” - link
Johnathan is not the only Harker to wrestle with gender in the novel— his fiancée and (later on) wife Mina also has her own remarks on the time’s changing conversation of gender, especially surrounding the “New Woman”. Stoker’s stance on them might not be progressive- the vampiric women-of-desire always meet the stake- but his negotiations of Mina’s character are notable nonetheless for the ways in which they walk the line. Not to mention Mina’s close relationship with Lucy, which carefully balances itself between purely friendly affections and romantic ones. The juxtaposition of Lucy and Mina, and their respective representations of femininity, is endlessly fascinating.
“[…] it is the deep affinity [Mina] feels with the Count, and the constant self-scrutiny demanded by Van Helsing, that makes this narrative of subject formation particularly Gothic. Count Dracula, much like Mary Shelley's creature, is the perfect monster because of the sheer number of anxieties collapsed into his transgressive body and seductive embrace. The incursion of the monstrous vampire brings to the surface issues of Mina's social indoctrination into proper femininity while simultaneously cloaking them as "just" a Gothic romance.”
II. Notes from August’s Voyage
“Last night I seemed to be dreaming again just as I was at Whitby.”
by Bram Stoker, from “Dracula” (1897)
Home-body as I am, even I occasionally have to venture out into the dying light of the world outside. Life does not stretch itself in the house, and cabin fever can be a serious affliction. My August was to be a month of dalliance and eventfulness, I resolved. Perhaps I overdid it though, with only eight days of the month ending up devoid of any engagements whatsoever. Every other day was spent traveling, attending events and concerts, or hosting guests here at Blackberry Hill House. The life of a socialite can be so overwhelming! Nevertheless, let me channel “Dracula” (1897) and take out my journal to recount August’s parade of happenings. Sans vampiric stalker, that is.
II.I Yorkshire Hauntings
A month or two ago, my York-based friends invited me to stay with them for “York Georgian Week”, a themed week of events celebrating all things eighteenth century, with an appropriately ghostly twist wherever possible. York is supposedly the most haunted city in Europe, after all. My friends had seen a Byron-themed lecture on the schedule and immediately thought of yours truly. Well, I could only be flattered, of course. I am known to be a big admirer of the Byronic and I make no qualms about hiding it. So off to York I went, eagerly awaiting ghosts, brazen poets, and most excitingly of all, a true Georgian Ball3, held at the historic York Assembly Rooms. Before I knew it, I was dressing in my best gown and stepping into the gorgeous space built 1730-1735 for the purpose of such high society events. The long Greek Revival hall had the perfect atmosphere for revelry, complete with chandeliers, and lots of scandalous little corners to hide away in, even for just a moment.
Draped in perfectly virginal Austen-esque white, I chose to dress for the “Regency” period of the century, though there was a great balance of both early-century elaborate structured dress and the more austere high-waisted styles most commonly associated with the era present in the ballroom. The gin flowed, all the darlings took to dancing, and the orchestra played into the late hours. I, myself, made use of my fan for all sorts of ~subtle~ communications and machinations. A lady does need her tricks, my dear! Some of my favourites included covering my left ear with the open fan (meaning “do not betray our secret”), placing a closed fan on the left ear (“I wish to get rid of you”), or placing the closed fan near my heart (“you have won my love”). All undoubtedly useful gestures in such strenuous social settings, where the eyes of many are always watching, and ready to pounce.
One such social killing ground was the dance floor, ripe with ripped hemlines and vicious heeled attacks on many partnered feet. My close friend James and I at least had the fortune of attending the optional regency dance class the day before the ball, so we weren’t completely rhythmically stranded unlike the majority of the other guests. All the intricate casting and siding movements were great fun: if only there had been a dictatorship of dance, by which I mean mandatory classes for all. Then we could have danced well into the night, sans call-outs, slaughterhouse commotion, and intensive guiding. Better luck next time!
The other big event of my travels was a little road trip to Whitby to see, of course, the famous Whitby Abbey ruins that inspired Bram Stoker to write “Dracula” (1897). To tell you a secret, my dear, I have never read “Dracula”, despite me owning no less than four or five copies of it. There is no grand conspiracy at play here; I have simply been too intimidated to start reading. The spine of the story was already at risk of breaking under the weight of my considerable expectations. But do not be alarmed! I have changed my ways, and am reading the story as it unfolds following Dracula Daily— which I highly recommend. It’s a very immersive experience.
And so it happened that I set foot within the grand ruins of the Abbey, in perfect sync with the story, and my dear Lucy’s nightmares, I walked the 199 steps up, stared into the harbour, and lingered in the cemetery. All for the sake of accuracy, of course. And though I love the sweet tragedy of Lucy’s character, I have a personal connection to Mina. You would be forgiven for not knowing, but “Wilhelmina” is actually the third of my three middle names (Angelina being the first). In my name’s context it is, of course, a tribute to the Dutch queen, who reigned from 1890 to 1948, as well as my late grandmother of the same name. But I enjoy it just as much as a reference to the brave and inquisitive Mina Harker, and my beloved world of vampires.
Some of us were simply meant to be vampire bait, no?
While at the Abbey, we (James and I) also caught a bit of this semi-comedic “Dracula” play they put on multiple times a day. It’s a far cry from Stoker’s original stage-play; family friendly and complete with slapstick humour, but the way it moved about the space was actually quite immersive to follow. The ruin itself is very awe-inspiring and impressive— it is easy to see its seductions of the imagination unfolding within. Or if you want to be a shameless tourist (no shame in it if you ask me, my dear), the play is notable for the way it condenses almost all the visitors in one spot at a time, meaning you can get some clear shots in the meanwhile without all those pesky people in the way.
Whitby (the town, not the Abbey), is a quaint seaside dwelling with a population of about 13k people. By nature, its sleepy, oceanic environs attracts pensioners and day trip tourists, which offers a humorous juxtaposition with the town’s more goth dispositions; Whitby is also known for hosting the famous “Whitby Goth Weekend” twice a year, an event which nearly doubles the town’s population (almost 12k visitors!). Naturally, there are plenty of distractions for the gothically inclined, beyond jet and the hard stick-like “rock” candy, like the “Whitby Dracula Experience” James took me to. It’s a horrible, campy, “haunted house” style attraction with (mostly) animatronic jump scares. Though the final jump scare was live, and took about three years off of mine. Legend says you can still hear my (very dainty) scream far into the distance…
Back in York, we passed by the usual tourist fare, such as the Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate, the Shambles, and the gorgeously Gothic Minster. We also dipped into the “York Castle Museum”— I say “dipped”, but I mean “made a three hour excursion”. We love to dilly-dally, guilty as charged. No speed-running here, my dear. The museum has a recreated Victorian street and a large collection of Victorian paraphernalia to boot, all laid out in a fully immersive layout complete with costumed actors and dioramas. Good to get some home decor inspiration, learn about York’s chocolatey history, or simply take a look at the old prison, including the cell (allegedly) once occupied by the infamous highwayman Dick Turpin.
We also went for a tour on one of York’s very own “ghost buses”, which was a highly choreographed lovechild between stand-up comedy, interactive theatre, and actual non-fiction tours. Some of the jokes didn’t quite land, though the converted bus atmosphere is very cosy. I would actually recommend the walking “York Ghost Tour” we went on last year over the Ghost Bus, but to each their own. My final event of the trip was another one organised as part of the Georgian week, namely the aforementioned lecture on a newly resurfaced Byron letter! The talk was hosted by Dr George Simmers, who wove an effortless, but detailed web, connecting Princess Charlotte, politics, and Lord Byron to explain the letter’s importance. A wonderful closure before getting on my train ride home to Kings Cross, which wasn’t complete without my first full listen to the new Ethel Cain album “Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You”. A phenomenal, brooding, dark masterpiece perfectly matched to the journey’s grey skies and inevitable delays.
II.II Everything Else(tm)
In the years before one of my best friends was lost to Paris, I often found myself taking a bus near Old Street station, looking over at Bunhill Fields Burial Grounds, and feebly promising to return and have a proper look. Well, all those promises faded with the years, until a few weeks ago, when by complete coincidence, I found myself making good on them. Bunhill Fields is a small cemetery space, right in the city, and not one of the seven magnificent cemeteries. But to my surprise it does hold a few very notable figures, including the poet William Blake, and Thomas Hardy, after whom the (now removed) Hardy Tree at St. Pancras Churchyard was called. Connections, connections! Stumbling upon them always injects me with a fresh love for this city I inhabit, and all its many secrets still undiscovered.
I also had a lovely friend from the Netherlands stay with me for a few days, though we decided to take it slower and focus on each other’s delightful company, which was most definitely for the best. I am ambitious, my dear, but contrary to popular belief I do not like to play on the knife’s edge. So we contented ourselves with movie nights, relaxed wanderings, and feeding the local pigeons. The aforementioned Parisian friend also dipped back into the Big Smoke in August, and we spent one day on my couch while I played the Silent Hill 2 Remake in absolute terror, and one day out and about, having a look at the Yoshimoto Nara exhibition at the Southbank Centre before it ended. It wasn’t an exhibition I had on my radar before, but I enjoyed seeing the cutesy trappings of Nara’s style combined with the clear punk-rock influences.
In other, rapid fire recollections, I also did some event photography and videography for the latest instalment of “a Woman Becomes a Wolf”, completed my first ever crossword puzzle, attended the BFI showing of “to Die For” (1995) with my mom, attended a tour of the Wimbledon grounds, and went for a very lovely afternoon tea at the Cavendish Hotel with my parents, where the champagne flowed quite liberally. As is tradition, I also had to attend the 2025 edition of London’s “For the Love of Fantasy” convention, which was very-lowkey this year. Whereas last year was a sumptuous buffet of guests from “Twilight” (2008), “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (1997-2003), “the Vampire Diaries” (2009-2017), and “the Originals” (2013-2018), there was really only two or three guests of interest to me this year. A bummer to be sure, though I did see Daniel Gillies (Elijah Mikaelson, TVDU), Billy Burke (Charlie Swan, “Twilight”), and Stephen Moyer (Bill Compton, “True Blood”) in the flesh, and snapped a picture with Danielle Campbell (Davina Claire, “the Originals”). Here’s to next year being a return to form, hopefully.
Don’t think it ends there, my dear. This last week, too, has been a whirlwind of events. During the day, I hid away in my attic, typing away at this letter to you. But in the evenings, I donned my best attire to go out and revel like a true maenad should. There was not a day where I didn’t see the midnight hour pass. I celebrated the birthday of my lovely friend
with cigarettes, laughter, and toy cameras, donned my best trad goth look for ’s “goths v preps” party4, and got musical whiplash from the juxtaposition of attending (pretty much) back to back gigs from dreamcore band Cryogeyser and blossoming pop queen Addison Rae. Oh, well.I suppose there are much worse afflictions to suffer from than a life well-lived, my dear.
III. Books for Daydreaming
“[…] it's a wonderful book to read because you have to comb the content against the texture and it gives you fabulous insights into human nature. It is the same with trash movies, trash TV. WrestleMania. The Kardashians. I'm fascinated by it. So I don't say read Tolstoy and nothing else. Read everything. See everything. The poet must not avert his eyes.’”
by Werner Herzog, from an interview with the Guardian (2020)
It is no secret that I love my academic and pop culture darlings equally. I am just as likely to love a non-fiction work about the history of madness as I am a book of pulpy romance. All vampires are equal to me, from “Carmilla” (1872) to “the Vampire Diaries” (2009-2017). When I first started the White Lily Society, I decided quite early on that I was not interested in being a judge-jury-executioner in the semantics of taste. Subjectivity is where community thrives, after all. One must have things to talk about, to discuss, or else the salons would be empty and ideas would cease to exist.
From time to time, it is good to cleanse the palate and read something less intricate5. Even the most grounded of souls can relish in escapism; isn’t that what we read for? One should have no qualms in reading either to expand or to escape. Of course, there is plenty of literary fiction that blends the two, but when I am talking of my favourite escapist reads they tend to follow a very similar script; they’re intended for a younger audience (YA), have dense world building, focus on political intrigue and/or mysteries (with shades of moral grey), and may include a “Death and the Maiden” style romance on the side. I have a type, what can I say? Let me unpack five of my favourite escapist reads for you now, my dear.
☆ “the Bone Season” by Samantha Shannon
“the Bone Season” (originally published in 2013, author’s preferred text released 2023) was brought to me by my dear friend Izzy (Isabelle), who lamented how little attention this favourite series of hers got. Before I knew it, she was at my door, signed hardcover with sprayed edges and all in hand. I never make a promise to check out a recommendation lightly, and so I allowed this gorgeous tome to take me on a 400 page journey. Two days later, ending with a seven hour reading day, I was done. Suppose my attention span is fine after all. Hooray!
“the Bone Season” is set in a not-so-distant future steampunk London, in which the oppressive regime of Scion is waging war on clairvoyance. Our main character Paige Maloney is a [clair]voyant of the highest order, a dreamwalker, who ends up captured and sent to the penal colony of Oxford. Mysteries begin to pile up, and if Paige wishes to escape her captivity and make her way home, she has to start unraveling them all, one by one. This is the first book in a series, with some dauntingly dense world-building, but that makes it a very immersive read; your pinkie finger will surely be marking the glossary for the first hundred or so pages. Personally, I relish the density, but it’s very much a matter of taste.
Why I loved it: the steampunk setting, which is so often under-utilised in media. All the London street name-drops, not to mention the atmosphere of Oxford, lit by gaslight and wonder. Paige Mahoney is a fierce protagonist with depth and growth throughout the book(s). All the mysteries and (assumed) “plot holes” slowly get resolved in the first and later books in the series. Be warned, though there is a scrumptious “Beauty and the Beast” style romance in this first book, is it decisively not a romance novel. Read it if you’re intrigued by the world’s many mysteries, or wonder what a revolution of clairvoyance would look like, and let the romance be a side-plot.
☆ “the Cruel Prince” trilogy by Holly Black
The “Folk of Air” (2018-2019) trilogy6 is the story of Jude Duarte, a mortal girl raised within the dangers of Elfhame, surrounded by the schemes and tricks of the Fae. She may be a second citizen in Faerie, but she has one trick up her sleeve: the ability to lie. Soon, Jude is swallowed up by the slithering politics of the Court— a good distraction from the cruel prince who seems hellbent on making her life hell… Or is it?
Why I loved it: I adore Holly Black’s world-building within her “Folk of Air” series. Just the food descriptions alone are so lush and magical. This trilogy is full of mysteries that all get their due answers in time, and the writing is quite tight. Connecting the dots early is fully possible and encouraged. Jude “If I cannot be better than them, I will be so much worse” Duarte is a great, intriguing protagonist, and an absolute menace. Definitely not a pushover. There are plentiful political schemes and plots, as well as a subtle romance B -plot on the back-burner (Don’t let social media fool you; these books are politics first, mystery second, romance third).
☆ the “Belladonna” trilogy by Adalyn Grace
“Belladonna” (2022) centres around Signa Farrow, a girl who can see ghosts, but can’t die. Sent to live with her last-remaining distant relatives at Thorn Grove, she is soon approached by a restless spirit, whispering of murder, poison, and grave danger. It is up to Signa to use her unique skillset to solve the crime and prevent any further ones, potentially with the help of Death himself.
Why I loved it: it is literally Death and the Maiden. Need I say more? Compared to the previous two recommendations, this series is definitely more romance-heavy. The first book can definitely be read as a sumptuously gothic stand-alone mystery/romance7. There’s ghosts, inheritance schemes, and spooky atmosphere. But the banter between Signa and Death was my favourite part, and I very much enjoyed their relationship as my main motivator to keep turning the page.
☆ “the Originals: the Rise” by Julie Plec
Part of a stand-alone, non-canon prequel trilogy to my most beloved TV show “the Originals” (2013-2018), this is a short story following the Original vampires Klaus, Elijah, and Rebekah once they first set foot in New Orleans ca. 1722. Set within the “Vampire Diaries” (2009-2017) lore, you could realistically read these books without prior knowledge of the TVDU, though that, in my opinion, defeats the point. The story is quite loose, focusing on the same political struggle between the supernatural factions of New Orleans; the vampires, witches, werewolves, and the humans who live among them.
Why I loved it: I’ve only read the first book “the Rise”, which is a short, enjoyable, campy read that could have been a flashback episode straight from the show. The real draw is not the plot, but a chance to spend more time with the Original siblings; the ghostwriter does an absolutely phenomenal job at nailing their character voices, body language, and manners of speech. Elijah keeps his word, Rebekah falls in love, and Klaus is his usual unpredictable self. It’s a self-contained story and can be read in one sitting, which is probably for the best, because I’ve heard less than stellar reviews of the second and third book. Nevertheless, I am always eager for more TVDU content.
☆ “the Twilight Saga: Midnight Sun” by Stephenie Meyer
The lion fell for the lamb, that much we know. More specifically, we know how the lamb fell in love with the lion, as it happened in “Twilight” (2005). Not much of the story necessarily changes with the lion’s perspective in “Midnight Sun” (202), and yet this parallel book contains almost double the pages of its counterpart. In spite of that, when this gem first saw daylight a few years ago, I sucked it dry in a matter of days. It was like my own, personal brand of heroin.
Why I loved it: This book is genuinely unhinged. “Twilight”, near and dear as it is to me, is already stuffed with comedic little details, but being in Edward’s head is like a supernova of superfluous details, ripe for the picking. Did you know Bella’s skull is dented from being dropped so much as a baby? Or that Edward counted bugs in the beloved meadow scene to distract himself from the urge to kill Bella? Would you like to see Alice’s cover story plotting in full, glorious detail? Say no more. This is by no means a short book, but it flies by for the sheer nonsensical chaos and extremely melodramatic yearning it contains. Addictive and entertaining, without a doubt.
“Read, read, read. Read everything -- trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You'll absorb it. Then write. If it's good, you'll find out. If it's not, throw it out of the window.”
by William Faulkner
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* On the List *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ
Exhibitions, Events, and Talks. There’s a few notable events on at the Viktor Wynd museum, both online and in-person this upcoming month. Starting with a zoom lecture on the history of the Danse Macabre on September 18th (tickets £6). Additionally, the eponymous Viktor Wynd, the founder of the museum, is celebrating the upcoming launch of his new book, a collection of dark fairytales. Wynd is telling his dark, grim tales, in-person on the 8th (tickets £15-20), or online on the 29th (tickets £6).
The Wallace Collection is celebrating Dionysis with a handful of short 15 minute in-person talks, each highlighting a different decorated object related to the god: a drinking glass on the 3rd, a painting on the 10th, a rifle on the 17th, and a gilded table on the 25th. At the V&A, their new “Marie Antoinette Style” exhibition opens on the 20th! Be sure to snatch tickets asap, as they always have a way of evading one’s grasp… Supplementing those fabulous fashions, they are also hosting a lecture on regency fashion on the 22nd: in-person tickets £15-18, or £6 for the livestream.
In our miscellaneous pile today, you should be warned that the Courtauld’s “Abstract Erotic: Louise Bourgeois, Eva Hesse, Alice Adams” exhibition ends on the 14th. London Fashion Week will be on from the 18th until the 22nd. Highgate Cemetery is hosting its spooky annual bat walks again, with a date on the 15th. Highly recommended if you wish to see some bats, roam dark tombs, or navigate the cemetery by torchlight. The atmospheric Sir John Soane museum is hosting a twilight night of Romantic poetry on the 19th, tickets £35, while the Freud Museum is hosting a talk on dreams in cinema and the subconscious on the 25th, tickets £15.
Last but in no way least, the Etcetera Theatre Camden is hosting a limited run of a new play about femicide, feminism, and revenge on the 14th and 15th. “Meat For the Fridge” is written by a fellow White Lily Society member, so go support them! Tickets £14.14
Film, Music, and TV. If you like dark guitar riffs, dreamy sounds, and ethereal vocals, shoegaze-band “NewDad” might be for you! They’re releasing their new album “Altar” on September 19th ˚ 𝜗𝜚˚⋆｡☆. Or if a different form of darkness calls to you, you can rejoice in the second part of “Wednesday” season 2 going live on Netflix on the 3rd of September.
Continuing their David Lynch tribute line-up, Picturehouse is screening 1997’s enigmatic “Lost Highway” on the 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 10th, hosting another “Twin Peaks” (1990-1991) season 1 marathon on the 13th, and screening the Lynch-spiration “Vertigo” (1958) on the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 11th. Their regular re-release line-up is also looking juicy, with the puppet-filled fantasy film “Labyrinth” (1986) on the 20th, 21st, and 25th, the tender “Phantom Thread” (2017) from the 27th to the 1st of October, Hitchcock’s gothic horror “Rebecca” (1940) from the 27th to the 2nd of October.
The BFI instead is focusing on classroom films, screening the French female-focused drama “Girlhood” (2014) on the 3rd (with intro), and cult classic “the Breakfast Club” (1985) on the 20th and 29th (with intro on the 10th). I can vouch for the extra light the curator intros shine on their respective films, as I saw “to Die For” (1995) with introduction last month, and it was a fantastic compendium to the film!
In the Stars. Lovers of darkness gather around, as the day of the full moon on September 7th will also bring a lunar eclipse. A perfect time for a coven-gathering, perhaps? Venus, the Moon, and the star Regulus will meet in the sign of Leo on the 19th, marrying romance and lavish excess. Additionally, the new moon is set for the 21st, and the fall equinox, or the start of meteorological autumn, for the 22nd. The start of autumn is also the end of Virgo-season, as the 23rd transitions into Libra-season.
Obsessive Tendencies: What I’ve Loved Lately
Disturbia, Lilias Devoré Tiered Maxi Dress, [The perfect lazy day dress for a subtle goth vibe], £75
Dark In Love, Amour Button Up Dress, [A steampunk moment, perfect for wandering around Whitby or vampire-themed conventions], £79 via Sai Sai
Ethel Cain, “Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You” on vinyl, [Not now sweetie, mommy needs her daily WTIALY-listen on vinyl], £31.99 at HMV
LUSH, “Guardian of the Forest” Body Spray, [Mysterious and musky, as if you’re an eldritch forest creature awakening from a long slumber], £32
Funko, Universal Monsters: Bitty Pop! Town Vinyl Figure: Dracula (With Castle), [Trinkets for the master! Trinkets are the life!], £6.99 at Forbidden Planet
Astral Pewter, Spider charm necklace, [Picked this up at the Astrology Shop near Covent Garden, and I can’t stop wearing it], £6.92 with cord or £4.62 without
“I am resisting entering life again, pain, activity, conflicts. Everything is beginning anew; the day is soft but perishable, like a sigh, the last sigh of summer, heat and foliage. Soft and sad, the end of summer, and leaves falling.”
by Anaïs Nin, from “the Diary of Anaïs Nin Volume 1, 1931-1934”
Alas, typing with my long acrylic nails feels like being a beast of the keyboard. A grotesque idol of academic glamour and incessant wrist-aches. The best of both worlds! Going into my old age of twenty and four years, such wear and tear is to be expected. I am the princess of carpal tunnel syndrome. Knock on wood. This upcoming September teases a visit from my best friend Lily8, two gruelling weeks without internet here at Blackberry Hill House, and birthday celebrations galore. As a result, I am busy planning my big Nosferatu-Dracula / H.P. Lovecraft / Bloodborne themed birthday, and all that a party of such a nature would imply.
August is an odd in-between month, a veil of the living and dead, that brings out a jovial strangeness in people. Just a few days ago on the Underground, a group of guys unseen was… howling? Forgive me for not harbouring the bravery needed to investigate this case of lunacy echoing through the tunnels. I feel compelled to share odd details of my life, my dear, like the lengthy conversation I had with the local copy store employee about the revival of cassette tapes and vinyl. In the corner of my study, a burning candle purports to smell like “graveyard cobwebs”, but smells oddly sweet and pumpkin-like, if you ask me. According to my newly-acquired mood ring I am loving and romantic almost all of the time. Did you know the human brain is theorised to hold about 10-100 terabytes of information? I think more than half of my storage space is just purely referential knowledge, a spool of winding connections. Give me another year and I will develop a spider web for a frontal lobe.
Until my next letter,
With love (and violence),
x Sabrina Angelina, the White Lily Society
Currently reading: “On Mysticism: The Experience of Ecstasy” by Simon Critchley // Most recent read: “the Bone Season #2: the Mime Order” by Samantha Shannon
White Lily Society links // Sabrina Angelina links
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📼 Song of the (past) month: Tempest - Ethel Cain
Can you tell I’ve been reading Lovecraft lately? “In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming” (from “the Call of Cthulhu” (1928)
If you wish to analyse my chart, go ahead. Just be sure to link me back with the findings and indulge my astrological narcissism. It would be a great birthday present ˚ 𝜗𝜚˚⋆｡☆
Big Three ~~~ ☉♍︎ sun in virgo (10th house) / ☾♊︎ moon in gemini (7th house) / ↑♏︎ ascendant in scorpio (1st house)
Personal Planets ~~~ ♂♑︎ mars in capricorn (2nd house) / ♄♊︎ saturn in gemini (7th house) / ♃ ♋︎ jupiter in cancer (8th house) / ♌︎♀ venus in leo (9th house) / ♎︎☿ mercury in libra (11th house)
Generational Planets ~~~ ♇♐︎ pluto in saggittarius (1st house) / ♆♒︎ neptune in aquarius (3th house) / ♅♒︎ uranus in aquarius (3th house)
I rented my costume from “Mad World Costumes” by Old Street, which I feel deserves a little shoutout. They had a great selection on offer (w/ a good selection of midsize options and above) and the staff was continually so sweet and kind <3. Due to my inherent clumsiness I ripped a seam on my overdress, but when I pointed it out on return they graciously waved any further fees. So do me a favour, my dear, and consider them when you’re in need of a costume rental in London.
Because I can’t tag her in the image caption, I will do so here: our beautiful baker and resident doll-expert is
<3It is hard to describe this idea without using the terms “high” and “low art”, whose ideology I do not subscribe to. Forgive me if I am a bit clumsy in my writing around it.
I have yet to finish the “Stolen Heir” (2023-2024) duology in the series.
The first book is my favourite, but I found the shift of protagonist in the third book surprisingly tolerable and enjoyed that couple’s dynamic a great deal as well. The mystery writing is good, but its tricks get more predictable with each instalment in the series you read, so do be warned.