Blood and Ink follows John William Polidori as he writes 'The Vampyre', confronts inner demons and descends into madness. We learn that his obsession with Lord George Byron is to prove his nemesis and lead to suicide. Written in 1819, Polidori’s The Vampyre precedes Bram Stoker’s Dracula by nearly a hundred years and holds wide significance within the gothic genre. The Vampyre: Blood & Ink will depict Polidori’s dark account of the famed and mythical creatures. The story will begin with Lord Ruthven, a mysterious and magnetic nobleman who captivates London society with his charismatic charm. Aubrey, a young Englishman, becomes infatuated with Ruthven and is drawn into a world of secrets and supernatural horror. As Aubrey uncovers the truth about Ruthven’s sinister nature, he finds himself trapped in a perilous battle against the allure of the vampire’s deadly powers. It will also explore how Polidori is confronted with his own inner demons and forbidden desires by telling the story of how he becomes obsessed with his real-life contemporary, Lord George Byron, who becomes an allegory for the character he has created – Lord Ruthven. When these obsessions are revealed, Polidori descends into madness as his mind slowly merges with the fictional character of Aubrey.
