Exquisite Undead: An Anthology of Vampires
Welcome. On this page you will find all there is to know about T. L. Morgan's upcoming anthology.What would you like to explore first?
Submissions are Closed.
Thank you to everyone who submitted work to Exquisite Undead. It was an honor to meet your vampires!
About the Anthology
A Genre-Blending Anthology of Vampires, curated by indie author Talli L. Morgan.
Exquisite Undead successfully funded on Kickstarter in April 2026. It will release on September 27, 2027.
Cover art by R.E. Murray.
This genre-blending collection raises the vampire from its grave in brilliant new ways. Within these stories you will swoon for irresistible undead charmers, acquaint yourself with some vampiric sorts you’ve likely never seen, and enjoy some fresh takes on tales you know and love.Opening with an introduction by curator Talli L. Morgan, this anthology is a love letter to the vampire story and our endless, undying fascination with creatures of the night.Go on, then, if you dare: Invite them in.
Table of Contents
surrender poetics by Maria Duran
Incorrupt by Moira Kurtin
The Calm Within A Bite by Alex Larkspur
Familiar by Juniper Lake Fitzgerald
Blessed Be Her Fruit by Jessie Thomas
Lips as Red as Blood by Adie Hart
Grave Temptation by T. L. Morgan
The Deal You Make With the Dark by Josie Jaffrey
Vampire in Venice by A. F. Stewart
Count Nicolae by Jonathan Tolstedt
The Lost and the Lonely by D. N. Bryn
Regarding the Permanent Removal of Object No. 1956.665 by Kara Race-Moore
Here’s Trouble by Jye Sorensen
The Cure for Undead Ennui by Karen G. Berry
The Thirst Constellation by Jennifer Climie
Why Vampires?
Oh, why indeed? Why curate a collection centered upon this overused, overrated, oversaturated entity that has haunted our cultural lexicon for centuries? Aren't there enough vampire stories already? Hasn't it all been done before? Haven't we moved on from sparkly blood-sucking creatures of the night?Hah. Not a chance.Why vampires, you ask? I could give you the simple answer: Because vampires are rad. But that's not satisfying, is it? So let me ask you this: Why not vampires? Why not give a bunch of writers a chance to play in the sandbox with these endlessly fascinating, endlessly versatile, and eternally enduring vessels of metaphor?Yes, there's a million vampire stories. But there's always something new to be done with vampires, so no previous collection of vampire stories will have these vampire stories. Everyone who has ever written a vampire story has something unique to say, their own individual take on these creatures and what they mean.I can't wait to see what your vampires have to say.
Why "Exquisite Undead"?
The anthology's title comes from the artistic medium "exquisite corpse," which is a method by which multiple artists combine unique styles to create a singular image, often without being able to see the whole thing until it's finished. This leads to a surreal yet visually interesting final product.In a similar way, anthologies bring together the unique works of multiple authors to create one whole, harmonious work. There's a beauty to the chaos of these collections, and in my experience the stories have a serendipitous way of blending well even when they are very different.Furthermore...what better term to describe the vampire than exquisite?
Publication & Kickstarter Timeline
About the Curator
Meet Indie Author Talli L. Morgan
Talli L. Morgan writes fantasy novels for adults and young adults. When they're not writing, Talli enjoys drawing, playing D&D, and thinking about writing.Since 2021, Talli has published 6 novels, 3 novellas, and 1 previous anthology. Their short fiction has been featured in Indie Bites as well as other fiction anthologies.You can learn more about Talli's books on their website: tallimorgan.com.In 2025, Talli launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund an audiobook edition of their vampire romance novel, Silver Blood. They are excited to jump into crowdfunding madness once again to bring this new project to life.Talli's editorial experience includes 4 years working on 2 different literary magazines (Quadrangle at Canisius University and Overkill at Allegheny College, for which they were Managing Editor for 2 years) as well as multiple creative writing workshops. They also edited their 2024 anthology Transcendence: An Anthology of Change with assistance from fellow author Tabitha O'Connell.
About the Contributors
Meet the authors featured in Exquisite Undead!
Talli L. Morgan is the anthology's curator and an indie author of novels across the fantasy genre. They sure like to insist that they like vampires a normal amount, despite the fact that they've sunk years of time and energy into researching vampires. Visit Talli on their website, and learn more about them on the About the Curator page.
D.N. Bryn is a queer, disabled author of fantasy and paranormal romance, who has tricked themself into believing that having two attention-seeking cats as copy editors will counteract their dyslexia. It has yet to work, but the cats have no complaints.You can find them at dnbryn.com.
Josie Jaffrey is a dark fantasy and paranormal romance author who writes about lost worlds, dystopian societies and morally-ambiguous monsters (vampires are her favourite). She is the founding editor of fantasy magazine Indie Bites and writer of audio drama podcast Jack Valentine, Vampire Detective.You can find her at josiejaffrey.com.
Juniper Lake Fitzgerald is an author of queer dark fantasy and Gothic tales. She has authored the epic dark fantasy series The Fifth Yanai, and the gothic urban fantasy with romance The Modern Mythos Anomaly. Her work is featured in multiple anthologies and she is the narrative designer of the dark fantasy video game Shadow Rite.You can find her at ardentgrove.carrd.co.
Jessie Thomas is an author of paranormal and fantasy romance from Buffalo, New York. An avid reader, she enjoys writing books with gothic horror, atmospheric settings, and dark themes. When she isn’t chasing her muses around, Jessie can be found playing with her snaggle-toothed cat named Graham.You can find her at jessiethomasauthor.com.
Alex Larkspur is a queer author from San Antonio, Texas. They specialize in queer fantasy romance such as Sweet & Wild, The Need for Dandelions, and The Witch of the Wood.You can find them at alexlarkspur.weebly.com.
Jonathan Tolstedt is a patent agent by day and an evolving author by night. He has previously published several short stories in various genres, including horror, science fiction, and romance, as well as numerous Drabbles and other micros. Jonathan took 4th place in the Globe Soup August 2025 Micro Competition, and 5th Place in the Writers' Playground 12th Playground Challenge (for his short science fiction story, "Heart of Steel").
Jye Sorensen is an Australian author living in Melbourne with his two dogs who are not vampires. He owns a cleaning business, and writes fiction with every spare second he can get his hands on. He has a forthcoming fantasy piece "The Deserter's Tide" in Savage Realms Monthly, and a forthcoming thriller piece "Something To Talk About" in Shotgun Honey.
Adie Hart is a lover of stories and the words behind them. With a background in the history and literature of the Ancient World, and an abiding love of classic fairy tales, she writes everything from fun fantasy rom-coms to dark retellings. Her cosy queernorm fantasy rom-com collection Party of Two is available on Amazon now.
Kara Race-Moore studied history at Simmons College as an excuse to read about the soap opera lives of British royals. She worked in educational publishing, casting the molds for future generations’ minds, but has since moved into the more civilized world of litigation. She currently lives in Los Angeles, the land where fact and fiction tend to blur.You can find her at: kararacemoore.wordpress.com.
Jennifer Climie is a Scottish writer from South Ayrshire, with a passion for fantasy, gothic fiction, mythology, and character-driven stories. She enjoys exploring themes of memory, identity, love, and loss through speculative fiction and is currently developing several longer works inspired by folklore and the supernatural. She has self-published poetry volumes, a novella and children's books.
A steadfast and proud sci-fi and fantasy geek, A. F. Stewart was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada and still calls it home. She's an indie author with several published novels, novellas, and story collections, and appeared in such anthologies such as Hells Empire: Tales of the Incursion, and A Twist of Fate.
Karen G. Berry’s work has been published by Persimmon Tree, Mackinaw, and many more journals and anthologies. She lives in Portland Oregon and blogs at I am Not a Pie.
Maria Duran is an art history PhD candidate from Lisbon. She has been published by Black Moon Magazine and tiny wren lit, among others, and nominated for the 2025 Best of the Net Award. Her poetry debut was published by Urutau Press.
Moira Kurtin is a writer with a fondness for the whimsical and the macabre. She has loved stories and poetry from a young age. Her work has previously been featured on the Tales to Terrify podcast and various anthologies.
Frequently Asked Questions
I missed the Kickstarter! Where can I buy the anthology?
Fear not! The anthology will be published “wide,” meaning it will be available through most book retailers. The anticipated release date is September 27, 2027. The book will be available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook.
How many stories are in the anthology?
There are 13 short stories and 2 poems featured in Exquisite Undead.
Are you accepting submissions of illustrations or artwork for the book?
Unfortunately, no, the anthology will not feature any interior artwork. It's simply not in the budget.
When will I hear back as to whether my story has been accepted?
All submission responses have been sent as of September 4, 2026.
Will you explain why my submission was rejected?
Due to time constraints and the volume of submissions, I will not be able to provide detailed explanations for each individual rejection, nor am I able to give feedback on your story.
Still have questions?
Feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] with any questions about the anthology that are not answered here.