Using an acronym as the theme for the 8^th biennal conference

in Aix en Provence meant to interrogate Gothic

as a crossroads of territories first - a proper theme for a

family reunion, that of scholars in gothic studies across the

world. But the overlap between that acronym and the signifier

"news" was predicated on the metaphorical paradigm of

time : news from gothic studies here and there. Delegates

from the 4 cardinal points exchanged views and news on

a daily basis in a week-time conference.

The present volume - the first of the pair successively

devoted to literature and cinema - only records samples of

the large number of papers read during the conference, and

notably the keynote lectures, about theoretical implications

(Denis Mellier), the politics of superstition and the European

Uncanny (Victor Sage) and the historical development of the

vampiric theme and its new symbolic depth (Jerrold Hogle).

Fields of investigation represented here concern "roots" of

the 18^th century gothic genre ; the Victorian era provides

insights into gothic travels and cartographies. The echoes of

the 20th century encompass varied sallies into modern and

postmodern literatures. Geographic focuses mostly include

"news from America" from the frontier to Patrick McGrath

as a newcomer, Scotland and Ireland, and France with Balzac

and the adopted Marie Corelli.