Vampire literature covers the spectrum of literary work concerne principally with the subject of vampires. The literary vampire first appeared in poetry, before becoming the stock figure of gothic fiction with the publication of Polidori's The Vampyre (1819), and later popularised with the penny dreadful Varney the Vampire (1847). Sheridan Le Fanu's tale of a lesbian vampire, Carmilla (1872) has been very influential, though the masterpiece of the genre is Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897). Over the years, vampire stories have diversified into areas of crime, fantasy, science fiction or even chick-lit. As well as the typical fanged revenants, newer representations include aliens and even plants with vampiric abilities. Others feed on energy rather than blood.