Stoker visited the English coastal town of
Whitby in 1890, and that visit was said to be part of the inspiration for
Dracula, staying at a guesthouse in West Cliff at 6 Royal Crescent, doing his research at the public library at 7 Pier Road (now
Quayside Fish and Chips). Count Dracula comes ashore at Whitby, and in the shape of a black dog runs up the
199 steps to the graveyard of
St Mary's Church in the shadow of the
Whitby Abbey ruins. Stoker began writing novels while working as manager for Irving and secretary and director of London's Lyceum Theatre, beginning with
The Snake's Pass in 1890 and
Dracula in 1897. During this period, he was part of the literary staff of
The Daily Telegraph in London, and he wrote other fiction, including the horror novels
The Lady of the Shroud (1909) and
The Lair of the White Worm (1911). He published his
Personal Reminiscences of Henry Irving in 1906, after Irving's death, which proved successful, and managed productions at the
Prince of Wales Theatre.
