Introduction
I’m sitting here with Ottawa’s
only vampire novelist, in her cramped kitchen, surrounded by posters of her
novel covers with peeling paint. There’s barely enough room in this kitchen to
breathe but we will soldier on!
Question: What do you write about
and why?
Answer:
I write wonderfully eccentric gin and tonic pot-boiler vampire novels because
it saves me the trouble of having to serve prison time for infanticide. I have
no children of my own nor have I ever desired to have kids so instead I give
birth to pulp fiction novels, which are a lot less expensive; they never talk
back to me and I don’t have to save for their college education. I put a lot of
effort into rearing my novels, of course nowhere near as much as most parents do
with raising a child, but it’s still represents a two to three year commitment.
As for why vampires I can only say in my defence that they chose me; the sneaky
little buggers came in through the backdoor. A pulp fiction magazine in Roswell,
George, called Man’s Story 2 purchased
some of my erotic poetry and afterward their editor asked me to submit short
vampire stories for another of their magazines called Vampires 2. Apparently they
liked what I wrote and bought a few more and that gave me the silly idea of
turning my new-found interest in vampire short stories to novels.
Question: As it seems to be
case with many novelists, has one vampire novel grown into a series?
Answer: Much
to my own surprise, yes. I call mine The
Crimson Series; novel number four was released in October 2010 and novel
number five is officially being released on October 11, 2012 at Ottawa’s swanky
new event location called @TheSpace, after enduring multiple harrowing sessions
with my dastardly but wise editor, David Three Rats, who ironically became a character
in novel number four. You see this gives me the power of doing with him as I
please and maybe even killing him off! Here again I easily escape serving a
prison term because no one cares if fictional characters are sacrificed.
Actually, I’m having so much fun with my current raft of characters that I
can’t imagine killing off any of them at present… maybe in novel number six.
Question: Vampires are the
darling of the literary world, why do you think that is so?
Answer:
The basic elements of vampires are a human invention, born from mythological
story-telling and a pre-industrial ignorance on the stages of decomposition of
the human body. Vampires didn’t start out as vampires; they began as the
“undead” that rose up from the grave to feed on the living and these folkloric
tales date as far back as medieval times. We have 18th poetry and
prose to thank for inventing the vampire and specifically Bram Stoker’s Dracula which made vampires a staple of
the horror genre. Later, 20th Century film helped the vampire to evolve
into an enigmatic and powerful seducer, the perfect predator who embodied
sexuality and immortality. Who can resist those compelling qualities? Humans
are fascinated with immortality, power and lust and vampires have all of these
attributes in spades.
Question: Vampires have been
enjoying unprecedented success in film and print, what does your Crimson series
have to offer that makes them stand out?
Answer:
Oh, that’s an excellent question. There have been a lot of novels written about
vampires, and many movies too, but few of these feature just one solitary vampire.
In my Crimson series, there is only one vampire – to be precise the One and Only vampire on Earth, whose
powers are handed down the line by a predecessor. In 2006, a physics professor from the
University of Central Florida wrote a paper on geometric progression and he
argued the mathematical illogic of having more than one vampire in that if
every victim bitten by a vampire in turn would transform into a vampire and
bite someone else and turn that person into a vampire then there would be no
humans left in the world within two years – just vampires. For me, the impact
of the vampire has more punch by having only one. But admittedly, I cheat a
little because I also have hybrid vampire characters, off-spring from the one
and only vampire who bit pregnant women in their ninth month to create a new
race of hybrid vampires. In my Crimson series, the hybrids have all but died
with the exception of a very small handful of four that remain alive.
Question: Did you set your
stories in ancient or modern times?
Answer:
Modern times, specifically in the sedate city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada in
such old, darling neighbourhoods like Sandy Hill that date back to the times of
the lumber barons during the 1900s. The cover photography for the second
trilogy, specifically The Crimson Time, features a photo from Strathcona Park
taken by David Three Rats. I think it helps readers to connect the story to a
real time and place that can be visited. I can even envision a “Crimson crawl”
to the various pubs visited by the characters as depicted in novel number four,
The Crimson Time: a vampire crawl. And for novel five, The Crimson Crimes: a
vampire revenge, the old Carleton County Jail in Ottawa is featured on the
cover. I adore Ottawa; we have a lot to offer in our button-down, pinstripe
city – get out and explore it.
Question: The Crimson series
is comprised of The Crimson Man, The Crimson Boy, The Crimson Woman, The
Crimson Time and now The Crimson Crimes. What is the name of the sixth?
Answer: I
named the first trilogy with a similar subheading on each cover A Fantasy, A
Fantasy Continued, A Fantasy Realized. In the second trilogy, I’ve used the
sub-heading, A Vampire Crawl, so for the fifth I named it The Crimson Crimes: A
Vampire Revenge and for the sixth, The Crimson Dream: A Vampire Escape. Each
story can actually be read as a standalone or in sequential order or as many
people have taken to reading them backwards.
Question: If these are stories
that are set in modern times, then are the characters concerned with regular
human issues, such as acquiring wealth, raising families, saving the world?
Answer: (laugh) I wish my
characters were as lofty-minded about doing well in the world. Unfortunately my
characters are lacking in many of the attributes that would be assigned to
saints. They are anything but upstanding – they drink too much, smoke too much,
break judicial laws, kill and fornicate at every opportunity. In short, my
Crimson world is a place where you can live out your wildest fantasies.
Question: Which brings me to
my second last question – what about the erotic element in your Crimson series?
Answer: A
relatively unexplored sub-genre of the vampire mythology and one that more
authors are discovering is worthwhile to write and read. For me vampires are
sex; they take what they want, when they want with no regard for consequences.
The erotica in my Crimson series is not to window-dress the fiction but to add
a more human element that readers can relate to and that is lust. Besides who
doesn’t want to get their partner all hot and bothered from reading? I always
recommend to readers to keep their partners close by, especially with the first
installment in the Crimson series.
Question: Where and how can
readers buy the Crimson series?
Answer:
If you live in Canada, U.S. or International, through my website: www.patriciaKmccarthy.com where you
can download eBooks or purchase right on-line the paper versions. My Crimson
series is specialized and perhaps the most graphic fiction you will ever read,
for a reason. Some independent bookstores sell the Crimson series in Ottawa. My email door is always open and if any
publisher listening to this interview is interested in becoming that
international distributor let’s get together for a drinky-poo and discuss our
new partnership.
Thank you for
taking the time to chat!
About the author:
Patricia K. McCarthy lives and writes in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Her Crimson vampires series has received extensive media coverage in national and local newspapers, as well as on radio and television. For details, visit her website.
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