Why
are vampires so attractive to readers?
For centuries, throughout many cultures, stories have circulated
of supernatural beings (the undead) rising up from the grave to feed on the blood
and flesh of the living. Ignorance of the stages of decomposition of the human
body furthered the undead mythology. Today, we would call these beings vampires.
Of course, that name didn’t always exist; 19th Century poetry and prose are
responsible for popularizing the word vampire. In particular, Bram Stoker’s Dracula made the vampire a staple of the
horror genre, while 20th Century film turned the vampire into an
enigmatic and powerful seducer, the perfect predator. We humans are fascinated
with immortality, power and lust and vampires have all of these attributes in
spades. Writing and reading about vampires resonates with many because of those
compelling qualities. But rarely will I read vampire fiction (with the
exception of Dracula which I had read
long before I started my series). I travelled to Vienna in 2011 specifically to
see Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss, a
sumptuous portrait of a man devouring the object of his love with a kiss. I intended
to take advantage of the time away to work on my fifth vampire novel in an
entirely new environment. As it happened, my editor had given me a copy of Oscar Wilde and The Vampire Murders, the
fourth installment of Gyles Brandreth’s series featuring Oscar Wilde as a
sleuth – credible story, sharp prose, well presented in Wilde’s typical witty
manner. His story has less to do with vampires and more to do with crime
solving but he brilliantly draws gloomy atmospheres that are the perfect
vampire setting. From my perspective, it was clear to me that Brandreth understands
why humans created demons; we did it to scare ourselves. Eventually, I had to
stop reading his novel. The writing was so damn good that I found myself trying
to emulate Brandreth’s style (the bastard!). When I write fiction, I read only non-fiction
or poetry, and I especially avoid all vampire fiction. But after writing
vampire fiction for years, I can honestly say there is no one-answer-fits-all to
the question: why vampires? I touched on some common themes; others have gone
so far as to base their theses on the proposed answer. Ask anyone; each will
give their own version while others will tell you, as I have heard said myself,
“I don’t ‘do’ the vampire thing.”
It’s the dead of night
in the dead of winter, and bodies have been found, stacked ceiling-high,
in a hillside cave in Ottawa’s Strathcona Park; necks pierced, blood
drained – the usual. The city is gripped by a dusk-till-dawn curfew. The
press, police and public have whipped each other into a glorious panic
over someone or something called the “Vampire Undertaker.” Well, when
did a silly curfew ever shut down the kitchen party at the Crimson
house? Bring beer, bring smokes, but please bring yourself to meet The
Vampires (there are at least four of them) and their quirky human pals.
We can take turns feeding the baby vampire, stalling the cops when they
come knocking, and tripping out on that time-dream machine up in the
bedroom. You’ve got to love people who know how to make their own fun!
You’ll never know where Patricia K McCarthy’s “Crimson” stories will
take you or guess what’s going to happen next, not that you’ll be
complaining! Oh, and of course this novel is well-seasoned with smutty
bits – every good plot deserves pepper.
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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