I got 99 problems but a vamp ain't one
Brace yourselves. I'm gonna say something about vampires.
I have no vampires in any of my books. The closest thing is a kind of vamp-zombie hybrid (zompire?) in The Witch's Alphabet.
I've been critical of vampire fiction in the past--I find a lot of the modern stuff formulaic and, for lack of a better term, de-fanged. I can't remember the last time I read a genuinely tense or scary vampire story, and barely remember the last time I saw a tense or scary vampire film. (And yes, I have Let the Right One In waiting patiently in my Netflix queue.)
But I love vampires. Vampires are terrifying. The idea of the intelligent, walking dead who feed on the living for sustenance and possess seductive powers? That's a fucking amazing dynamic for a story.
The reason I've never written a vampire story (aside from "Perdition", which is more about Doc Holliday killing a bunch of them than the vampires themselves...) is because I haven't thought of something that satisfies me yet. I haven't thought of a way to work with all of the things I like or even adore about the vampire mythos and folklore. I haven't found a way to get back to basics, to bring real dramatic tension to a story featuring a vampire protagonist or antagonist.
But when I find that idea, I would, in a heartbeat.
Just because there are a ton of "vampire" novels out there (mostly featuring the "safe" vampire who merely exists for the motives of the female protagonist, representing nothing more than a safe space to explore kink that is taboo with a regular guy/girl) doesn't mean you can't write one. It just means you (and I) have to try harder to make it good.
I'm still waiting for my perfect vampire story to come to me. But rest assured when it does, I'll write it.
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I did some test wardrobe for an upcoming photoshoot yesterday and ended up taking one of the best self-portraits I've done (at least I think so.)
And you can see the green tint in my hair.
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18. Grant Morrison/Dave McKean, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on a Serious Earth
What can I say about the graphic novel that gave me my favorite Joker quote ever? ("Laugh and the world laughs with you.") I bought the annotated version, which casts a lot of extra light on the symbolism used throughout and on the scripting process behind a comic, if you're into that. I'm on to The Killing Joke next.
Originally published at Caitlin Kittredge.
I have no vampires in any of my books. The closest thing is a kind of vamp-zombie hybrid (zompire?) in The Witch's Alphabet.
I've been critical of vampire fiction in the past--I find a lot of the modern stuff formulaic and, for lack of a better term, de-fanged. I can't remember the last time I read a genuinely tense or scary vampire story, and barely remember the last time I saw a tense or scary vampire film. (And yes, I have Let the Right One In waiting patiently in my Netflix queue.)
But I love vampires. Vampires are terrifying. The idea of the intelligent, walking dead who feed on the living for sustenance and possess seductive powers? That's a fucking amazing dynamic for a story.
The reason I've never written a vampire story (aside from "Perdition", which is more about Doc Holliday killing a bunch of them than the vampires themselves...) is because I haven't thought of something that satisfies me yet. I haven't thought of a way to work with all of the things I like or even adore about the vampire mythos and folklore. I haven't found a way to get back to basics, to bring real dramatic tension to a story featuring a vampire protagonist or antagonist.
But when I find that idea, I would, in a heartbeat.
Just because there are a ton of "vampire" novels out there (mostly featuring the "safe" vampire who merely exists for the motives of the female protagonist, representing nothing more than a safe space to explore kink that is taboo with a regular guy/girl) doesn't mean you can't write one. It just means you (and I) have to try harder to make it good.
I'm still waiting for my perfect vampire story to come to me. But rest assured when it does, I'll write it.
---
I did some test wardrobe for an upcoming photoshoot yesterday and ended up taking one of the best self-portraits I've done (at least I think so.)
And you can see the green tint in my hair.
---
18. Grant Morrison/Dave McKean, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on a Serious Earth
What can I say about the graphic novel that gave me my favorite Joker quote ever? ("Laugh and the world laughs with you.") I bought the annotated version, which casts a lot of extra light on the symbolism used throughout and on the scripting process behind a comic, if you're into that. I'm on to The Killing Joke next.
Originally published at Caitlin Kittredge.