If I Wrote a Vampire....

...which, in the interests of full disclosure, I have no intention of doing at the moment. Also in the interests of full disclosure, I have neither read the Twilight books nor seen the movies and have no intention of changing either fact. I have not read J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood, and I'm okay with that. I do have a nice stack of Hannah Howell's historical vampire novellas in conjunction with Lyndsay Sands that need sorting out, as I lost track of what goes where and am anal about reading linked stories in order. As observant readers may have noticed by the icon above, I did see, and absolutely loved the short-lived (pun unintended) CBS drama, Moonlight, about do-gooder vampire detective Mick and his beloved Beth. In fact, their relationship is one of my favorite TV romances ever. I went through a monster phase when I was about nine or ten, and with the proliferation of vampire romances these days, it does get a girl to thinking.

I might be a party pooper from the start, as I tend toward the classic view and Bram Stoker's original mythos works fine for me. (I know, I know, he didn't invent vampires, but he does have the seminal -no jokes please- work so I stand by the term.) I like the vampire as monster, so I'd want my vampire or at least the majority of vampires in that world, to be the bad guys. Of course I could make an exception for the reluctant vampire, like my (and Beth's) beloved Mick, above. Or reluctant vampire heroine, that's fine too. Equal opportunities here. Or both fighting against the bad guy vampire.

Historical, definitely, as that's how my brain skews. Party pooper points as well for my preference toward single stories as opposed to linked ones, so nobody gets a brotherhood or school for anything. Likely more as well because I would lean toward my vampire getting his HEA in becoming human again and living to a ripe old age and eventual natural death with the heroine. Or vampiress with her hero, you get the picture.

Reproduction? Not in vampire form, as if the only bodily fluid is ichor, well, that doesn't have the baby making stuff, and I'm not sure if a Stoker type vampire could ah, rise to the occasion anyway.

I'm reminded of a discussion I had with a delightful gent in our home church about why we each didn't want to see Twilight, both citing the deviations from traditional mythos, and both agreed that the need for an invitiation for the vampire to enter one's residence is crucial. (Note, I have not seen Let The Right One In because I am not good with bloody movies, but the mythos sounds in line)

Dark in tone, for sure, because, well, I'm me. I do like a dose of the gothic now and again, misty midnight graveyards can be lovely places, and a tingle of danger does up the ante. I do often think that it's more the idea than the myth that gets me, and what's most likely to cross over (pun intended) to my work from the whole vampire idea is in fact the idea or essence. There may or not be fangs and death can be metaphorical as well as literal, but the tone is what carries. So, dear readers, what do you think the whole vampire "thing" is for you? Or are they not your cuppa at all?