What's Been Going On and Upcoming Books on Vampire 3

Haven't been writing here much, as I've been busy with other things, namely research and going on a book-buying bender. Time for a catch-up and a peek at some forthcoming books I've stumbled across.

Firstly, it's great to hear that the guys behind the 2009 Vienna conference, 'Vampirismus und magia posthuma im Diskurs der Habsburgermonarchie im 18. und 19. Jahrhundert' are finally publishing their book. Got the scoop from Niels. It's currently available on pre-order. I've placed mine.

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Speaking of Niels, his blog continues to blow my mind. Seriously, the guy just reels off his findings on obscure areas of vampiriana like they're nothing. If he's happy sharing that stuff publicly, I can't help wondering what secrets he isn't sharing. Sometimes, it makes me wanna throw in the towel. Some recent stand-outs include an overview of Zopf's famous vampire dissertation; uncovering sources for an obscure 'vampire' case; a source discussing magia posthuma in Poland, Hungary and Moravia; and debunking Stephen Hubner's 'vampire' status. Get your asses over there.

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I rarely read vampire novles - or novels in general - but I have been reading Don Ecker's Past sins (Dark Realm Press, 2004). Let's say it ain't Twilight. If you're into your monstrous vamp (as I am), check it out. If you're one of them Kindle folk, click on the cover to buy a copy.

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Speaking of buying things, I've found a few more books to add to the 'Upcoming books on vampires' collection. Stumbled across 'em while on the aforementioned book-buying bender.

Title: The theology of Dracula: reading the book of Stoker as sacred text
Author: Noël Montague-Étienne Rarignac
Release date: 19 July 2011 (Amazon); Spring/Summer 2011 (McFarland)
Worth the wait? Firstly, how fuckin' awesome is that cover? Seriously, look at it. Beautiful. As to the book itself, it's clearly one for the Dracula scholars. Another work focusing on literary interpretation, in this case, it 'represents a rereading of the horror classic as a Christian text, one that alchemizes Platonism, Gnosticism, Mariology and Christian resurrection in a tale that explores the grotesque' (McFarland's spiel). If that tickles your fancy, then it'll be the book for you. That said, I am interested in the religious overtones behind vampire texts, so it's definitely on my to-get list.

Title: Theorizing Twilight: essays on what’s at stake in a post-vampire world
Author: Maggie Parke & Natalie Wilson (eds)
Release date: 14 August 2011 (Amazon); Fall/Winter 2011 (McFarland)
Worth the wait? While I can barely repress a groan at another release dedicated to Twilight (I still have to give props to the saga for kickstarting the vampire boom, though), its publisher is a good indicator of quality. McFarland have an impressive track record when it comes to vampire stuff. Check out their vampire and Dracula titles.

Title: Vampires through the ages: lore & legends of the world's most notorious blood drinkers
Author: Brian Righi
Release date: 8 Janaury 2012
Worth the wait? While its title hits the mark in my preferred vampire niche ('lore & legends'), the 'notorious blood drinkers' angle makes me think the book's gonna give the same-old, same-old coverage to Elizabeth Bathory, John Haigh, Fritz Haarmann, et. al. Or, worse: Vlad Țepeș. Its comic book style cover doesn't exactly inspire me with confidence, either. I had a brief peek through Righi's Amazon oeuvre. Looks like he's into ghosts. Perhaps he'll view the subject through a paranormalist lens, which might be interesting. We'll see.

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So, what have I been researching? Noneother than the Highgate vampire case. One element I've been pursuing is Highgate Cemetery's pre-1970 reputation for hauntings - vampiric or otherwise. There are certain texts which allude to to it, but don't seem to have been published before 1970 or the 1960s, which, of course, is highly suspicious. One stand-out's David Farrant's 'Invoking the vampire', New Witchcraft, vol. 1, no. 4, 1975, pp. 32–8:

Some interesting facts came to light. Firstly, it became apparent that stories of an apparition in Highgate cemetery had by no means begun with the then current sightings. Indeed, similar tales dated from the Victorian Era and interestingly enough more of them had "vampiristic" connections. One of the common tales of that time told of a "tall man dressed in black" who used to disappear mysteriously through the cemetery wall (p. 34).

In the same article, he also concluded, 'That Bram Stoker was influenced by the Highgate Vampire when he wrote "Dracula" . . . is almost certain' (ibid.). I've been asking Farrant how he obtained this information, i.e. 'oral tales, books, articles, whatever', over at The supernatural world forum. So far, I've been met with sidetracking, personal attacks, obscure allusions and the possibility that he might discuss them, if I explain my spiritual beliefs first - which I'd already done. Several times. Let's say I find it to be a highly unusual way to react to a simple request. Could we be dealing with a manufactured 'legend'? Quite possibly.

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On a lighter note, I've been thinking of creating a new segment for this blog concerning beaut non-fiction vampire book covers. I occasionally express awe for them, so why not share a few which I think are particularly great? It's not set in stone, though. Just something I've been thinking of doing. See how it goes.

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Last, but not least, don't forget to vote on the poll. There's only 10 days left, folks. Do you believe in vampires? Have your say today!

So You Wanna Publish a Vampire Novel?

Let's say you've written your vampire novel, where do you go from there? Send it off to a bunch of publishers and hope for the best? Well, there is another option.

Have you considered self-publishing? Joe Konrath's 'Live undead - marketing Draculas' and its associated links gives a brilliant insight into what it's like to publish and promote your book, along with the costs involved.

Its focus is on getting a lot of the work done online and encouraging a greater control over one's creative output. I'm sure budding authors will appreciate this process, in light of the dark age bookshops are presently experiencing.

Hi Angela!

I received a comment (Saturday, February 21, 2009 2:06:00 PM) on "So You Wanna Write a Vampire Novel" from paranormal romance author, Angela Cameron.

She wrote:

I'm starting to think that the vampire thing is going to be so overdone before long that I'm going to have to abandon my babies.

I was going to reply to her in comment form, but my response was starting to get so extensive, that I thought I'd reply byway of this blog entry.

So, here goes.

There is a certain amount of ennui attached to the vampire genre, which is probably why a lot of people end up abandoning it.

F. Paul Wilson, author of The Keep (1981) and Midnight Mass (2004) is one example. He was obviously fed up with the genre at one point.

In an interview for Rosemary Ellen Guiley's The Complete Vampire Companion (New York: Macmillan, 1994), he was asked, "How does this fad [that is, the romanticising of vampires in fiction -ed.] affect the writer?", he replied:

The vampire can still hold one of the greatest threats, that of death. To do that the writer must turn to a classical approach. After all, what was Dracula about but good guys versus bad guys. Dracula was more than just a bad guy; he was a force of death, and also represented something worse than death. Dracula also personalized the horror; the vampire set a target. Vampires today drag people into a dark alley, like a victim of random violence. If you make the vampire operate on that level he is nothing more than a mugger. It's less likely that I'd use the vampire again. If Robert McCammon hadn't written me and asked for a story for the anthology Under the Fang, I would never have written Midnight Mass [his contribution was later expanded into the 2004 novel of the same name -ed.]. I think we've gone too far with the vampire, and I can't see how people take it seriously anymore. (p. 99)

The thing about the vampire genre, is that it contains certain motifs which tend to get recycled. Some are happy with that (I know I am), which is how its various subgenres are formed.

Of course, once in a while, something comes along to break the mould, or catches on with the public, and thus we have examples like John Polidori's "The Vampyre" (1819), J. Sheridan LeFanu's "Carmilla" (1872), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897), Richard Matheson's I Am Legend (1954), Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire (1976) and, of course, Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series (2005-).

I'm sure I have left some out, but you get the drift.

Each one of these stories created a template for successive writings in the genre (Meyer's is yet to be seen, I think). However, so strong are these "archetypes" (especially Dracula), that subsequent writers find it very difficult to break free of them.

These initial works aren't necessarily original, but they have something about them which creates new milestones. Kind've like perfecting a recipe. They just figured it out. Somehow.

Personally, I don't think writers need to aspire to such milestones. After all, I'm sure pretty much all of the above-cited authors didn't deliberately set out to create the pop culture "monsters" they spun off. They just wanted to share the stories in their heads.

As I mentioned, I happen to like certain motifs. It's what draws me to the field. My literary tastes, in terms of vampire fiction, lean more towards the "old school", "retro" stuff. F. Paul Wilson's Midnight Mass (2004) is a classic example of that. Here's a review I wrote for it on Amazon.

I like vampires that "obey the rules" (even if these aren't necessarily founded in folklore). I prefer Count Dracula over Lestat. And the tropes that go with that implication. Curt Purcell, of Groovy Age of Horror fame, covers this literary preference quite well in "Ancient Horrors, Modern Settings, Modern Readers" and "Blood-Drenched Sacred Soil".

However, as a budding vampirologist, my objection is when certain literary motifs are applied to "actual" vampires of history and folklore. This is the flaw inherent in a lot of non-fiction vampire works.

Anyway, point is, you should write what you love. Write for yourself. If you enjoy certain facets of vampire fiction, then there's sure to be others of a similar bent. If you truly are sick of it all, then there are a billion other avenues to pursue.

Either way, I wish you all the best with your endeavors - whatever form they might take!

So You Wanna Write a Vampire Novel?

There's a handy guide on how to write a vampire novel over at TV Tropes.

It's pretty tongue-in-cheek, but I'm sure you'll find some useful pointers there.

For more pointer's, you might like to check out eHow's "How to Write a Vampire Novel" which is less extensive. They've even got an article on how to write for tweens.

Have fun!