"I Vant To Suck Yer Bluhd!"

Hello Again!

I know I have a post already up for today, but I couldn't resist talking about this:

I was on the Twilight Lexicon (yes, I am a "Twilight Saga" (by Stephenie Meyer) fan). In one of their postings, they were talking about a show coming out this fall on the CW, The Vampire Diaries based on the books by L.J. Smith. I haven't read the books, so I couldn't tell you what they're like; but based on what I'm hearing they are very different from "Twilight" (which is totally fine).

People commenting on the Twilight Lexicon were speculating that The Vampire Diaries were only becoming a show because "Twilight" was so popular. Well, the books of The Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith were written before "Twilight" even came out. Of course it could be that "Twilight" was so popular that others thought they'd jump on the band wagon, but let's take a look at some of the vampire history in our culture:

Buffy and Angel both came out long before Twilight did. (The books, too).

Buffy had several episodes before it went off the air. Plus there's books available (I've seen them at at least one of my Libraries). I've seen a few shows of it, so I'm slightly familair. It's not just like Twilight and one of those reasons is because it came out before Twilight was even written (Stephenie Meyer wrote Twilight in 2003).

Then came, Angel, which, spun off of Buffy (and also has books out) completing a fascination with vamps.

Then it seemed like it wasn't as huge for awhile. (or maybe I didn't notice it as much).

Then came Twilight and it was pretty much an instant success. (For myself, I fought against the urge to read the books for a long time because I'm not usually into vampires. At all). Suddenly it was really cool to like vampire stuff, again.

Then came the show True Blood and now The Vampire Diaries will premeire in September.

So was it really Stephenie Meyer who paved the way for vampires to "rise again"? Or is it simply that for eons we humans have had a strange fascination with the characters, their culture, morality and what it all means?

For example, author Kerrelyn Sparks has a series of books called Love At Stake that center around vampires. (So far, after reading the first one, How To Marry A Millionaire Vampire I can report that they are not like Stephenie Meyer's books).

I've noticed other books out there that deal with the vampire culture. They're all over the bookstores and they don't all fit the same formula as Stephenie Meyer's books.

In fact, I have vampires in Conjure A Man but they are not the focal point of the story. My vampires are extremely egocentric. My female main character, Delaney (a witch) is best friends with Caruso, a vampire. (To prove how egocentric he is, Caruso asks Delaney out to the Vampire Ball the day of the ball with only about 6 hours for her to get ready. The only reason she says yes is because she has nothing else to do and she's been friends with Caruso for over 20 years--like I said, he was awfully sure of himself!)

So what is it about writing books that either feature vampires or have them around that makes for good selling?

1. Probably because people are fascinated with them.

2. Probably because they are popular.

3. There's a chance they might sell (for the above 2 reasons).

But it didn't start with Twilight*--Twilight might've opened more doors, but it definitely didn't start the onslaught of vampire myths, books, shows, etcetera. Oh no, vampire lore was around long before the publication of Twilight.

So what's your take? To vampire or not to vampire? Do you like stories with vampires in them or are you not interested one bit? Are you a "purist" Buffy type, or willing to explore a variety of possibilities? Do you think Twilight paved the way or that it was merely riding the backs of an already open-to-vampires culture? What's your thoughts?

Have A Mysterious Monday!

It's Worth A Fortune

Happy Tuesday Everyone, Does anyone remember the song If I Had A Million Dollars by Barenaked Ladies ? I can't remember when or how I was first introduced to this song, but it's a fun song. So, how about if you had a million dollars? What would you do with it? Of course there's the responsible things to do with a million dollars--pay off debts, and such like that. Then there's the question of whether or not you give to charities, and how much. But, suppose you answered all those questions and you still had quite a lot left; what would you do with it? Maybe I'd go to Disney World. I've wanted to go, and I've never been able to. Or, perhaps I'd go to Germany and England, and Belgium (three of the countries my ancestors are from). Travel around seeing family and friends I don't see often. There's all kinds of possibilities. So, what about you? What would you do with a million dollars? Have A Tremendous Tuesday!

Spotlight On Author: Loretta Wheeler

Happy Tuesday Everyone, There's a gem of an author I've had the privilege of coming across...I'm talking about my friend, Loretta Wheeler. She's a sweetheart and very talented author. I enjoyed her YA Paranormal novella, The Pan Man immensely. And, she also writes Romance. So without further ado, come into my parlor and meet Loretta Wheeler: Me: In your YA novelette, The Pan Man , you mention Pan's looking for his long lost soul mate. What made you choose Pan out of all the Greek/Roman gods and goddesses? Loretta: I chose the Greek god Pan, because of the connection with the music. I found later on in the story, (my stories take over and write themselves usually) it applied even more than I realized because of the band's name. I won't mention the name of the band in here, because it's part of the surprise ending. Me: You're mostly known for your Romance stories. How would you describe your writing style? Hot, suspenseful, sensual, sw...

Myths About Writers

Afternoon Folks, I thought we'd do a post to dispel some of the myths people seem to have about writers. I'll put the ones that first come to mind then y'all can chime in. Myth: Writing is a great way to make a lot of money. I'm not sure exactly how this one matriculated. Probably in the wake of some of the big best sellers (i.e. Stephen King, Anne Rice, Stephenie Meyer, JK Rowling, and the like) but most of the time writers put in more money for their writing than they do get out of it. Generally a writer doesn't make a ton of money unless somehow his/her book is a blockbuster hit and blasts through what the author owes in the advance (which is paid back to publishers through royalties). Most writers I've met and talked to are not millionaires. I'm not saying it can't happen, I'm saying it's not one of those things that's automatic. Myth: Writing Is Easy Anybody Can Do It. Okay, granted this isn't entirely a myth, but it's not ent...

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