Posted: November 28, 2023

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I thought I’d have another go at this topic since the last one was so well-liked, and since I have more to say about vampires. These undead creatures (people?) have gone from stone-cold horror villains in Bram Stoker’s Dracula to hot and mysterious love interests in the more modern-day books like The Vampire Diaries and Twilight. Last time I talked about one vampire novel I’d read, and I gave my opinions on overused clichés and vampire-human romance, so this time I’ll write about something a bit different. I’ve gone through quite a few other supernatural creatures as well, including werewolves and witches, which you can read by clicking the links below.

I’ve read more in the vampire world since the summer of 2021, when I watched The Vampire Diaries and read some novels including vampire characters (The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare, Dawned by Michelle Areaux, Dracula by Bram Stoker). I’ve also just read The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer. I’ve heard both good and bad things about the Twilight series, though mostly bad, despite its popularity. I admit that there were parts of it that I enjoyed, but, for the most part, it was full of clichés and the main character was quite bland. However, it wasn’t a book that I had to force myself to keep reading, which was a plus; I was able to get right through to the end of the series without difficulty.

The main thing I’ve heard is just how cliché and cringeworthy the books are, so I was a bit nervous to read them. But the series is almost become a staple in vampire media at this point. (I also have my eye on Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice.)

When I'm Reading

When reading vampire fiction, my focus is set on three things: fear, control, and bloodlust. Back in the days of Dracula, vampires were deadly and dastardly beasts with concerns only for themselves and where they would be getting their next meal. They weren’t considered human—obviously they weren’t, but it also was considered that once the human died, they were dead, and the vampire who came back was simply a new soul (of a sort) that had taken over their body. They were monsters.

In recent days, the concept of vampires has become more of a romantic notion. Eternal life/youth; that dark, gothic chic; the monster that was only gentle with you—I think a lot of people were drawn in, just like they are with romances about regular human criminals who change for the love of a partner.

Gotta say, it’s interesting, but not my thing. I’ve always found it weird when old immortals get into relationships with mortals. Like, they’re hundreds of years old, aren’t they? How does the immortality work? Are they still mentally the age they turned, or do vampires mature with years instead of age? The age gap has always felt weird to me. Which is why I’d actually really love to read a vampire novel that includes two immortals (of the same age) being in love with one another. Any books like that out there (aside from Good Omens, which features an angel and demon, not vampires)?

Known vs Unknown

I’ve read books where the supernatural is known and others where it’s unknown to the world as a whole. Claws of Midgard [Related Review: Fenryr’s Chosen Book 1: Claws of Midgard] by Des M. Astor existed in a world where vampires, werewolves, and warlocks are just a natural thing, and while the book was interesting, I wasn’t sure about its setting. It was so strange to be in a world where it seemed like supernatural beings were just so out and about; I kind of missed the mystery of it all.

I enjoy when one of the main characters (if not the main character) pieces together the clues to find that supernatural beings actually do exist. It’s a method of storytelling used to bring people from the real world into the fictional world—sometimes literally, in the case of The Beyonders, in which the main character is sucked through a portal into another world, and sometimes figuratively, like when Harry Potter learns of the secret wizarding world that’s hidden from Muggles (Harry Potter), or when Percy Jackson learns that the Greek Gods actually are real and that monsters and demigods are hidden from regular mortals by a magical veil known as the Mist (Percy Jackson & the Olympians).

Being suddenly thrust into a world where the characters already know everything and somehow have to tell the reader what’s going on without it being an infodump while still not leaving the reader floundering for the first dozen or so pages is incredibly difficult. I think Frank Herbert and N.K. Jemisin did well in their books, Dune [Related Review: Dune Book 1: Dune] and The Broken Earth trilogy [Related Review: The Broken Earth book 1: The Fifth Season] respectively, but I’ve yet to read a vampire novel in which vampires are just another fact of the world and it’s been done to perfection.

When I'm Writing

While I’m first and foremost a reader, I’m also a writer myself, and I’ve been trained in editing. Therein lies a problem, though. Since I know what to look for, I find it difficult to just appreciate a book. I can appreciate finer details now, and know how much work the author and everyone else put into making a book as great as it is, but it also means that errors jump out at me with so much more eagerness, too.

I can leap for joy when I see a scene come back around and being useful, like in The Ickabog [Related Review: The Ickabog] by J.K. Rowling, when the king’s pastry chef takes a day off and he can tell that the pastries tasted different (made by someone else), a scene which comes in handy later when the story’s villain can’t kill the pastry chef because the king will notice that someone else is making his pastries (and they don’t want that). I can even more readily admire just how much research has gone into making a book, especially when the author writes without any such hesitation—when they are absolutely certain and confident in everything they know about their made-up world.

However, that means typos are even more painful for me. Like other authors and people who are passionate about writing, I see inconsistencies in the text as barbed fishhooks dragging me out of the story. I read clichés like they’re SpongeBob stickers that have been plastered over a business proposal: distracting and out of place.

To be honest, I highly believe that if you’re going to write anything, you should do the proper research, if not before, then definitely after writing, because if your vampires have the ability to control animals, it can’t just suddenly disappear later on. If they can only survive on human blood and not animal blood—why? Pigs are so closely related that humans can get transplants from them (organs, not blood), so surely vampires can drink their blood. And if vampires are the only supernatural creatures that exist, there should be a proper reason for it, even if the characters can only speculate.

I may seem like all I’m doing is nitpicking, but don’t get me wrong. I absolutely love vampires. I just also love quality stories. I’m like that food critic in Ratatouille, Anton Ego (without the gloomy pessimism); if I don’t absolutely love a story, I don’t give it 5 stars.

Again, my ideal vampire novel would be something with that mystery of putting clues together—vampires and mystery really go great together! I wouldn’t mind romance, but vampire-human romance is weird to me because of that age gap, so unless the vampire is freshly turned or the vampires are written in such a way that they are mentally their physical age, no thanks. I love the action and horror elements of these creatures, too.

The Details

When inventing vampires for your story, there are a lot of different resources you can use through research. The myths and legends come from many different cultures, but here’s a short list of things to consider.

1. Are they known or unknown in your book? Why? What’s the reason for them to remain secret, or the reason for them to be a part of the greater world?
2. Can humans stand on par with them? Is it like in Dracula, in which the humans are able to kill vampires, or like in Twilight, in which humans have absolutely no chance against them? Can they only be killed by other vampires or supernatural beings?
3. What powers do they have? Carefully consider how each ability ties into the story and the implications of such. Also, do vampires get all their powers all at once, or do they get new powers the older they are?
4. How did vampires come to be? Even if your readers can only speculate, you should have at least some idea about how vampires showed up in your world. Were they always here? Were they created by something/someone else?
5. Do vampires have their own society? Do they have a ruling class? Laws? Their own culture? If a vampire breaks the rules, who comes to take care of it?
6. If there are other supernatural creatures in your world, how do they interact with vampires? What is the relationship between them? Are they enemies? Allies? Do they simply avoid one another?
7. Are your vampires blood drinkers? Most are, but there are rare vampires out there who feed on emotions (called energy vampires).
8. Speaking of blood, how do your vampires act around it? Are they monsters that lose control, like sharks in a frenzy? Do they kill the humans they feed on, or do they sample from a variety of humans and wipe their minds afterwards? (Even further, how does the quantity, quality, or variety of blood affect them?)
9. How do your vampires view romance—or emotion in general? If they were once human, do they feel the same emotions? (Have their emotions changed?) Can they feel love, or is that a sacrifice of eternal life? On the flip side, do they feel more strongly?
10. How do your vampires reproduce? Often, vampires cannot procreate; they make new vampires by biting victims or infecting them with venom or blood. How are newborn vampires taken care of in your world? Do their sires just leave them alone, or do they stick around to show them the ropes?

If you can answer these questions with confidence, you’re well on your way to making some top-notch vampires. Best of luck in your writing!

Can’t wait to continue expanding my experience in vampire fiction!

Related Articles:

Angels & Demons in Fiction
Deities in Fiction
Dragons in Fiction
Dwarves in Fiction
Elves in Fiction
Fast Burn in Fiction
Heroes in Fiction
Love Triangles in Fiction
Magic in Fiction
Mythical Creatures in Fiction
Orcs in Fiction
Powers in Fiction
Pregnancy in Fiction
Prophecies in Fiction
Romance in Fiction
Shapeshifters in Fiction
Slow Burn in Fiction
Vampires in Fiction
Vampires in Fiction II
Villains in Fiction
Werewolves in Fiction
Witches & Warlocks in Fiction

Vampire-themed Book Reviews:

Dracula by Bram Stoker
*Dawned by Michelle Areaux*
*Fenryr’s Chosen Book 1: Claws of Midgard by Des M. Astor*
The Twilight Saga Book 1: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
The Mortal Instruments Book 1: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare