Is it worth writing vampire fiction?

Simi

Simi

Simi

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This is basically my question, as a (sometime) writer of short stories (none famous) I've been feeling the urge to move onto a bigger project.
I'm a huge fan of the horror genre and have some great ideas for both vampire and zombie stories - some of which could even become a 'series' with enough dedication and time.

Time being something I have a lot of since a work accident ruined my back and has me sitting home with no real hope of recovering, I can, thankfully, still walk (with a walking stick) though :)

Anyway, I digress. I come to these forums a heck of a lot and you see a lot of differing tastes in media so thought I would ask, is it worth writing a vamp story in such a vamp flooded market? Please bear in mind this isn't going to be about soppy vamps, but real ones, ones that must feed on human blood, even animal blood won't help, the lowest they go is feeding on homeless people, people on the outside of normal society. So, this would be more violent and (hopefully my writing skills can manage this!) dramatic than the usual trend of girl falls hopelessly in love with vampire and then whines throughout the story.

In my story, any human is food, nothing more.

Then on the other hand I have some zombie survival type thing in mind, although that hasn't fully hatched into a plot yet, only an idea.

So in general, would you read such a vampire novel or dismiss it as the latest in a long line of crap-pires? ;)

Thanks for any input offered!
 
Vampires seem to be the in thing at the moment

Vampire Diaries
True Blood
Twilight

If you're going to do it you have to decided who your target audience is? Are you going to aim it towards youngsters or adults because there really isn't any in between.
 
It would definitely have a mature theme more suited to adults than teens, Gustov.
I know what you're saying, Tummy it's just that the story is nagging at me more than other ideas I've had and in a way this would be different when looking at most vampire plots even if it's not different in subject matter.
I take your point though and wonder if most people think that, although being totally different is a lot more difficult these days :(
 
Yeah I would recommend something else, right now the Vampyre saturation is so high that my brain instantly switches off now as soon as the word crops up.

Go for something a little different, maybe a incubus instead or a wraith/wight or something a touch more unusual.
 
There are just too much in the way of Vampire stuff out at the moment, I don't think even if what you wrote was really good it would just be lost amongst the rubbish that's out.

I imagine it would be nice to have a "classic" Vampire story, not all these emovampire faggit things.
 
I wouldn't read it but that's only because it's not my genre. I think you might find that a lot of people who like proper vampire stories would eat up a story like that nowadays, just to say 'look this is what vampires should be like'.
From my (limited) experience of writing, though, I'd say write something you're going to enjoy writing. It's hard enough as it is without writing a story when you wish you were writing about something else.
 
if they're as yu state 'great ideas' I see no reason why not too, all literature can be compared to another piece making nothing truly unique so why not.
 
but true blood is awesome !

I would personally like to see something like vampires in space ! has that been done yet ? Or Vampires under the sea or Vampires being prey rather than a predator.

Then again I am just throwing ideas out there....



HANG ON maybe I should copyright those ideas :p
 
I wouldnt look at your audience thats one way hill to tritevill. Write what you want and know. If its good people will like it, it might not get published or whatever, but you'll know its good and have enjoyed the process in writing it.

If its an anathema to the normal vampires I'd definitely read it, something that delves into the grittyness of vampires like the film The Addiction(although that is a bit emo).
 
Adsta said:
but true blood is awesome !

I would personally like to see something like vampires in space ! has that been done yet ? Or Vampires under the sea or Vampires being prey rather than a predator.

Then again I am just throwing ideas out there....



HANG ON maybe I should copyright those ideas :p
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Vampires in space was done in the 80s in a movie. :)
 
Go for it Simi, it's something that interests you and you obviously want to write about it. Good luck. :)

Calabi said:
I wouldnt look at your audience thats one way hill to tritevill. Write what you want and know. If its good people will like it, it might not get published or whatever, but you'll know its good and have enjoyed the process in writing it.
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Couldn't have said it better myself. I wouldn't let others dictate what you write because it's been done before, make yours unique and it will interest a lot of people.
 
It's not the quote I was looking for but Cyril Connolly had a point when he said "Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.".

And a-ha I've found what I was looking for as said by Jesse Stuart "Write something to suit yourself and many people will like it; write something to suit everybody and scarcely anyone will care for it." which is very important advice - if you feel that vampires is the subject that you will be best able to write about then do so, don't pander to others because whether it's read by millions or by no-one you're investing a lot of your time into it so do something you would appreciate.

//edit and because it always makes me smile, a final word from Leo Rosten "The only reason for being a professional writer is that you can't help it.".
 
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I was actually talking about vampires in the media in general with my mate during one of our drunken nights in the local and both of us concurred that we would love for the genre to take a step back from what is now a watered down romanticised fiction written for impressionable teenagers. Twilight has turned them into some toothless mascara wearing leukaemia patient look-a-likes and also spawned many more believe it or not inferior versions of itself who would like to ride the piggy bank of financial success that it enjoys. True Blood may have somewhat prevented the whole vampire concept from making its way into children's books to forever star alongside Vinnie the Pooh but it still has its shortcomings.
 
i've been reading jasper kent - "twelve" recently, quite good vampire novel, set during the napoleonic wars, very detailed history as well!

any novel, regardless of subject matter, if well executed - will be worth a read, so do whatever you like!
 
semi-pro waster said:
It's not the quote I was looking for but Cyril Connolly had a point when he said "Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.".

And a-ha I've found what I was looking for as said by Jesse Stuart "Write something to suit yourself and many people will like it; write something to suit everybody and scarcely anyone will care for it." which is very important advice - if you feel that vampires is the subject that you will be best able to write about then do so, don't pander to others because whether it's read by millions or by no-one you're investing a lot of your time into it so do something you would appreciate.

//edit and because it always makes me smile, a final word from Leo Rosten "The only reason for being a professional writer is that you can't help it.".
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Wise words :D
I definitely feel that this is one I should write for myself, and heck, chances are against it being published anyway but we'll see.
Thanks for all comments so far, some really helpful stuff.
 
00bob00 said:
i've been reading jasper kent - "twelve" recently, quite good vampire novel, set during the napoleonic wars, very detailed history as well!
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that sounds good, i'll keep an eye out for that one.

someone mentioned the Swedish film 'let the right one in' above, which is probably for me the best vampire film in the last 20 or so years. the book (of the same name) its based on is by John Ajvide Lindqvist, anyone writing about realist vampire fiction should read that imo.
 
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