I’ve been editing my first contemporary romance this week, and a lot of that editing was trying to show my hero’s “nicer” side (funnily enough, before I started editing I wasn’t even aware he had one – but he turned out to be a really sweet guy – had a cat and everything!) It was hard though, and quite a relief to move on to working on my extended version of Break Out. Break Out is a science fiction romance with a paranormal twist, and Rico, the hero, is a vampire. He’s also one of the easiest characters I’ve ever written, and it occurred to me that that maybe one of the reasons I love writing paranormal romance is because no one expects a vampire to be nice.
Or do they?
I’ve always had a soft spot for bad-boys, and for me, vampires are the ultimate in bad-boys. But they’ve changed a lot over the years. When I first started reading vampire stories (admittedly a long time ago), vampires were definitely the bad guys with few if any redeeming qualities. It was only after reading Anne Rice’s, Interview with a Vampire, that I saw the potential for them not as villains, but heroes. And I latched on to the idea fast.
These days, vampires are more often portrayed as the romantic hero rather than the villain. And as a romantic hero, readers have to fall in love with him. So however ‘bad’ the vampire hero is, he also has to be loveable.
Which is great, but much of what I’ve read lately has started me wondering if we aren’t making vampires just a little too nice, and consequently losing much of their essential dark nature. I asked around a few writer and reader friends, and the consensus was—yes—vampires are becoming soft.
I came across a quote from Stephen King on what he believes vampires should and shouldn’t be.
According to Mr. King, vampires shouldn’t be: “pallid detectives who drink Bloody Marys and work only at night; lovelorn southern gentlemen; anorexic teenage girls; boy-toys with big dewy eyes.”
Hmm – I think I recognize a few of my favorites in there.
And what should a vampire be? “…Killers, honey. Stone killers who never get enough of that tasty Type-A. Bad boys and girls. Hunters. In other words, Midnight America. Red, white and blue, accent on the red.”
So, should vampires be evil bloodsuckers—soulless creatures of the night, or nice guys who just happen to have a drink problem and a bad reaction to sunlight? My take is, for the romance genre at least, they need to be somewhere in between—we have to keep the fundamental darkness that lies at the heart of a vampire, but at the same time give him qualities that will make it believable that someone might fall in love with him.
What do you think? Just how nice does a vampire need to be?
About Nina Croft
I love all types of vamps, Nina! I enjoy the lure of a predator fighting against his inherent nature. To know that he has to constantly battle his instinct to hunt and feed…now that’s the making of a true hero to me!
And I too have to credit Anne Rice for my love of the vamp-as-hero.
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Nina Croft Reply:
February 27th, 2012 at 12:08 am
I suppose it gives a natural inbuilt conflict – they’re fighting their own nature as well as whatever else is going on. And really – if you never have any inclination to be bad then is there any virtue in being good?
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As a lifelong fan of vampires (thanks Sesame Street!) I’ve seen enough incarnations to have decided that no one is ever going to tell me what a vampire should or should not be. As an adult who knows more about the mythological side of where the idea of vampires has come from I think in many ways vampires are a more often a personification of an emotional or social stigma. I think for example that the sudden popularity of the romantic, youthful ‘high school vampire’ is fitting with our cultural issues. In times when security and safety mean being protected both physically and financially who better to appeal than an immortal with the ability to pretty much protect you from anything and the financial means to make sure you live in comfort.
All that said I think for me personally some of the bad-boy vampire appeal is my control-freakish nature. If I could tame a creature that would just as soon eat me alive as cook dinner for me that is some pretty heady stuff. In all honesty though I love all kinds of vampires from the utterly animal and evil 30 Days of Night types to the always getting into trouble blonde teenager type like Caroline on TVD.
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Nina Croft Reply:
February 27th, 2012 at 12:23 am
I’m with you on that, Rhianna, I love all types of vampires and no one is going to tell me what they should be either – but having said that I think there are certain aspects that all vampires have in common and for me one of those is an element of darkness. I think most myths and legends arise from people trying to make sense of cultural issues, maybe putting a name to things we fear – and I think it’s interesting that the things we fear are turning into the things we love – not sure what that says about society today.
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Great blog Nina!!!
I definitely like my vampires to still be dangerous. To be tempted everytime they’re near a living person…
I like when a vampire has to make a conscious choice to kiss them or kill them! LOL
Seriously though, isn’t that danger what draws us in?
Lisa
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Nina Croft Reply:
February 27th, 2012 at 12:40 am
Definitely the danger! And the harder the choice the better the story!
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I like my vampires a little grittier than most unless it’s something like Christopher Moore’s vampire series where you sort of expect the silliness to run rampant. But if they’re not being mocked I sort of want a vampire that can at least be a bad boy. And if he has a cat? I want it to either be a vampire cat, a werecat that can rip his face off, or constantly cowering in the corner. Which gives me an idea.
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Nina Croft Reply:
February 27th, 2012 at 9:04 am
Lol – I’ve never had a vamp with a cat before but I certainly wouldn’t let him make it cower in the corner! And I’m definitely with you on the grittier is better!
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