Blogging, Books, Vampires, Young Adult

For the love of a Vampire

shelleywilson72

I was recently interviewed by the very lovely, Linda Hill, for a guest post on her gorgeous blog – you can read it HERE. One of the questions she asked me was “You’re obsessed with vampires, what started off that obsession?” It made me giggle because I’ve clearly got myself a reputation as a Dracula wannabe. I did answer Linda’s question, but I thought I’d embellish a little and write an entire post on the subject, so sink your fangs into this…

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I’ve been a vampire groupie since 1987 when I watched Kiefer Sutherland bare his fangs in The Lost Boys, a film that remains my all-time favourite to this day (don’t get me started on how utterly brilliant the soundtrack is!)

My crush on all things fang-tastic deepened when Gary Oldman seduced us all along with a young Winona Ryder, in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Then, in 1994, Brad Pitt entertained a journalist in Interview with a Vampire, also starring Tom Cruise as the notorious Le Stat.

Vampires have enthralled us for decades, with Christopher Lee raising the bar for all Nosferatu with his memorable role as Dracula in 1958. Bela Lugosi paved the way for how the viewing public saw this fictional character in his 1931 film, leaving us with a lasting impression on how the Prince of Darkness should walk, talk and feed.

Many variations on the theme followed but here’s my top ten vamp film list:

10 Dark Shadows (2012) – It’s Johnny Depp! Say no more.

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9  Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Film: 1992) – Joss Whedon is a god and although the TV series rocked, it was the film that paved the way.

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8  Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) – Gary Oldman at his best.

7  Blade (1998) – I love Wesley Snipes.

6  Vampire Academy (2014) – It’s so bad; it’s good! Probably only for fans of the books. Zoey Deutch plays a great Rose. (Dimitri is so hot worth a watch!)

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5  Horror of Dracula (1958) – Christopher Lee is fang-tastic.

4  Van Helsing (2004) – Love the underlying humour in these films

3  From Dusk till Dawn (1996) – George Clooney + Quentin Tarantino = awesome.

2  Interview with a Vampire (1994) – Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise at their best.

1  Lost Boys (1987) – 100% Fang-tastic!

Whether you agree with my choices or not you can’t deny that vampire culture is big business for the movie industry, small screen, and book publishers. Stephanie Meyer captured the hearts of millions of young (and older) adults with her teen Twilight novels. Joss Whedon entertained a generation of slayer wannabe’s with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and I, for one, hope this culture continues for many years to come.

Vampires are like marmite – you either love them or hate them. I’ve had my vamp obsession for a long time and yet I’ve never felt the need to include a blood sucker in my own fantasy books. I write about faeries, demons and witches in my Guardian trilogy, and for my current work in progress I’ve chosen a shape shifting werewolf as my protagonist. There’s no reason for this, I just haven’t been bitten by the vamp character bug (sorry, I couldn’t resist).  Maybe in a future novel I’ll unleash a princess of darkness, but for now, I’ll let Rachel Caine entertain me with her Morganville Vampire tales.

Do you have a favourite supernatural character?

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Published by shelleywilson72

Hello, I'm Shelley, an English multi-genre author. I write young adult/middle-grade supernatural and fantasy fiction and motivational adult self-help. I'm a proud mum of three and live in the West Midlands, UK. I love travelling in my VW camper, reading about Tudor and Viking history, and obsessing over to-do lists!

29 thoughts on “For the love of a Vampire”

  3. Totally agree with every entry on your list – except for Vampire Academy (as I’ve never seen it). I’d have to replace it with True Blood (before it lost its way) – Alexander Skarsgard is delicious!
    Have you seen In the Shadows or Only Lovers Left Alive? The former is hilarious and I’m eager to watch Lovers – imagine Tilda Swinton will be a fabulous vamp. 🙂

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    1. Oh, Haylee, don’t get me started on vamp TV shows!! True Blood would be high on my list (totally agree with your opinion of Alexander Skarsgard!) 😉 I haven’t seen In the Shadows but I shall be remedying that asap – thanks for commenting and for the recommendation, you’re fang-tastic 🙂

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  5. We must have grown up watching the same vampire movies. I adore Lost Boys, had a huge Keifer Sutherland crush. Read Anne Rice books first then watched the movies and loved them. but my very first vampire yearning was watching an old Hammer Horror movie with Christopher Lee, Dracula, Peter Cushing, Van Helsing. In this one he put Dracula under the ice and I remember crying, my Mum asks when I`m crying, my reply. “Why does Dracula have to die. Stupid Van Helsing.” and there we have it I was about 9.

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  6. I bloody love vampires! But then I guess you would know that because we like ALL THE SAME THINGS!!!!! I am totes obsessed right with you. I haven’t seen dusk till dawn or Keifers one either but all the others I am right there with you…. dare I mention the T word?! Queen of the Damned was also on my top list.

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    1. Just realised I missed this comment in the flurry aaah, sorry! I definitely think we were twins in another life lol 😉 I was going to mention the T word because I do love those films but the books were so much better. I guess they’d be at number 11 🙂

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  7. Oh and I forgot to say, I know how frustrating that feeling is of WANTING to write a vampire story and not having one come to you. Mine just arrived after 5 years of waiting and now I’m in the midst of other stories. UGH. Hate that.

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  8. Pingback: #MondayMuse Inspired by a Fictional Character – Shelley Wilson
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  10. *SQUEEEEE* There’s a special place in my heart for Lost Boys – it was the first movie (for our second date) I saw with my hubby. Great list – I’ve seen (and love) every one on it. A few of my other vampy movie favorites that come to mind – Let the Right One in (Swedish, and the American remake “Let Me In” is good as well), Ultraviolet, Byzantium, Fright Night (original and remake), and Rise, Blood Hunter (with Lucy Liu). Way too many favorite supernatural characters to mention, though – LOL!

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  11. Loved The Lost Boys (and most of these other films too) We were in Santa Cruz where it was filmed just over a year ago and I kept thinking of that song from the soundtrack, the one with just the singing – such a great film!

    And I never thought I’d write a vampire novel but, oddly enough, I’ve been working on one for the past year or so, came to me totally unexpectedly!

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