Before I sold VampCon to Greyhart Press, I had already
approached a number of literary agents
about the novel. A few of them really liked the story but felt that they could
not represent VampCon because the big publishing houses are not interested in
buying vampire novels from new authors. This is based on the conventional
wisdom that the market for vampire stories is oversaturated, and readers are
getting tired of vampire books.
I have my own theory however which is that, like Monday
night football and or secret-agent thrillers, vampire stories are here to stay;
people will always be interested in vampires because they are a blank slate
onto which we can project all kinds of stories.
The seeds were sown with Bram Stoker's Dracula which
presented a complicated picture of the famous Count. He was a monster and blood
sucker; he had dark designs; he had strange weaknesses; he had three wives and
a connection to hell; he could infect others. But he was also not completely
alien. He looked like us and followed human customs. Over the years, so many
writers followed Stoker's lead and used vampires to explore many facets of our
own lives.
Vampire can represent
lust and youth. Because they never age, vampires can literally embody eternal
youth. They can be beautiful and forever young. They are also lustful
creatures, satisfying themselves by pressing their tongues and lips against the
skin of others. There are tons of stories out there examining forbidden love
through the use of vampires. In this way, we see vampires as representing
forbidden desires.
Vampires can represent
addiction. The bottom line is that vamps need blood to survive. They may be
powerful, supernatural beings, but they are slaves to their own thirst. They
must hunt and prey on others. In this type of story, they can mirror everyday
addictions that we might witness in the real world, whether it be drugs, booze,
cigarettes or even candy.
They can represent
conspiracies and hidden power. In most (but not all!) vampires stories, the
vampires are hidden from society; few people know of their existence. They
stand behind the scenes, influencing and controlling others. In these types of
stories, vampires are a dark conspiracy, and they represent our own
superstitious fear of power; our worry that government agencies and shadowy
corporations are somehow controlling our lives and exploiting us.
They can represent the
hunter and the hunted. One of the simplest themes of a vampires story is
the hunter and the hunted. As in the case of Dracula (and so many other
stories) there are often multiple layers, with the vampires stalking innocent
victims, and vampire hunters (in turn) trying to kill the vampire himself. This
perspective on vampires plays into our own fears of victimization, whether it's
our fear of being mugged in a dark alley or or something far more horrible
(like serial killers). The vampire as hunter and prey is immediately compelling
to most readers because the stakes are clear and obvious.
They're almost like
us! There are so many monsters out there, but you might notice that the
most popular ones in stories are the ones, like vampires, who are almost human.
They look sort of like us. They have feelings and act like us and talk like us.
Vampires- in some ways- are us on a really, really bad day. Interestingly, it's
this immediate connection and empathy that makes them so interesting.
It's this elasticity of character, this ability to be so
many different things: a lover, an addict, an agent of corruption, the hunter
and prey, and-sometimes- just a very flawed person, that keeps vampires
interesting. I think that this ability to be the blank slate- to take on many
roles- will keep vampires fresh and keep people coming back to vampire books
for many decades to come.
~ Armand Inezian is
the author of VampCon, a dark fantasy thriller containing thousands of bullets,
hundreds of vampires, two portals to damnation, and one bloody chance at
redemption. Available now on Amazon, for Kindle, and for Nook.
VampCon
Armand Inezian
Armand Inezian
Genre: Fantasy, Fantasy Thriller, or Dark Fantasy Thriller.
Publisher: Greyhart Press, Bromham UK.
ISBN: 978-1478279525
ASIN: B009FMWCF0
Number of pages: 310
Word Count: approximately 95,000
Cover Artist: Banchick Illustration.
Print editions through Amazon, Amazon UK., ebooks at B&N Nook Reader Kindle. Diesel eBooks (for iPad and Android Tablets)
Smashwords eBooks (for Nook, iPad, and Kobo) and at the Kobo store (for Kobo!)
Smashwords eBooks (for Nook, iPad, and Kobo) and at the Kobo store (for Kobo!)
Book Description:
Jonathan Stoker is a reluctant vampire who wants nothing to do with the dark world that turned him. He isolates himself, sucking nonlethal quantities of blood from helpless drunks and making a marginal living. However after he learns that someone he holds dear has been lured to the VampCon, a cut-throat vampire summit, Jonathan is forced to deal with his kind again.
But Jonathan and company quickly discover that the VampCon is much more than a meeting. It’s a conspiracy that holds the key to both the creation and possible extinction of all vampires.
Now Jonathan has no choice but to come to terms with his own dark side while working with a small band of troublemakers to stop a nightmare from coming true.
About the Author :
Armand Inezian resides in Boston with his wife, two children, and three cats. In addition to writing, he also works two day jobs, one in grants administration and the other in teaching English, and he is grateful for both. He graduated from Emerson College with an MFA in Creative Writing. His short stories have appeared in various literary journals including The Missouri Review and Glimmer Train. In 2003, his short story, Baer, was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. Another of his shorts, See Me, won the Glimmer Train Story Open in 2008. VampCon is his first completed novel.
Amazon Author Profile: http://www.amazon.com/Armand-Inezian/e/B009FRASC4/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/armand.inezian
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