eBook Trends: Vampire Lit

Vampire lit has achieved fever pitch thanks to Stephanie Meyer, author of the Twilight series of books, and the extremely popular HBO television series, True Blood, based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries series of books by Charlaine Harris.  Readers have a voracious appetite for vampire lit, from tweens and teens to their moms and dads. Vampire lit can be found throughout the centuries. But writing good vampire lit means educating yourself on vampire lore. You have to know the rules. And it's true:  You can bend them if you know them, but you do have to know them. The Vampire Vampires are preternatural creatures that have been transformed from dying mortals and sustain themselves on the blood of the living. Vampires:

• Cannot tolerate direct sunlight
• Become pale and translucent
• Have no reflection in a mirror
• Can be destroyed when a stake is driven through their hearts
• Have fangs in place of canine teeth
• Have powers that increase with age
• Are physically strong
• Are exceptionally fast
• Are repelled by garlic
• Have heightened senses and reflexes

Writing Good Vampire Lit Vampire lit fans can be unforgiving when it comes to writing about their treasured characters. It's important that you establish the personalities of your vampires and be faithful to them. Broad Universe explains: "As the creator of your fictional universe, you’re the commander of that universe. You can make any rules and establish any conventions that you want, as long as you use them consistently. But if you want to base your vampire stories on 'folklore,' make sure you know what you’re talking about. Hard science-fiction writers have to respect scientific facts. Mystery writers need to understand forensics and police procedures. Fantasy writers need to have the same integrity when they base their fiction on any element of real life." Vampires are typically strong, fascinating characters who often have back stories that can be fascinating to develop and tease out to the reader over time. Because of the popularity of vampire lit, it is also incredibly important that you have a unique story to tell - or your story will be drowned out by the countless others being released. Writing well, providing thoroughly developed characters and plot, and telling a compelling story are crucial. TV Tropes offers a very in-depth look at writing vampire lit to inspire you.