The Vampire Rules

When I first set out to write a vampire book, I wanted to create a new mythology, but knew that I couldn’t depart too drastically from the rules that were already out there for the vampire genre. Why? I didn’t want people to be pulled out of the story by having something that they would consider unbelievable — like having my vampires suntanning on the beach.

The research was enlightening because I discovered that there were variations out there that would give me some play.

So here are the rules that have come about as I’ve written the various books in THE CALLING vampire series:

Respect your elders. Vampire elders can give you either immense pleasure or pain and the choice isn’t necessarily up to you.

Got Blood? Beef blood. Blood bank bags. Any kind of blood will do, but nothing’s better than warm blood fresh from the best — a human.

Today’s Forecast: Sun, sun, sun. Not that the sun will immediately turn a vamp to dust, but it will cause pain which will increase with exposure. Elders can linger longer in the sun’s rays, but eventually even the strongest of vampires will be toast if exposed too long.

How do you like your stake? Through the heart is a done deal, but my vampires can also expire in other ways — immense loss of blood being one of them.

Miss your garlic bread? So do my vampires. Garlic drains them of energy, but isn’t deadly. It certainly won’t keep them away if they really want something (like Ryder wanting Diana in DARKNESS CALLS).

Eternal rest in a coffin? Sleeping in an elegant sleigh bed is so much more comfortable — especially when you’ve got someone to share it with. Forget the dirt from the vampire’s native soil as well. Wouldn’t want that on the fine linen sheets!

Because your kiss is what I miss. A vampire can bestow a number of different kisses.

• A keeper’s kiss: Slows down human aging. Has to be given at regular intervals to sustain life.
• A lover’s kiss: Creates intense passion at the moment of the bite. The more often it is given, the more the vampire/vampire or vampire/human will be connected.
• A kiss to feed: Likewise creates passion, but also brings forgetfulness the first time.
• A turning kiss: Passion and eternal life. Requires that the human also suck the vampire’s blood to complete the turning.

Hi-ho Silver! Silver can be toxic to vampires. Slows healing and can poison their systems if it remains inside them for too long.

Don’t lose your head. Decapitation will definitely put an end to a vampire, although I haven’t used that one yet. Hmmm. . . I’ll have to think about that for the future.

Speed demons. My vampires can’t fly, but are fast and extra strong. They can leap from building to building at immense speed, creating the impression of flying.

See No Evil, Hear No Evil . . . Vampires can do both. They have very sensitive hearing and can see quite well, especially in the dark.

The Tooth Fairy does exist. She might just be a vampire. Fangs erupt at will or when the vampire is overcome with either hunger or passion. Usually accompanied by the whole glowy-eyed thing.

First Comes Love, Then Comes. . . Baby? As you learned in FATE CALLS, it takes a very unique set of circumstances for a vampire to create a baby. The woman must be fertile at the time she is turned and even then, there is no guarantee that human egg and vampire sperm will combine to create a child. What will that child be? Vampire or Human? Stay tuned for futher developments in the mythology to find out!

In DEVOTION CALLS, I introduced a slightly different kind of vampire — a chupacabra. Chupacabra (or chupacabras) means “goat sucker” in Spanish.

According to the legend (which is actually not all that old), the goat sucker kills animals by draining them of blood, much like a vampire. Sightings of the chupacabras have supposedly occurred throughout the Americas.

One theory as to the origin of the chupacabra is that it’s an alien pet that escaped. Another is that it’s either an alien genetics experiment that got loose or a human genetics experiment.

The chupacabra is described as being anywhere from 4 to 6 feet tall when upright, with green/gray scales, It has quills along its head and neck, possibly a long tail and clawed fingers. In addition, it has large glassy eyes that can be reddish in color.

I’ve given the chupacabra in DEVOTION CALLS a Beauty and the Beast twist as the demon was once human, but slowly became a chupacabra after being bitten by one. The bite occurred because the human lacked any compassion for a poor tinker. The tinker entices the man to look inside a box at something very special and the man gets bitten.

In FURY CALLS (available March 2009), I’ll introduce you to the Kiang-shi, a Chinese form of the vampire. After reviewing a number of different articles, I created a Chinese vampire that had the following attributes:

• Became undead corpses due to the defilement of their dead bodies
• Needed to feed to maintain their bodies from rotting
• Looked human in normal form
• Upon transforming into their vamp form, had long talons, very sharp needle-like teeth, glowing red eyes and white hair

In addition, the main baddie Kiang-shi – Sun-tze Lee – had sampled European vampire blood and therefore was stronger and not rotting like the cadre of Kiang-shi he keeps as his guards.