Writing my short story for Halloween last week got me to thinking. Are romance writers taming the savage creatures of the paranormal too much? When you think about it some of them are so passive it seem a little…blah.
Well let’s take vampires for instance. They are blood lusting beast by nature. Would they really be able to just turn it off? I don’t think so. I think it would be a constant battle to rein in the demon that grips them. I expect to see a constant internal battle to curve their voracious appetite for blood.
When they find a mate that is human which is usually the case in most books, wouldn’t their first thought be lusting for their blood? It would grip them and twist their gut in agony. The need would be more than they could bear. The urge to possess that person would dominate every ounce of will power they had.
But most are wrote in the fashion that when they meet that special person it just all goes away. I find that hard to believe. A tiger doesn’t change its stripes. I do believe they can over come it but it would be very tough and torturous.
So my point is. They have to start out as who they truly are and change as the story progresses. I want to see major internal conflict. The character needs to be true to them selves and feel the need to change. The problem is it is really hard to change their nature. You really have to do some serious deep pov with a character like this.
In one of my wip, A Vamp to Remember, the hero is a vile and evil beast when he meets the heroine. He is a vampire that lives to torment and instill fear in humans. They farm humans for food and he feels no remorse for killing them. He meets the heroine and doesn’t change right away but instead he terrorizes her. Slowly he starts to feel something for her and the changes in his way of thinking start to take root.
With were-creatures they believe in biting their mates and leaving a mark to let others know that person belong to them. In the process they are teetering on the edge of loosing control. If they lost control it could end very badly. This is the animalistic quality I am talking about. The struggle to stay in control would constantly be on their mind. Their human side would have to be stronger than their animal side. With intense deep pov this makes for a very interesting character.
I think these kinds of characters would fight this battle on a daily basis. Even when they learn to control it there are going to be times they are right on the edge of losing control. This makes them believable. Paranormal creatures are not human and have an animal side we need to explore to write them well.
So do you think we are taming the savage beast too much?
Happy Haunting,
Tabitha Blake
3 comments:
I agree that most stories now are indeed taming them. But, I wonder if that is due to the love of the creature/stories combined with the need to somehow keep it fresh and unique. Writers creating the evolution of those creatures? ;)
Twilight and True Blood are a big part of that evolution-creating a different situation for them here in our modern world, but still trying to keep the mystic, danger and mystery about them intact.
Great blog! Hmm, I never thought of this, but yeah, you're right. Sometimes it does seem like we tame the wild beast a little too much.
I know in my novel the vamps are more like humans, but there is a good reason and explanation for that. They don't have a demon within. They need human blood to stay alive, but they don't take much at each feeding.
Christine Feehan has vampires as evil creatures, not to be mistaken for Carpathians--another blood sucker. She has them as one species that turn into two types of beings. An interesting twist. One is kind, the other rips out throats. I have to admit, I like the naughty creatures portrayed in a sexy/hot way.
Post a Comment