Roxanne Rhodes is guest posting at Read My Mind today about a subject we all think about since TWILIGHT: Do Real Vampires Sparkle?
Story strumpet, tome loving tart, eccentric night owl...these words describe book publicist and erotic romance author Roxanne Rhoads.
When not fulfilling one the many roles being a wife and mother of three require, Roxanne's world revolves around words...reading them, writing them, editing them, and talking about them. In addition to writing her own stories she loves to read, promote and review what others write.
Roxanne is the owner of Bewitching Book Tours and operates Fang-tastic Books, a book blog dedicated to paranormal and urban fantasy books.
When not reading, writing, or promoting Roxanne loves to hang out with her family, craft, garden and search for unique vintage finds.
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Let Them Sparkle
By Roxanne Rhoads
Maybe a little sparkle is exactly what a generation needed to find a light in the everyday darkness that exists in today’s world.
I know some die hard vampire fans say “real vampires don’t sparkle”.
But maybe at this point in time it is exactly what the world needed and why this new breed of vampires opened the doors to all types of vampires becoming popular again, maybe more popular than at any other point in history.
The popularity of vampires comes and goes.
What has made the vampire an enduring and truly immortal creature? What is it about these blood suckers that makes us love them so? Perhaps above all else it is their enduring quality, something evermore in a world of uncertainty.
In times of turmoil we often turn to "fantastical" creatures and stories to find something more interesting than the horror and mundane boredom we face in the world everyday. Turn on the news, and everything is so depressing. It is no wonder we are turning to sparkly vampires and otherworldly creatures to give us an escape.
This generation of teenagers has grown up in the post 9/11 world. A world full of terror, war, economic crisis and despair. So why not fall in love with something bright and shining? Something different than everything else that has come before.
Some writers and anti-fans have declared that the Twilight books are too simplistic, too clichéd and that Bella is so bland and completely lacking of any personality that every girl can see themselves in her (I am paraphrasing here).
Maybe that’s the point. Plus you have to remember these books were written for teens, not adults. The universal themes of a young girl feeling lost, lacking direction, torn between two guys- one her friend the other someone much older and dangerous, wanting protection, seeking a place in the world…hello? Do the critics not remember what it was like to be a teenager?
I do, that’s why I understand completely the appeal of Twilight (even if my adult, feminist brain doesn’t agree with all of it). Twilight is in many ways so simple everyone can find a place, everyone can find something appealing. Especially after you throw in some supernatural fun and a little sparkle and ta-da something fresh and new for a generation that really needed something to distract them from the world.
So please don’t over read it, let everyone have fun and focus on something not so dark and full of despair.
I've been a fan of vampires ever since the late 80s when I found a copy of Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice. Everyone who was into vampires back then seemed to be really into Anne Rice. But back then we didn't have the internet, email, cell phones, texting, Twitter, Facebook, etc.
Today teens (and anyone else) can instantly share what they love with anyone and everyone... around the world. Everyone's voice can be heard these days. Technology is truly what has made Twilight such a huge success. I mean, we even have more technology now than we had when Harry Potter first came out. It's just a sign of the times. Technology has made it possible for anything to instantly "go viral".
Vampire fans have existed since Dracula became a literary phenomenon.
It’s a passing phase, something that goes in and out of style like clothing. And every generation puts a new spin on what’s in style. Dracula fans loved the darkness, the veiled references of sex, desire and danger. Anne Rice fans loved the angst, the vampires feeling lost and not knowing their place in the world while being beautiful and young forever (a connection to teenagers everywhere at the time).
Today’s vampire fans are varied- from the ones who love the dark, scary horror vamps a la 30 Days of Night to the fans of sexy alpha males so popular in vampire romance novels, to the sparkly vamps Twilight fans love so much.
I think every vamp has its place- and if they sparkle, so what, let them sparkle. If Sparkly vamps are what it takes to get people to read, to be happy, to b excited about something... then so be it. Let them sparkle.
Thanks to Roxanne for stopping by! Here's a little more about Roxanne's newest release.
Anwyn Rose is descended from a long line of powerful witches yet she can barely cast spells young witchlings have mastered. She has one functioning witch gift, the power of knowing, which she puts to good use as a Detective on Flint’s Preternatural Investigation Team.
It’s a new era in Vehicle City, supernaturals are running the town.
The P.I.T has their hands full with paranormal crimes. Top priority is a serial killer, who appears to be a vampire, draining young women in the city.
Anwyn is on the case with her sexy partner Detective Mike Malone. Complicating things is her relationship Galen, a vampire who looks more guilty than innocent, although Anwyn trusts her instincts even if her power is on the fritz.
Mysterious spells, compromising situations, and a possible demon on the loose make it hard to focus on the case, but Anwyn has to make things right before the human police execute the wrong vampire.
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thanks for hosting my tour
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