Twilight: Fact, Fiction & Fantasy

Okay. Unless you've been living under a rock for the past year, you've heard all about the Twilight phenomenon. The throngs of screaming girls subsided briefly, only to be thriving once again with the release of New Moon. What I find the most fascinating is that the media is acting like the "vampire phenomenon" is a new thing. That couldn't be further from the truth. Hello? Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, The Lost Boys, Interview with a Vampire and of course Dracula. I have been an avid reader, like many women, of paranormal romance for years.

As an author of paranormal romance I am particularly fascinated by Ms. Meyer's unique take on vampires. She took a risk by straying from the traditional vampire lore and it paid off big time. She created an entirely new race of Vampire. Let's be honest. Blood suckers that burst into flame aren't necessarily appealing to the masses. So she created a sexier and more accessible vampire. It's genius really. When writing in the paranormal genre you have a fantastic freedom to create a brave new world. However, if you want your "new world" to appeal to the masses it has to be one that everyone can relate to. Ms. Meyer did what many would think impossible. She took the paranormal and made it normal.

As an author of paranormal romance I am in touch with the appeal of the vampire and as a woman I definitely get it. I completely understand the gush of true love and the allure of that sexy, unattainable bad boy. I was chatting with a few friends the other day and they were bemoaning this whole craze--and yes-- it was indeed a couple of guys. They didn't understand the allure to something so "ridiculous". I simply shook my head and smiled at my terminally single friends. I tried to explain to the poor bastards that it's not entirely fiction. I, of course, received a -you-must-be-off-your-rocker look.

FACT: The love story in this series is all too familiar to most women. Most of us have that first love. The crazy-head-over-heels-I -can't-live-without-you kind of love. That one guy in our past who lit a fire deep inside of us that burned so brightly we thought it could never, ever go out.

FACT: Our hearts break for Jacob. We can all relate to a love that's unreciprocated. This series highlights the heart wrenching reality that no matter how much you love someone--you can't make them love you back.

FACT: A sexy, unattainable and slightly wounded bad boy is almost always irresistible.

I know that there is no such thing as a Vampire, Werewolf or Shape Shifter--but imagining the possibilities keeps things interesting. Movies and books are all about escaping and exploring a world beyond our own. It's a good deal more fun to experience tortured teenage angst with a sexy vampire and delicious werewolf--as opposed to the mechanic with his pants hanging off his butt and the pimply faced guy who helps you study for Biology. I don't know about you...but I'll take the vampire any day.

 

Follow Sara Taney Humphreys on Twitter: www.twitter.com/tomestpr

Comments

[JustThisGuy]

So the question is, how far can you get away from the common elements of 'vampires' and still get away with the name? I have not read the books, but the whole sparke in sunlight element is more my little pony then my boyfried is seductivly scary.

[RedDogBear]

Its fiction so you can do whatever you want. Whether its good or not is another question. And I've never understood why people think Twilight is innovative. A mortal woman with a love for a good vampire that can be fulfilled. Buffy did it a long time ago and the heroine kicked a$$ rather than being a whiny mope.

[jerkzilla]

While technically true, but if an author writes a "vampire" novel and then proudly exclaims that they have never, not once, done any research into the long history of the subject you're writing about, they come across looking ignorant, at best. I've read the first 2 of these books, and I find them extremely poorly written Mary-Sue tripe that have absolutely no respect for the genre they're supposed to be in. But tweens and obese secretaries love them, so who am I to judge? As long as they film the final book word for word, when Edward bangs Bella into a coma, I'll be happy

[MIMom]

Yeah! Finally, someone who gets it. How refreshing.

[mphalen]

My thirteen year old daughter, when asked by a T.V. news reporter at the premiere here in Chicago, what the appeal of the Twilight saga is, remarked, "It's the story and the shirtless guys."