Katie Salidas Spills Blood

Check-out what new author Katie Salidas had to say about her book Immortalis Carpe Noctem, The Vampire Diaries, and of course our favorite topic … vampires!

Please compare Immortalis Carpe Noctem to the likes of published works such as True Blood and The Vampire Diaries.

What a great question! Since The Vampire Diaries book, The Awakening, by L.J. Smith was one of my first vampire books. I believe it was 1991 when the book came out, and I was absolutely enthralled with the Salvatore brothers.

I loved the way the author blended in normal society with the vampires who are able to hide in plain sight. However, unlike The Vampire Diaries, my book has a bit more sex and violence in it which makes it not suitable for the YA audience. It would fare well with other popular titles such as the wonderful Sookie Stackhouse series that the TV show True Blood was based on.

Again, in keeping with vampires in regular society, Immortalis Carpe Noctem takes us to a real place – Las Vegas, Nevada. However, unlike Charlaine Harris’s vampires, mine haven’t come out of the coffin so-to-speak.

I love how Harris tackles the prejudice and social issues of being “out” – definitely kudos for her societal allegory!

My take on vampires is quite the opposite; In Immortalis Carpe Noctem, they are forced into hiding to avoid the fanatical Acta Sanctorum – a secret religious society whose sole purpose is to destroy anything deemed “unnatural.”

While growing up, did you ever see yourself writing about vampires and things that go bump in the night?

I’ve always loved vampires – they were the only creature that “went bump in the night” and didn’t scare me. Even as a little girl I was facinated by the vampire mystique; unlike werewolves who hunted in the full moon, ripped their victims to shreds, or zombies (shudder … I hate zombies) who stalked you for your brains and ate the flesh away from your bones. Vampires seemed more elegant and enchanting; they lulled you into a stupor and mesmerized you with their gorgeous eyes. They were classy and spoke with old-world accents. And the best part is? They didn’t always kill … sometimes they made you like them.

What can I say? I was hooked from the start.

It seemed only natural, having a love of vampires and a love of writing, that I would combine the two someday. I believe I was about 14 when I wrote my first vampire story. I proudly typed it out on an old Apple IIc computer.

Do you feel that vampires have the standing power to stick around for many years to come, or do you feel that something will quickly take their place in today’s consumerist society?

Vampires themselves have been legend since the dawn of time. Stories and myths can be found in the most ancient of civilizations. They have proven time and again that they a have sticking power; they go through cycles of hot and cold but over the centuries, they have never gone away.

Look at the old classics – who doesn’t know the story of Bram Stoker’s Dracula?  It was written in 1897. Though it wasn’t the first fictional account of vampires, it remains one of the most popular to date, having been adapted to various films and other fictional works.   My husband and I watched Nosferatu again just the other night; it was filmed in 1922, and was still intrguing.

I think one of the things that keeps the vampire genre so popular is the fact that they grow with the times. The vampire – he/she is so versatile. They can be both good and evil and on many occasions, some shade of grey in-between.

For me, there is just something about the immortality – the exception from death we humans are all prone to. There is a freedom in it. However, that’s only one side of it. Vampires, espcially from a woman’s standpoint, are that ultimate bad boy we secretly crave. Oh, we can be a PC and as feminist as we want, but there is definitely an attraction to the bad boy who can get away with murder (both literally and figuratively).  They posess an air of action and danger, it warms our blood and makes us want to get closer.

Do you plan on creating more stories in the future that are wrapped around the vampire saga?

Absolutely! Vampires are just so much fun to write about … I can’t leave them alone. Immortalis Carpe Noctem is just the first book in my series. I have many many more planned. The second book is due out in early 2011. Stay tuned for more blood sucking action!

– Bryce

4 comments

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  4. Hi! I am very into the vampires and immortal. I just want to know if there really is a real vampire and being immortal? very very interested in them

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