Vampires are increasingly popular these days and it makes one wonder, why? What is it about vampires that we all love so much? Obviously everyone is different and everyone has their own reasons for liking something. The love for vampires isn’t the same, there isn’t one straight forward answer for why they are so popular, there are many and who better to tackle this subject than some of the authors we love and admire.
According to legendary vampire author Anne Rice, a reason we find vampires so appealing is that they cause us to wonder what we would do if we were turned into a vampire. Would we be willing to drink human blood to be immortal, could we handle living forever? Anne Rice does raise a good point. Vampire stories do tend to make one think (and daydream) about being a vampire like the ones we read about. What would we be like, what would be different?
Then there is the awesome paranormal romance author Sherrilyn Kenyon, who when asked a similar question concerning vampires answered…
“What’s not to love? Sleep all day. Party all night. Forever young. Seriously though, death is the one predator we all fall to eventually and it’s one most of us wish we could defeat. Vampire fiction allows us to finally defeat it and to become the baddest of the predators. I think it’s an intrinsic fantasy most people share.”
Another draw to vampirism for sure. All of us are afraid of death whether we want to admit it or not. Vampires have eternity, they have the freedom to take their time and they have the time to do anything. To quote the musician Anna Nalick, “…life’s like an hourglass glued to the table.” That is exactly what it is for us mortals, but vampires don’t share the same fate. They have time, a lot of it, making vampirism even more appealing.
Then we have the sex appeal. That is a huge draw for many of us, many of us thinking that there is no other being sexier than a vampire. But why is that, why do we find these walking corpses so damned sexy? And once again Sherrilyn Kenyon has an excellent answer…
“… goes all the way back to Bram Stoker. Why did Mina fall for Dracula when she had the mortal Jonathan Harker? I think as humans we are compelled by the darkness that lurks inside of all of us. Because we are civilized, we want to pretend we aren’t as animalistic as our genetic codes dictate. But we really are animals and paranormal creatures aren’t bound by the same laws of humanity that we are. They allow us to explore that darkness in a safe and controlled environment.”
Exactly. It’s that darkness and mystery that draws us in. And on the subject of sex, its knowing that it will no doubt be the best you have ever had, seeing as your vampire lover has had centuries of practice, as authors Laurell K. Hamilton and Charlaine Harris have both said.
So we have the intrigue, the wonder, mystery, sex appeal, immortality, beauty and so much more. All sucking us in (pun totally intended) and causing us to fall in love with these creatures of the night over and over again.
But I only scratched the surface, as I said above everyone had their reasons. What are yours?
– Moonlight
