With the first installment of The Vampire and the Hunter Trilogy, Martin Lastrapes has created a vampire tale that is scary, funny, thrilling, and satisfying to the very last drop.
Published: March 18th, 2015
Adam and Jesus (the vampire and the hunter) have an innate antagonism, which is only heightened once they discover they’re competing for the affections of the same girl. Olivia (the girl) is an aspiring author struggling to write a vampire novel. What none of them yet know is there’s a menacing force looming that will change the course of their lives forever.
With the first installment of The Vampire and the Hunter Trilogy, Martin Lastrapes has created a vampire tale that is scary, funny, thrilling, and satisfying to the very last drop.
GUEST POST
A Unique Vampire Point of View
Before I began writing The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl—which would ultimately become Book One of The Vampire and the Hunter Trilogy—I knew I wanted to create a vampire story that had essentially never been told before. I wanted to write something original, something fresh. One of my concerns was that, in all honesty, I’ve not read a lot of vampire literature. I read Bram Stoker’s Dracula a few years ago and recently I’ve been reading a lot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic books, but other than that I can't really think of much else. That said, I love vampire stories and the majority of my engagement with vampire stories comes from television and film.
When I officially sat down to begin The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl, the vampire craze was arguably at its peak, culminating with the huge success of the Twilight series (both in book form and the film adaptations). I wasn’t writing to satisfy a trend, though—I genuinely love vampire stories and I have an affinity for vampire mythology, so my inspiration came from a strong creative urge to engage in the genre.
That said, my instinct was there would be a lot of other authors writing vampire stories with the intention of capitalizing on the trend, regurgitating what they had already seen rather than looking for a fresh take. While I can make sense of why another author might do that, it’s not something I want to do myself. It's simply not in my DNA. I'm completely consumed with writing stories that have never been written before—or at the very least engaging in traditional genres, like vampires, from my own unique point of view.
The challenge is finding a balance between honoring the genre while also intertwining my own unique takes. I was very conscious of wanting to pay tribute to the tradition of vampire mythology, so I wanted to write a book where vampire fans would recognize the traditional strands of the mythology while also enjoying some new and interesting twists. That said, I wasn't interested in creating twists or changes to the mythology just for the sake of making my story different. I wanted my story to be unique, but I also wanted it to feel organic.
For me, making any story original—whether it’s a vampire story or anything else—is simply a matter of clearing my mind of all the anxieties of expectation and second-guessing, all the worries of what readers will think and what critics will say, pushing everything else out of the way and tapping into my imagination in the purest and most encumbered manner possible. I must trust that my point of view is profoundly unique, just as it is with every single other person whoever has ever attempted to write a novel. Being unique isn’t about making an effort to be different, it’s about making an effort to be yourself.
You—the very person reading this article right now—are unique, because you are the only you that has ever existed in the entire history of the world. Nobody has ever been inside of your head, nobody has ever seen the exact things you have seen, nobody has ever experienced the exact combination of experiences you've enjoyed, hated, embraced, rejected, and loved. Nobody has the same parents as you, the same family, the same friends, the same enemies, the same mentors, antagonists, and flings. Nobody has worked the same jobs, read the same books, watched the same movies, ridden the same bikes, trekked the same roads, feared the same fears, or enjoyed the same joys. The collective experiences of your life—from your point of view—are what make you unique.
The same goes for me, so when I sit down to write my goal always is to strip away everything—all the insecurity, all the stress, all the expectations—and tap into my imagination, expressing it on the page, letting it reflect my unique point of view in its purest most unencumbered form. From that place, I will create the characters I enjoy visiting, getting to know them, letting them interact, placing them in scenarios and settings I find interesting, engaging with problems I find challenging.
That’s exactly what I did when I took my shot at writing a fresh and unique vampire tale—and the result was The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl. Whether or not I succeeded in writing a novel that is entertaining and engaging is not for me to decide, but I can promise you it’s unique, because I wrote and I’m the only me who’s ever existed in the whole history of the world.
About the author:
MARTIN LASTRAPES won the GRAND PRIZE at the 2012 PARIS BOOK FESTIVAL for his debut novel INSIDE THE OUTSIDE.
He grew up in the Inland Empire, has a Bachelor’s Degree in English and a Master’s Degree in Composition from Cal State San Bernardino, watches his favorite movies over and over again, learned many a lesson from professional wrestling, wonders if he’ll ever be famous enough to be on “Dancing With the Stars,” thinks good stand-up comedy is rare and under appreciated, is scared of Vladimir Putin, wonders if it’s too late to learn how to play the guitar, gets depressed when he hears the theme song from “M*A*S*H,” wonders why Teen Wolf never made it to the NBA, and wants Morgan Freeman to narrate his life.
He is also the host of THE MARTIN LASTRAPES SHOW PODCAST HOUR. Subscribe on iTunes or listen on the official website MartinLastrapesShow. New episodes every week.
Author's Giveaway
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8 comments:
LOVE vampire novels!
I have always found mythical creatures fascinating, this book sounds great!!
Vampire novels are my favourites!!! <3
Thank you for this amazing giveaway! ^_^
Thanks so much for being a part of the blog tour and sharing my article! Much appreciated :)
Since this would have a new and different twist on an old genre, I think I'd like to read this book :)
I hope you decide to give it a read, Jan! Thanks for the interest :)
thx u for the chance :)
Reading the GP I became very curious about the book. There are so many authors that cannot put together two words to express their thoughts and intentions. And that it is shown by their story. In what regards the twists and changes brought in a story, there is an art itself to do it right. :))
Thank you,
C
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