Research with bite

By PD Martin

Today I'm starting my research series. Once a month (i.e. every second blog of mine) I'm going to blog about some of the weird and wonderful research I've done in the name of crime fiction. From real-life vampires (today) to gurus and lock-picking… you'll discover it all here!

So, vampires…seriously. And I should point out I did blog about some of this stuff when my fifth novel, Kiss of Death, first came out, but I don't think any of you Murderati gang would have come across it. If so, please excuse the duplication.

It's certainly hard to ignore the global phenomenon of vampires, with vampires definitely 'in'. While Buffy the Vampire Slayer had a devoted following from 1996 to 2003 (including me), it was more of a cult following – nothing like the mainstream stars of the vampire world today. Many bookstores now have whole stands devoted to vampire books, and then there are TV shows like True Blood and Vampire Diaries and the book-to-movie success of Twilight. These creatures of the night are, of course, fictitious…or are they?

What the average Twilight-devotee may not realise, is that there are people who really believe they are vampires. I'm not talking about people who dress-up like vampires; nor am I referring to individuals who think they're nightwalkers and can only be killed by a stake to the heart. Rather, what I'll call 'real-life vampires' are people who genuinely believe they need to feed on other people's energy to survive, usually via a donor's blood. These people have been studied to a certain degree by both the medical and psychological professions, although not in much detail.

So how did I stumble upon real-life vampires? It started as a concept for a crime fiction novel – imagine a victim drained of blood and a local cult of real-life vampires. Are they the killers? However, when I started the research I discovered my fictitious concept wasn't so fictitious. Turns out LA has a thriving vampire scene – check out www.ladead.com or for the clubbing scene try www.barsinister.net. In my search for all things vampire, I interviewed a few vampires from different areas, including the US, the UK and Australia.

Russell from Sydney is a self-confessed vampire in his forties who describes vampirism as "the need for additional bio energy that the body cannot produce." Merticus, who's one of the co-founders of the Atlanta Vampire Alliance (AVA) says: "Vampires are generally individuals who cannot adequately sustain their own physical, mental, or spiritual wellbeing without the taking of blood or vital life force energy from other sources; often human."

My research turned up two types of real-life vampires – sanguine vampires who feed on blood, and psi-vampires who drain people's spiritual energy. The traditional view of vampires is as blood-drinkers, but for real-life vampires it's more about energy. Even those who exclusively satisfy their 'thirst' through blood usually talk about drawing out energy from the blood.

There are a few explanations currently put forward to explain claims of real-life vampirism. First off is the blood disorder porphyria, which is treated with haemoglobin, hence the connection to drinking blood. Not only do sufferers need blood, they are also sensitive to light, which gels perfectly with the vampire mythology. Problem is, if you drink blood it goes through the digestive tract and doesn't enter the bloodstream. In other words, drinking blood wouldn't alleviate porphyria symptoms. However many of the websites and forums I found suggested that real-life vampires are physiologically different, and have the ability to extract haemoglobin from the blood, even through the digestive process.

Then, there's the psychological side of things and two major theories have emerged. The first is sexual sadism (vampire) coupled with sadomasochism (donor). By definition, sexual sadists derive pleasure from their partner's or victim's physical or psychological pain. Vampires are inflicting pain as they bite. Likewise, the donors could be seen as sadomasochists – people who need to feel pain to become sexually aroused.

The second psychological explanation for real-life vampirism is Renfield's syndrome, named after Dracula's insect-eating assistant Renfield. This psychological disorder is hypothesised to start with a key childhood event that leads the sufferer to find blood exciting. Blood and this sense of excitement is later linked to sexual arousal during adolescence, and into adulthood.

Of course, one simpler psychological explanation is that real-life vampires are suffering from delusions of grandeur. After all, mythological vampires are strong, powerful, perceived as sexy and almost invincible – pretty appealing, huh? Certainly the vampires interviewed in Carol Page's Bloodlust: Conversations with real vampires came off as a little strange to say the least and delusional wouldn't be too much of a stretch. In contrast, Merticus says of the vampire community he's part of: "…the majority of our community are high-functioning, above average intelligence, sane, and rational members of society."

In terms of the cause or reason for vampirism, the real-life vampires themselves are divided. Some say it's physical, some say psychological, and some say it's simply something you're born with.

No matter how you explain real-life vampirism, the fact is these people really do exist. So, how does one become a real-life vampire? Unlike the vampires in fiction who are 'turned', real-life vampires talk about being 'awakened', usually as teenagers. There are lots of vampire dictionaries online, all with similar, if not identical definitions of awakening. In terms of the symptoms, the dictionaries talk about people preferring the night to the day and switching from nocturnal sleeping to diurnal sleeping. And, of course, developing "the thirst", which refers to a thirst for blood and/or energy.

What happens if they don't feed? Real-life vampires complain of headaches, stomach cramps and severe fatigue if they don't feed, some even saying they're unable to get out of bed in the morning. Russell's in this camp: "If I do not regularly obtain energy I feel very drained and sometimes sick." Others talk about severe mood swings and suggest they need other peoples' energy to somehow balance out their own personality.

Are these people suffering from Renfield's syndrome or poryphoria? Or perhaps they're simply sexual sadists or delusional. Or is there some other, yet undiscovered explanation for individuals who experience a thirst for blood and other people's energy?

At the end of the day it's hard to know what the story really is with people who claim to be real-life vampires. Interestingly, my research did not reveal young Goth males obsessed with the vamp culture. Rather, I found older vampires who had nothing to do with the Goth scene. Research undertaken by the Vampirism and Energy Research Study backs this up, finding that 66% of the vampires who responded to the Study did NOT identify themselves as Goths and the average age was late twenties to early thirties.

There was, however, one thing that was unanimous on the forums I visited – they hate Twilight wannabes.

So, what are your thoughts on real-life vampires? Ever met any? Or maybe you are one.

And if you're into book trailers, my bit of BSP (blatant self-promotion) is the book trailer below! Click at your own peril :)

The Twilight of my Years

I have a confession to make. I love the Twilight books. I am a hopeless Stephenie Meyers junkie. I’ve read them multiple times, and I reread them when I want an escape. I wouldn’t mind a book tour stop in Forks. I have previously voiced my dilemma – Team Edward or Team Jacob?

All right now, if you’re shaking your head or rolling your eyes, go ahead and step away. Because honestly, making fun of the Twilight saga is as de rigueur as blaming the previous administration for, well, everything. I get it. It doesn’t appeal to everyone. But the nastiness some employ in making fun of those of us who are fans borders on rabid dog territory.

Why? Because the literary elite thinks the writing isn’t up to par? What, are you expecting to get Tolstoy when you pick up a book about teenage vampires? Really? Or is it the fact that it’s another vampire story? Or is it just plain jealousy because Meyers created a world that people want to escape into, and has gotten very, very rich in the process? James Cameron did that with AVATAR and the snickers were at least kept to a minimum. And his people were massive mystical smurfs.

Now that three of the Twilight movies are out, the franchise’s mythology grows even bigger. The young actors are thrust into a limelight that’s nearing epic proportions. The soundtracks are amazing, and have helped bolster the careers of a bunch of great new bands. The movies themselves have improved with each installment – ECLIPSE is by far the best of the three. It has a bit of everything you want in a good film: love, romance, sexual tension, humor and a battle scene. The special effects were cool, and the acting wasn’t half bad. The tent scene, with Jacob and Edward talking, was probably the best moment in the movie for sheer anguish.

That’s what this series is about, truly. Anguish. Some call it teenage angst with a roll of the eyes, but the truth of the matter is, we’ve all been in Bella’s position – in love with someone and wildly attracted to another, feeling unbelievable guilt and confusion. It’s human nature. As we grow older, we learn to recognize the differences between lust ad love, between a true affair of the heart and a passing crush, and most of us act accordingly. You can’t tell me it isn’t fun to revisit those old feelings.

Guys may not have the same reaction to the film as women, for a wide variety of reasons. Randy was so obviously bored and uncomfortable at times that it made me uncomfortable. But that’s par for the course for most men with heavy duty romantic chick flicks. Rom Coms, the bane of every male’s existence. You need to keep your woman happy, so that means sitting through some torturous moments, I know. But we love you when you do it! And aren’t the rewards worth it?

I don’t know what everyone’s problem is with these books and movies. They’re fun. It’s escapism. There are even a couple of good messages for young women if you stop to look at it. Chastity until marriage? Perish the thought! I actually read something today that called that a Mormon ideal – I nearly spit out my tea laughing. Has our society been so seduced by the perceived ideals of Sex and the City that the concept of a teenage girl waiting to have sex is seen as backwards and wrong?

Oh, Lord, don’t get me started… well, now that I’ve opened that can of worms, I’m going to say something. Yes, there’s a vein of morality that runs through these books. They are read by millions of young girls, girls who are finding themselves in love for the first time, or dreaming about what that might be like. And there’s no sex. In a reversal that’s nearly Herculean in its methods, sex isn’t a possibility between the characters. Bella is a virgin, and Edward is bound and determined to keep her that way. A boy who isn’t crazed for sex? More importantly, a boy who isn’t pressuring his girlfriend to put out?

Now think about the message the young girls who are reading this book are getting. Not only is it okay to forgo sex in a teen relationship, the man you respect, love and cherish wants you to remain pure. Maybe, just maybe, these books can have a real cultural impact on our younger generation. Maybe pregnancy rates will drop, STDs will become a thing of the past, and children, because I’m sorry, even if they are burgeoning into adulthood, they’re still children, could focus on their studies instead of their pants.

Can you imagine? I’m probably dreaming, but wow, if these movies had been around when I was growing up? I know I would have appreciated being in a relationship that wasn’t a constant test, how far can I go, how far will she let my hand stray, when is it right to go to first base, second base, third, fourth?

I can’t imagine a better time for girls to be getting the message that it’s cool not to have sex. Meyers has done that, with a female character who’s hopped up on her own hormones and wants things she can’t quite comprehend. Edward keeps telling her how dangerous it is, but she’s willing to throw caution to the wind anyway, just like we all did. But he’s strong, respectful, and understands the consequences, even if she doesn’t. He exercises great restraint, to her benefit. Now that’s romantic.

And poor Jacob, fighting for the girl he loves. His emotional growth, being hurt and overcoming it, is another huge message – you can survive a heartbreak. It will make you stronger, and will help you understand when the real love of your life comes along.

There’s really more to the Twilight books than meets the eye. It’s more than some crazy romantic fantasy of girl meets boy, falls in love, marries him, becomes a vampire and then gets all the benefits therein. But you’ll have to find that for yourself, in the pages of Meyers’s world.

Another quick thought. The actors themselves have been I the news cycle constantly over the past few years. Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner are being held to a ridiculous standard, and I really feel for Kristin Stewart. I remember when I was starting out in publishing, and getting interviewed for the first time. I said some pretty stupid things, because I didn’t know any better. I told the truth about what I was thinking and feeling, just like she has. Her misstep about equating fandom to rape (but every single person out there understood exactly what she meant, even if it wasn’t a perfect analogy) really hurt her reputation, and I wish she had a great publicist like I had to tell her what not to say. But it’s overwhelming, going from simply creating your art to being the artist in the limelight. Her latest comment about her fear of the massive crowds is something I can totally relate to. I hope they start listening to her concerns and let all three of them step back from the craziness for a bit.

Whether you like it or not, Twilight is enmeshed in the fabric of our culture just like Harry Potter. And heck, even the Vatican came around on Rowling…

So what say you ‘Rati? Are you a Twilight fan, or a hater? (I’ll check in when I can today, so pleasant self-policing is encouraged.)

Wine of the Week: 2005 Poliziano Vino Nobile di Montepulciano

movies

by Toni McGee Causey

I don't know about you all, but I am flattened by all of the activity from the last few weeks, and what I really want to do is goof off and go watch a good movie. I'm in the middle of creating a new voice for the WIP, which is fairly different from my previous work (this is darker, grittier, different world, no humor), and because of that, I'm interested in how others set up their worlds, hook us, and create their voice. [hmmm. Well, in part. Mostly, I just wanna be a slug in front of a big screen, but let's pretend I made some sort of profound statement on voice here. I think the triptowhateverturkeystuff has kicked in and I'm knee deep in relatives, and I cried Uncle about a week ago. Thank you.]

Problem is, I just don't see all that much at the theater that makes me want to bother. I've never been, nor will I ever be, interested in the Twilight films, much to the chagrin of several friends of mine who've been trying to convince me to give the books and films a try. (One friend even dragged all four books over here and piled them on my desk. Whereupon I made them into handy paperweights 'til she gave up and came and got them back.) I can't explain why the disinterest. I've read plenty of other vampire books I've enjoyed. I've read plenty of YA. Dunno why the combination feels meh, but it does. (Clearly, I am not the one to go by regarding what will work, though, because holy box office, Batman, that did well. Thank you, young female audiences. Hi, Hollywood, hope you're taking notes... females can rock the box office.)

The last thing we saw was last weekend: The Blind Side. (Desperation to get out of the house drove us there. It was... okay. Maybe meh tilting toward not bad.) I actually expected more depth to the story, more confrontation with the aspects of Michael Oher's tragic upbringing, and while that's shown, there's a glossing over that frustrated me, as a viewer.

I honestly can't say I've seen anything extraordinary, lately. I'm curious about Precious and it's probably up next. I'd tried a couple of romantic comedies this summer (The Proposal, which was funny up until the point where it was a complete rip off of While You Were Sleeping, to the point of staging and everthing and that sucked the life out of that ending for me. We also saw The Ugly Truth, which was, indeed, Ugly. If you set aside all taste and moral compass, it had its funny moments. I so want to like Gerard Butler in a film.)

There have been entire months--multiple months at a stretch--where my husband and I will look at the multiplexes and feel completely left out of any thoughts regarding what we'd like. And we'll go see a huge variety, so you'd think it wouldn't be that difficult to find something. [Having been a screenwriter for seven years, I grasp how all of this comes about, but still... it's disappointing to truly want to go to movies, to have the time and money, and repeatedly have nothing worth bothering over.]

There are a couple of movies I'm looking forward to. One is Cameron's Avatar:

And another one is Rob Marshall's Nine:

Jim Sherridan's Brothers looks noteworthy:

But overall... that's pretty slim pickings. I may have missed something coming out soon, though, so if you have some suggestions, I'd love to hear them. Meanwhile, what's a great / decent / worth going to film you've seen in the theater lately? And I'm all over Netflix and have a few good ones in my queue, but I'd love to see your favorites in a list.