Here's the latest in the world of viral vampires...
VAMPIRE MOB: "He’s a hitman and a vampire, and he just found out his mother-in-law is moving in, for eternity." You can find the trailer and more info about this upcoming (and hilarious-sounding) Web series at http://www.vampiremob.com.
VAMPIRE VIDEO CONTEST: Watch the following video to learn the guidelines for the second Vampire Video Contest, which will feature specific prizes and several judges. The deadline is June 13 (True Blood premiere day) with the winner announced on June 30 (the day Eclipse opens). More info: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ff9D8fesDOs
VAMPED OUT: Kevin Pollak's new online series is now in its third episode. This week Al books an acting job but everything goes horribly wrong. Watch the trailer below and catch the entire series at www.babelgum.com/VampedOut.
Any other vampire Web series coming soon? Let me know.
My guest today is Katie Salidas, author of IMMORTALIS CARPE NOCTEM, a vampire urban fantasy set amid the Las Vegas nightlife. Here's a brief blurb:
Bleeding to death after a brutal mugging on the campus of UNLV, twenty-five-year-old Alyssa is rescued by the cold and aloof vampire, Lysander. Taking pity on her, he shares the gift--and curse--of immortality.
Katie is offering a signed copy of her novel, so be sure to check out the contest details at the end of the interview.
Catherine Karp: Congratulations on the publication of IMMORTALIS CARPE NOCTEM, Katie. Tell us about the title, which I'm guessing--based on my crude knowledge of Latin--means something about immortals seizing the night.
Katie Salidas: Exactly!!! I obsess over names endlessly until I find something that fits. It has to be perfect! While writing Immortals I kept looking into the story to find a basic thread. A theme, if you will. Something that described the book in just a few words. They are Immortals, vampires that is, and the Latin version of that is Immortalis. They live in the night. But, that is not the underlying theme. It’s a story about coming to terms and accepting it. Seizing the night, so to speak. Many people are familiar with the phrase Carpe Diem, seize the day. Well, that’s what my main character has to do … for the night and her newfound immortality. That is where it all fit together. Immortalis Carpe Noctem translates to Immortals, Seize the Night.
CK: Your main character, Alyssa, struggles with giving up her old life for an immortal one. How would you describe Alyssa and her willingness to face her new vampire existence?
KS: She’s scared and somewhat repulsed by it, to say the least. Books and movies have all made it glamorous, but it’s not. Sure it sounds all fine and good, but when you actually have to sink your teeth into someone’s neck and drink their blood, all that Hollywood sparkle and glitter goes away. Of course, she has to come to terms with it eventually, and her journey to acceptance, a bit of a rocky one, is the main thread of the story.
CK: What can you tell us about Lysander, the vampire who turns Alyssa?
KS: Lysander is an ancient hermit vampire. Aloof doesn’t even begin to describe this man. He’s resigned himself to seclusion to avoid the pain of his past. He turns Alyssa out of guilt and quickly finds he doesn’t know what to make of her. Where he is order, she is chaos. They get off to a rocky start, but you know the saying, opposites attract.
CK: Alyssa becomes a vampire in Las Vegas, a city known for its nightlife. Besides being the perfect spot for a nocturnal existence, how did the setting influence the creation of your vampires?
KS: I love Vegas. It’s my home as well. One of the things I considered with my vampires is how they can stay hidden. Vampires are not known to the rest of the world. Hiding in plain sight is often the best way to do it. Where better than a city known for having a 24-hour lifestyle? It’s nothing to have neighbors who live a nocturnal lifestyle. No one bats an eye at people out and about in the middle of the night. Lysander and the Peregrinus clan are able to live in a quiet suburban neighborhood while hunting in the city of Las Vegas, and no one is the wiser.
CK: Do you have any favorite vampire movies or books that helped fuel your enjoyment of undead tales?
KS: Oh, I have many favorites. I’m a huge fan of the old Anne Rice series, as well as many of the old 80s movies like The Lost Boys and Fright Night. I’ve been in love with vampires of any genre since I was a little girl. You can definitely say it has fueled my inspiration.
CK: Bookshelves are overflowing with vampire novels right now. What would you like readers to know about your particular novel that sets it apart from the rest?
KS: Many stories out right now have a kick-ass heroine who can take on the world. I have nothing against that, but I wanted to show some of the path to becoming that. This first book focuses more on the struggle and acceptance. Have no fear, Alyssa does come into her own, but she doesn’t jump right into it. Sometimes stumbling, falling, and making mistakes can be a good adventure on its own.
CK: Are you currently working on the next installment of the IMMORTALIS SERIES? Has a publication date been set?
KS: I am. The sequel to Immortalis Carpe Noctem is due to be published in early 2011. No official date has been set though.
Here is the blurb: Immortalis: Hunters & Prey
When Alyssa was turned, she was told she could never again see her mortal friends. She was resigned to this fate, until a chance run-in with Santino Vitale, thought to be dead, causes her to rely on a mortal friend for protection, trusting that no hunter would attack in public.
By doing so she has broken vampire law and finds out that divulging vampire secrets harms everyone involved. Because of her actions, she's now drawn her friend into the struggle between vampires and hunters, a fact that has her clan calling for punishment.
But there are bigger dangers looming on the horizon, more pressing than a mere mortal's knowledge of vampires. The Acta Sanctorum is ready to attack again. It will take everyone working together and an unlikely truce to fight against the newest threat, the Frenzy Soldiers.
CK: Where can readers learn more about you and your books?
KS: I’m very active online. Readers can contact me at the following:
CK: Thanks so much for joining me, Katie. Best wishes for IMMORTALIS CARPE NOCTEM and your future publications.
KS: Catherine, it has been a pleasure visiting with you and your readers today. Thank you for hosting me.
Katie has graciously offered a signed copy of IMMORTALIS CARPE NOCTEM for one Suburban Vampire visitor. To enter the contest, simply leave a comment for the author at the end of this post by midnight, Tuesday, May 4. I'll pull a winning name from all the entries.
Congratulations, mariska! Please send your snail mail address to catkarp at gmail dot com. Thanks so much to Mario for offering the prize package and for guest blogging last week. If you missed him when he was here, head to his post for an entertaining read. And if you didn't get to win his novels, here are the links to the Amazon pages for his books (click on the covers).
I highly enjoy today's Music Monday song, "Gothic Surf-a-Rama" by Canada's Vampire Beach Babes. Not only do I have a weak spot for sixties surf music, thanks to my Baby Boomer parents, but I've always loved when newer bands put a modern twist on the genre. In this case, a modern gothic twist. The song comes from the band's Reckless Summer album, and if you want to learn more about their blend of black eyeliner and beach music, head to vampirebeachbabes.com.
My contest for Mario Acevedo's X-RATED BLOODSUCKERS and WEREWOLF SMACKDOWN ends this Monday, April 26, at midnight. To enter, head to Mario's guest post.
Happy Earth Day. I've been wrapped up in my own writing project, so I saved all the vampire news tidbits I received during the week for one mega-post. Here you go...
The multi-award-winning U.S. vampire flick SHADOWLAND, written and directed by Wyatt Weed, will be getting its UK and Irish DVD release courtesy of Yellow Fever Distribution on May 17th 2010. (See the distribution website for more information http://yfpondvd.webs.com.)
Carlos Leon, the star of SHADOWLAND, will be in Belfast (N.Ireland) on May 3rd for a special signing where fans can purchase the DVD early and meet the man for some Q&A and signed goodies. HMV, Belfast (High Street), May 3rd - 12pm until 3pm. (See the SHADOWLAND trailer at the end of this post.)
Premiere Props announced they'll be hosting the Texas Frightmare Weekend Live Auction, featuring movie props and costumes from iconic horror blockbusters of today and yesterday. . .from the bloodiest knife to the most splattered and ripped costume. Saturday, May 1, at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Irving, Texas (4440 W John Carpenter FWY, Irving, Texas 75063). Fans can also place live bids online at http://www.LiveAuctioneers.com or at www.premiereprops.com.
My summer movie preview edition of Entertainment Weekly finally mentioned a vampire film I've been longing to see for two years: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead. The release date is listed as June 4, and I'm guessing that means the limited release date, with other cities to follow. To somewhat selfishly ensure the film gets to my town, I'm going to post the trailer yet again. The film, directed by Jordan Galland, stars Jake Hoffman, Devon Aoki, John Ventimiglia, Kris Lemche, and the original Karate Kid, Ralph Macchio.
Guest blogging today is the hilarious Mario Acevedo, author of THE NYMPHOS OF ROCKY FLATS, X-RATED BLOODSUCKERS, and the brand-new WEREWOLF SMACKDOWN. He's offering copies of two of his novels, shwag, and a Devil Duckie for one lucky Suburban Vampire visitor, so be sure to check out the contest details--and his vampire Lego videos--at the end of his post. Here's Mario. . .
What? Me, write? Urban fantasy?
I write fiction because I have a hard time dealing with reality. When I first started writing, I wanted to create works that illuminated universal truths, thawed frozen minds, watered thirsty souls; basically, I wanted to be known as a philosopher, an intellectual, a real smarty-pants. Fortunately, those first works were so bad, even I found them boring. So mercifully for you, they lie forgotten and dead in a box, deader than road kill.
I then migrated into men’s action thrillers because if I couldn’t be a literary writer, I could instead write about guns and dames. After hacking my way through several manuscripts and collecting a ream of rejection letters, I finally crafted a story that I was sure would get published. Couldn’t miss.
And what happened?
I might as well have tied my query letters to raccoons and let them run loose in a sewer. I got nothing back. Not one rejection letter. Not one: no way. Not one: you suck. Zilch. Nada.
Now here is where denying reality is an asset. A wiser, more practical man would’ve thought, oh well, on to Plan B: Give up writing. Sell tamales. Go for the money.
Instead I asked myself, how about if I write the most ridiculous premise I can think of? A Chicano detective vampire investigates an outbreak of nymphomania at a nuclear weapons plant.
And guess what? That story got published. As a series.
So what is the lesson?
Quite simply...I have no clue.
But I’m still writing.
Please keep me out of the poorhouse by buying my newest book, WEREWOLF SMACKDOWN. In this story, my vampire hero finds himself trapped between rival clans of werewolves in Charleston, SC. Violent. Snarky. Fangloads of fun.
Mario has graciously offered a copy of both X-RATED BLOODSUCKERS and WEREWOLF SMACKDOWN, as well as shwag and a Devil Duckie, for one Suburban Vampire visitor. To enter his contest, simply leave a comment for him at the end of this post by midnight on Monday, April 26. I'll pull a winning name from all the entries. He's willing to ship the prizes anywhere, so the contest is open to everyone. Thanks, Mario!
Stockholm-based production company La Vida Locash recently produced a vampire-themed music video for dance music artist Adrian Lux's single "Can't Sleep." As a fan of Let the Right One In, I was curious to check out another example of vampires on the prowl in the Swedish countryside. The video is directed by Tobias Hansson.
If you don't usually associate vampires with dance music, here's your chance to witness the two together...
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. I’ve been in love with vampires of any genre since I was a little girl. You can definitely say it has fueled my inspiration. 
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I highly enjoy today's Music Monday song, "
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Wicked Little Pixie posted a list of the paranormal 
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Stockholm-based production company 
As a fan of 
, I was curious to check out another example of vampires on the prowl in the Swedish countryside. The video is directed by