I know about various fictional and folkloric vampire mythoses the way other people know about the personal life of celebrities.
One of the things that may appeal to teenagers is that vampires never change - they're frozen in that age.
Back when I was growing up, getting caught with a copy of 'Creepy,' 'Eerie' or 'Vampirella' was almost as bad as your parents finding out you were reading 'Playboy.'
I became a horror fan during the early 1960s, back when Hammer was putting out their groundbreaking 'Dracula' series with Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, and grew up watching 'Dark Shadows.'
I've been writing in some way, shape, or form for as long as I can remember.
Vampires are handy characters, as they can do double duty as monster/villains and the classic, misunderstood romantic hero.
I'm very excited about taking over the reins on Vampirella. I've really been enjoying myself so far.
I cannot sing Vampirella artist Patrick Berkenkotter's praises loudly or often enough.
The vampires in the 'VAMPS' series judge each other as harshly as they judge humans, and basically, vampires don't get along very well. So you've got a culture that's from cradle to grave like the worst high school you've ever been in.
If you could stay at this stage - you're 17, and you're always going to be in love with your first love - that's probably attractive.
The best advice I got as a writer was also the first advice, which came from the late fantasy author and editor Karl Edward Wagner: Any agent who charges to look at your work is a crook.
Horror serves a cathartic role in human society, all throughout the world. It is a way of confronting the darkness, both within and without.
Personally, I don't trust people who go out of their way to state they never read or watch horror and insist there's something wrong with those of us who do.
