MY KIND OF VAMPIRES: a guest post by Jerry Gordon
I’m lucky enough to be born in the world’s most plentiful country. My fellow Americans compose roughly five percent of the Earth’s population while consuming almost twenty-five percent of its natural resources. Our way of life is literally sucking the planet dry, and we’re not alone. China, India, Russia, and the EU are all doing their level best to match our voracious appetites. And behind them, an almost nameless sea of countries left behind, looking at the developed world with a mixture of admiration, contempt, and anger.So what does this have to do with vampires?
You can tell a lot about a person by examining their monsters. I wrote “Vampire Nation” for Michael West’s charity* anthology, Vampires Don’t Sparkle!, with dwindling world resources and first-world arrogance in mind. Gandhi once said that you can judge a society by how it treats its most vulnerable members. I wanted to take a look at what happens when the developed nations of the world are forced to pay a high price for dogged self‑interest.
“Vampire Nation” takes place in an overpopulated future where space has replaced energy as our most precious natural resource. China and India have pooled their military and scientific might to dominate the world stage. That is, until a global pandemic resembling vampirism explodes in the most primitive reaches of the third world.
It’s no secret I’m a great fan of Richard Matheson’s book, I Am Legend. I wanted to pay homage to his vision of a worldwide vampire plague while exploring the politics of our current energy crisis, nuclear brinksmanship, augmented reality, and the price nations pay for ignoring the less fortunate.
The world is full of vampires. Some wear suits and ties. Some try to save the world.
None of them sparkle.
*Proceeds from the book donated to breast cancer research in honor of Sara J. Larson.
VAMPIRES DON'T SPARKLE!
Vampires Don’t Sparkle! (editor Michael West): What would you do if you had unlimited power and eternal life?Would you…go back to high school? Attend the same classes year after year, going through the pomp and circumstance of one graduation after another, until you found the perfect date to take to prom? Would you…spend your days moping and brooding, finding your only joy in a game of baseball on a stormy day? Or would you…do something else? Anything else?
The authors of this collection have a few ideas; some fanciful, some humorous, and some as dark as an endless night. Join us, and discover what it truly means to be “vampyre.”
Edited by Michael West
Foreword by Michael West
“A New Life” by J. F. Gonzalez
“What Once was Flesh” by Tim Waggoner
“The Darkton Circus Mystery” by Elizabeth Massie
“Robot Vampire” by R. J. Sullivan
“Beneath a Templar Cross” by Gord Rollo
“The Weapon of Memory” by Kyle S. Johnson
“The Excavation” by Stephen Zimmer
“Skraeling” by Joel A. Sutherland
“Dreams of Winter” by Bob Freeman
“Dracula’s Winkee: Bloodsucker Blues” by Gregory L. Hall
“I Fuck Your Sunshine” by Lucy A. Snyder
“A Soldier’s Story” by Maurice Broaddus
“Rattenkönig” by Douglas F. Warrick
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Thank you so much, Jerry, for stopping by Book Den!If you guys want to check out more tour stops for Vampires Don't Sparkle or the entire SSP Anthology Extravaganza, you can see the full schedule here.
Sounds like My kind of vampires as well. I like the fact it stresses none of them sparkle. Sparkly vampires are the worst that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteKristin, well said! :) And I can't say it enough, there are some truly incredible, world class writers in this book, from Jerry above to Gary Braunbeck and more! A really wonderful collection.
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