Having been engrossed in the reading of Stoker’s novel, Dracula, when I looked at my watch, it was way past my bedtime (midnight); so I meandered to farthest bathroom at the end of our long hallway, since I didn’t want to awaken Mary Patricia (my wife). Halfway there I was seized with a primal fear that froze me to the spot: I could swear the evil vampire Dracula –lurking in the shadows– was welcoming me to his kingdom, fangs bared, blood dripping, arms outspread.

Fear I’ve felt before, but this was different.
Dracula is a book one has to revisit once in a while. Finally it dawned on me that Dracula scared the living daylight out of me not because of his appearance or ill-fame, but because the vampire owns something I don’t: non-human knowledge.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula is one of the scariest books ever written, and the reasons for its perennial appeal are basically two:
(1) The vampire theme in which the supernatural is thrown into the natural world
(2) Writing techniques: use of Absolutes.

When Count Dracula says, “There are far worse things awaiting than death.” Ah, what could that be? Orpheus, Tiresias, and Dante, belong to the set of personages who returned from the other shore; and what they had to say was horrifying, but they said things within human understanding. So, what are the “worse things” that Dracula mentions in passing? Is it something unmentionable? Is it something so tremendous and non-rational and unholy that he must leave unsaid?

Human fear I can live with. Take  Stephen King –the unsurpassed master of horror– who terrifies us with human knowledge: sins, transgressions, and human cruelty. With adroit prose and distinctive voice Stephen King exploits our fears and dark emotions, often appealing to grossness and revulsion. Bram Stoker also uses this sense of repugnancy in his novel: “As the Count leaned over me and his hands touched me… a horrible feeling of nausea came over me, which, do what I would, I could not conceal.”

Yet, what always puts a chill in my heart and mind is the lingering question of the beyond: what worse things did Dracula refer to?

Because the novel Dracula raises questions rather answering them, it will go on delighting readers for many generations. And what a treat it is! Not sparing a single rhetorical figure, Bram Stoker stabs and twists the reader’s central nervous system where horror resides. In some scenes, the narrating voice employs the ‘Nominative Absolute’ to add the sensation of simultaneity.

Watch closely this excerpt:

“As my eyes opened involuntarily I saw his strong hand grasp the slender neck of the fair woman and with giant’s power draw it back, the blue eyes transformed with fury, the white teeth champing with rage, and the fair cheeks blazing with passion.”

“Eyes transformed” is a past participle Absolute: “Teeth champing” and “Cheeks blazing” are both present participle Absolutes.

While we think that Ernest Hemingway was the inventor of the Absolute, Stoker was way ahead of him. Hemingway abused the technique, Bram Stoker was measured and sober in his use of it.

Subjunction is a rhetorical device that repeats contiguous words. Notice how Stoker makes use of it:

“I closed me eyes in a languorous ecstasy and waited-waited with beating heart.”

Rhetoric isn’t dead. It is always present in the great works of literature.

Humans instinctively seek beauty in what they read. In Dracula we find it not in the theme or the plot, but in the composition itself, since it is masterfully written. Readers, students and blossoming writers who are serious about literature will find elegant and yet thrilling writing that will seize both their minds and viscera. And if one reads this novel at night, don’t go to the bathroom!

What makes Dracula such a beautiful piece of work? There’s only one answer: it is well balanced by the power of well-balanced sentences; it is harmoniously woven, and its prose sparkles with a radiance that is short of wondrous.

Now you can get the Buffy The Vampire Slayer – Collector’s Set (40 discs) from Amazon. This really is the perfect gift for any Buffy Fan ……

Unlike her predecessors, Buffy surrounds herself with a circle of loyal friends who become known as the “Scooby Gang”.The series usually reached between four and six million viewers on original airings. Although such ratings are lower than successful shows on the “big four” networks (ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox), they were a success for the relatively new and smaller WB Television Network.

Reviews for the show were positive, and it was ranked #41 on the list of TV Guide’s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time as well as #2 on Empire’s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.

Buffy was also voted #3 in TV Guide’s Top 25 Cult TV Shows of All Time and included in TIME Magazine’s 100 Best TV Shows of All Time. It was nominated for Emmy and Golden Globe awards, winning a total of 3 Emmys. The WB network ceased operation on September 17, 2006 after airing an “homage” to its “most memorable series”, including the pilot episodes of Buffy and its spin-off Angel. Buffy’s success has led to hundreds of tie-in products, including novels, comics, and video games. The series has received attention in fandom (including fan films), parody, and academia, and has influenced the direction of other television series.

If your a Buffy Fan, Let us know what you liked most about the show!

“Martin“
This early film by “Night of the Living Dead“ director George A. Romero takes the movie and novel vampire click’s and spins them on their head, following the murderous and psychological problems of a young man who thinks he is a vampire. The movie never really comes forward with whether or not Martin is or isn’t an 85 year old vampire or if he is just a confused and shy 20 year old boy, which adds to the power and emotion of this unique take on vampire lore. Martin isn’t a “sexy” vampire with powers or hot cars with spoilers, he’s just a regular guy.

“Ultraviolet“
This strange mix of science fiction and vampirism flopped in the box office but is worth a viewing just for the great visual effects, fight scenes and beautiful Milla Jovovich. In the year 2078 after a global pandemic that gives the infected vampire-like powers but also kills them in 12 years, Violet is hired to steal a weapon that will be used to kill all infected on the planet. The plot is a bit silly but the fun twist on old-world vampirism in a future-setting is amusing.

“The Last Man on Earth“
This classic 1964 science fiction film is still powerful today thanks to a wonderful performance by Vincent Price and the dark, desolate, against-all-odds mood of the film. Dr. Robert Morgan is the last man on earth, struggling to survive against a world decimated and flooded by infected humans turned vampires. It is a slow movie but the viewer is rewarded some great scenes and a powerful, often-quoted climax.

“The Hunger“
Any vampire horror film that has David Bowie playing a stylish vampire is worth seeing in my book. This 1983 film has gained a cult following in recent years thanks to its moody, dark and glamorous atmosphere, as well as its soundtrack. Of course, now that the vampire genre is at an all-time peak thanks to “Twilight”, Warner Bros plans to remake the film for 2010. See the original first.

Buy the Twilight Saga Box Set NOW!
from Amazon at the very best Discounted Prices

Beginning stories and novels is always a challenge. Most beginnings are discarded eventually. Often, these ignoble starts bear no resemblance to the final product. This difficulty is, I believe, a direct result of the writer having an unclear idea of the story and of the characters who will populate their imaginary world. Stephanie Meyer, the highly successful author of the ‘Twilight’ series, offers a tip in the way that she began her first novel.

Stephenie’s experience of beginning Twilight can be used to a writer’s advantage when starting a new story or novel project. Stephenie, who had written very little and had no great ambition as a writer prior to the amazing success of Twilight, did not sit down initially to write a bestselling coming-of-age vampire novel series.

She was a reader, a sporadic writer, and fan of the “vampire-genre” and of the “romance-genre”. Her compelling story that becomes ‘Twilight’ begins with a dream she had one night. This dream will eventually become the ‘meadow scene’ in her first book where Bella Swan, in the forest with Edward Cullen, discovers Edward is a vampire. This is a powerful, key scene in the novel, and Stephenie has described how jolted she was by the images in the dream. Stephenie awoke and wrote the dream down, and this became the key scene the entire book was written around.

We all have dreams and flashes of scenes and characters from time to time, but what Stephenie did with this dream is something that writers can use to begin to craft a story. Stephenie wrote outward from the key scene she devised from her dream to answer the questions posed by the scene:

These two questions make up the key components of the story, and in answering them, Stephenie is drawing her readers into a detailed world where vampires and humans exist throughout a long history.

How to use what Stephenie did with Twilight

1. Begin with a compelling image or character.

2. Free-write the scene you imagine, or as much detail as you can about the character that you see/imagine.

3. Step back and answer some questions about what you have written:

The key takeaway from what Stephenie did with Twilight is to find a compelling scene and then to seek to answer the questions about who is there and what is going on. You write both forward and backwards from the event, trying to give it a realistic (regardless of genre) past that got you to that point, and future, that the story and characters will inexorably move towards.

You may not know exactly where the story will end, but if you begin with a vivid character or scene you can write around it to tell a compelling story.

Try this technique on a short-story and see how it works.

Thanks to the surge in interest for comics and graphic novels, due to films such as The Dark Knight, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and the WATCHMEN film adaptation, many people are turning to the pointed page in search of the perfect Christmas gift.

Getting into graphic novels can be extremely daunting due to the sheer number of available titles, so here’s a run-down of ten of the greatest graphic novels of all time. These are title which fans new and old should have in their collections. These are amongst the finest examples of the genre and the comics industry as a whole. They are presented here for your delectation in no particular order.

WATCHMEN
Widely acknowledged as the greatest graphic novel of all time, and certainly the bestselling book to hit comics shelves. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons created something so monumental that it has been a bestseller for almost two decades, not to mention spawning the film.

V FOR VENDETTA
Alan Moore and David Lloyd’s original graphic novel that inspired the ht movie. A moving and gripping masterpiece that is considered one of the genre’s landmarks.

MARVELS
The beautifully painted artwork of Alex Ross was the perfect accompaniment to Kurt Busiek’s flawless script in this superb book. A unique and near perfect exploration of the Marvel Universe’s early years.

KINGDOM COME
Alex Ross also supplied the artwork for DC’s incredible alternate future story. Complex and engrossing, Kingdom Come, written by Mark Waid, cemented Ross as one of the true stars of the comics medium.

CIVIL WAR
The biggest event to rock the Marvel Universe in years. Hero faced off against hero as the debate over the superhero registration act spilled over into violence. A truly monumental thriller, which saw writer Mark Millar take the core Marvel characters to a new level of drama.

THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS
Frank Miller transformed the comics industry, and more specifically the character of Batman, with this seminal graphic novel. Batman has been retired for ten years, and Bruce Wayne once more takes on the mantle of the Bat in order to take on a new breed of villains.

MAUS
This is a unique memoir by Art Spiegelman, presented as a graphic novel, which thirteen years to complete. It recounts the struggle of Spiegelman’s father to survive the Holocaust as a Polish Jew told in a stark black and white story featuring stylized cats and mice.

PREACHER
The nine volume DC Vertigo series PREACHER is one of contemporary comics’ greatest works. Wriiten by Garth Ennis and featuring gorgeous art by Steve Dillon with covers by Glen Fabry, it is a harrowing and gripping tale of redemption, religion and vampire hicks.

Y, THE LAST MAN
A fascinatng, multi-part epic following the misadventures of Yorick, the last man on Earth, and his monkey. A deeply moving examination of a very dark future indeed.

THE KILLING JOKE
Currently the most sought-after Batman title published. This stunning one-shot provided some of the source material for the mega hit movie The Dark Knight, and features a typically sparkling script by Alan Moore and sleek art from 2000ad star Brian Bolland.

These are just some of the groundbreaking trade paperback graphic novels that have enthralled comics fans all over the world, and have cemented the comics industry as a force to be reckoned with. The impact of these works is huge, and has seen the genre move from being a niche interest to an entertainment and literature phenomenon in recent years. There are countless others to enjoy, but these are the cream of the crop and would make a good starting point for your Christmas gift list. Happy reading!

There is no doubt that Freidrich Willhelm Murnau’s Nosferatu, Eine Symphonie des Grauens (Symphony of Horror) is a piece of landmark cinema, both for its Expressionist filmmaking and its unique treatment of the vampire as plague. Yet few people saw this monumental film prior to 1960.

Though slated for destruction by Bram Stoker’s widow, the film managed to survive, popping up in the most peculiar places.

Nosferatu debuted at the Marble Hall of the Berlin Zoological Gardens in 1922. The movie was the first and last product of a small art collective called Prana Films — the brainchild of artist Albin Grau (later Nosferatu’s production designer). A month later Florence Stoker caught wind, and she started the legal machines rolling. Her only income at this point was her deceased husband’s book Dracula, and she would not let some German production company steal her meal ticket. During the 1920s, intellectual rights were a bit dodgy, so Florence paid one British pound to join the British Incorporated Society of Authors to help defend her property. Never mind that the society would also pick up the tab for the potentially huge legal bills.

Florence seemed unaware that a second vampire film, this one called Drakula, was produced by a Hungarian company in 1921. Although the title harkens back to Bram Stoker’s novel, the resemblance ends there. This film, now lost save for some stills, was more concerned with eye gouging than straight out vampirism. Nosferatu on the other hand took much of its plot from Stoker’s Dracula, changing only the names.

The film continued to be exhibited in Germany and Budapest up through 1925, though Prana was beleaguered by creditors and harassed by Florence Stoker. They tried to settle with the society, offering a cut of the film’s take in order for them to use the Dracula title in England and America. Florence would not relent.

She not only wanted Prana to halt exhibition of the film, she wanted it torched — all prints and negatives of the film destroyed. And she got her way. In 1925 Florence won her case and the destruction order went through. Nosferatu, Eine Symphonie des Grauens vanished into thin air just as Count Orlock, the vampire in the film, does when exposed to the rays of the morning sun. Nosferatu did not stay dead. Like any good horror movie, the villain revived himself and carried on the fight. A print of the film resurfaced in 1929, playing to audiences in New York and Detroit. However preeminent Dracula scholar, David J. Skal, writes that the film “was not taken seriously” and that most audiences considered it “a boring picture”. The print was then purchased by Universal to see what had already been done in terms of a vampire movie. The film was studied by all the key creative personnel leading to the Universal production of Dracula in 1931.

The undead film continued to rise from the grave throughout the years. An abridged version was aired on television in the 1960s as part of Silents Please, and subsequently released by Entertainment films under the title Terror of Dracula, and then again by Blackhawk Films under the name Dracula. Blackhawk also released the original version to the collector’s market under the title Nosferatu the Vampire. An unabridged copy of the movie survived Florence Stoker’s death warrant and was restored and screened at Berlin’s Film Festival in 1984.

Despite its influence on the making of the 1931 Dracula, Nosferatu has few film decedents. It’s theme of vampire as a scourging plague has only been seriously taken up by two films: the 1979 remake by Werner Herzog, Nosferatu: The Vampyre, and the 1979 television miniseries of Salem’s Lot, directed by Tobe Hooper. Perhaps if the original Nosferatu, Eine Symphonie des Grauens had been allowed regular release, this would not be the case. It remains to be seen if Nosferatu will vanish again with the daylight or if this rare film will rise again in a new form.

For more information on the making of the original Dracula, check out David Skal’s book Hollywood Gothic: The Tangled Web of Dracula from Novel to Stage to Screen.

If you want to see how vampire films have changed from Dracula to Underworld, pick up a copy of my book The Changing Vampire of Film and Television. Also you may visit  www.timkanebooks.com for more vampire articles and fiction.

Buy the book NOW!

Twilight originally came to the general public attention a few years back when it was first released by Stephenie Meyer the writer, since that time the Twilight Saga has been completed and further books have been made including New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Daw. All of which have gathered fans from all around the globe.

Take a look at our Video Book Review for the Twilight Saga Box Set

The 1st The Twilight film aired in late 2008 and the New Moon film has hit worldwide audiences for six. Various journeys, heartache and victory happen inside each novel and film foussing on the relationship between a human and a vampire. New Moon, the second installment of the Stephenie Meyers tale has indeeed proved popular and has broken many box office records. Many fans have seen the film on a number of occassions and are even going back for more!

There is no stopping the Twilight fan, after reading the books we want to see how the film turns out with it’s new director. Is it better than the orginal film? Only you can decide. Join in again with the likes of Bella Swan, Jacob Black and Edward Cullen to get a fangtastic film experience. The book is played out reasoably well and we have the new director to thank for that, again it misses the majestic poetry of the novel but it does it’s job serving the general public well.

To celebrate this launch, 100% official New Moon merchandise has been released including New Moon jewellery, New Moon T-Shirts, New Moon figures,posters and much more! Perfect for any Twilight fan.

But the real great buys are the origional Books and the Audio Books. These, unlike the films open up YOUR imagination to the wonderful world of the Twilight Saga’s

If you are looking for a special present have a look at:

Stephenie Meyer: Twilight/New Moon/Eclipse/Breaking Dawn CD Ppk (Twilight Saga)
The Twilight Saga: New Moon–The Official Illustrated Movie Companion
Jacob Black (The Twilight Saga: New Moon) Life-Size Standup Poster
Twilight “New Moon” Fleece Throw Blanket Edward, Jacob & Bella Neca Merchandise

New Moon Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

NEW MOON SOUNDTRACK TRACK LIST
1. DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE – MEET ME ON THE EQUINOX
2. BAND OF SKULLS – FRIENDS
3. THOM YORKE – HEARING DAMAGE
4. LYKKE LI – POSSIBILITY
5. THE KILLERS – A WHITE DEMON LOVE SONG
6. ANYA MARINA – SATELLITE HEART
7. MUSE – I BELONG TO YOU (NEW MOON REMIX)
8. BON IVER & ST. VINCENT – ROSYLN
9. BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB – DONE ALL WRONG
10. HURRICANE BELLS – MONSTERS
11. SEA WOLF – THE VIOLET HOUR
12. OK GO – SHOOTING THE MOON
13. GRIZZLY BEAR WITH VICTORIA LEGRAND – SLOW LIFE
14. EDITORS – NO SOUND BUT THE WIND
15. ALEXANDRE DESPLAT – NEW MOON (THE MEADOW)

Click HERE to buy The Twilight Saga: New Moon Soundtrack from Amazon.

Having trouble finding a good book? If you want something with a half-breed vampire out for vengeance by killing her own kind this might be your series. This was a refreshing new look at the way vampire meets vampire hunter. Creative with an interesting love story you really don’t see coming. With ghouls, ghost, and demons this series developed a whole new world that keeps you interested and in suspense throughout each book.

Each book takes you a little deeper into the world Jeaniene Frost has created. Now I’m not going to give a lot away in each of these briefs. In fact I’m giving you nothing at all except what I thought. This is one series you have to take on your own. Even the smallest hint can give something major away. I know my sister did it to me, and she really didn’t tell me much! I love books that you really don’t know what’s going on until the end. This one even throws you at the end…especially Destined for an Early Grave.

All four of these novels can still be found in your local bookstore or online. Jeaniene Frost also has her own website, just type her name in any search engine and you’ll find her. Happy reading!

Halfway to the Grave~
The nail-biting suspense was a very new way of redirecting us vampire lovers. It was cleverly written, and had a nice base of humor. It was unquestionably one of my more better reads. The best part of this in particular novel was right when you think you got it the end figured out she throws something else at you.

Buy Halfway to the Grave NOW!

One Foot in the Grave~
Book two in the series was a mixed read for me. I really didn’t know how to take this one at first. I don’t want to give to much away here, but how the whole thing came together seemed to throw me a little. If you ended up like me, you’ll read the next one just to see where she’s going with it. Not that it was bad or anything. In fact I really enjoyed it.

At Grave’s End~
Book three picked up the game again from the moment you open this book. Some parts were a little predictable but the story line kept you going on just to make sure you were right. Although the ending kind of made me a little apprehensive about the next book. I like little guessing games, although this book made me rethink the whole love story between Cat and Bones.

Destined for an Early Grave~
Honestly, It just felt a little drawn out as if she was making this whole story up just to set up another serious altogether. Now I’m not saying it was a complete waist of time. It was a very good read. I liked the steady stream of humor, the nice feel for the characters, and the way it gets you hyped for the next. Only you find out the
next isn’t Night Huntress. Fine by me…bring it Jeaniene!