Vampires !''''!

Wikipedia: Vampire

Monstrous.com: Vampires

Vampires.com

Vampire mythology dates back to at least the medieval period, though some say the myths are older than the Bible.

Myths and folklore often evolve, changing to fit societal norms, fears, and attitudes. Vampires are a great example of this.

Vampires have transitioned from horrific (Nosferatu), to intense/sexy (Dracula), to jaded (Blade's gen-x vampires), to glittering, broody hunks.

Whether this change is good or bad is up for debate.

An interesting part of vampire lore is that a vampire culture exists: real people who actually drink blood (usually as a spiritual or bonding act). I can't really comment intelligently on it because I don't know much about it. I also can't understand it, because I'm squeamish about blood. I may like to splash a lot of blood around in my horror stories, but I avoid it in real life. While I was working for a large retailer once (the night shift, of course), we discovered red droplets all over the floor in one of the aisles. I could have safely entered a nuclear reactor with all the protective gear I put on (and I was just watching someone else clean it up).

One wonders whether there would be a vampire society if mythical vampires had remained in their Nosferatu stage? Probably not. Or at least the folks who practice vampirism wouldn't want the term associated with them.

Vampires have a huge fan base, though many publications (and people) say that we've hit the saturation point (they've been done to death, excuse the pun). Personally, I can never get enough of vampire stories. I think it's just a matter of putting a new spin on an old myth, as I did in my story, "Alecsander's Empire," where a Dracula-type vampire suffers through a mid-life crisis.

Of the vampire types (scary, sexy, jaded, broody, or real), I'd have to say my favorite vampires would be the mutants in Blade 2, only because I prefer my vampires scary (and those crazy buggers were scary).

Who's your favorite vampire?