How to Destroy a Genre: Vampire Edition

Let’s all be honest. How interested are we in another vampire story being released? This is branching from the plot change my book went through from fully vampire themed to a dark high fantasy. One of the biggest reasons that my sister also pointed out is the mere word ‘vampire’ causes one to cringe so much the book closes on its own. However, in truth Vampires are historically interesting creatures that have just as much depth in their folklore as Faeries or Elves. One would think Vampires would be a highly respected genre like Wizards or even Demons. Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t really see it at that level anymore.

Today I will talk about all the ways a genre can be viciously murdered in the storytelling community in any medium. Vampires in particular will be discussed because the theme has become a prime victim to genre death.

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Plot Changes while Writing a Book

There’s a million reasons why a book takes a long time to finish. Mostly it’s because the writer wants to provide the best possible story to their audience ensuring everything is interesting, engaging and able to evoke emotions/messages. Sometimes this involves changing the plot altogether for the sake of the story.

I’ve had to go through this recently despite finishing the first draft of the other plot. While it felt kind of disheartening at first, there are a few lessons I learnt throughout this process. This week I will mainly be talking about the main three things!

First Draft Struggles + Personal Lessons

Last Sunday I printed out the rough draft for my book which felt both accomplishing and terrifying at the same time. Something about holding the story in your hand for one thing is really solidifying; a small way to remind yourself that you did a lot of work even though it was hidden in the electronic folders.

Then also the terrifying journey to read what your brain dump looks like. For most people, the first draft is the version no writer wants a reader to see because it’s almost written in their own personal language that no one else will understand. That’s what the second draft is for. To make people understand that weird, personal language swirling around in an authors’ brain.

While I had a few other things to talk about this week, I think this blog is a good place for me to write down some lessons I’ve learnt while writing. Especially since the writing community is all about sharing experiences and learning from one another to develop each other’s style. So here are a couple of things I’ve realized while writing my less than pleasant first draft:

Book Review: Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks

This week we have another book review coming for you so it can help you decide whether to add something new to your list or maybe even dive into a unexplored theme! Sword of Shannara has definitely for a long time so some of you might be already familiar with the whole series but this is a first for me and I’ve compiled my thoughts under the read-more. I hope it helps in expanding your reading list!

Book Information:

• Author: Terry Brooks
• Year Published: 1977
• Page Count: 664
• Genre: High Fantasy
• Pacing: Drawling | Slow | Suspenseful Build | Fluctuating | Steady | Fast | Vague
• Type: Fantasy | Mix | Realism

#StayHome Book Recs

For this week, I have collated my Top Five favourite books ranging from fantasy to fashion. If you’re ever looking at your bookshelf and there’s nothing to read, give these selections a go!