Beware Vampires! SUNRISE is coming soon!

SUNRISE, the end of the workday for vampires...

For Stefan Székely it is a fate worse than death: To be dead yet stuck with his dead parents. After 13 years Stefan can endure it no longer. He wants a castle of his own. But first he must visit his family’s bank in Budapest.

With endless strife rumbling across Europe, Stefan hardly recognizes Budapest, now capital of the Hungarian Federation. The world has changed. 

Nevertheless, he embarks on the reign of terror he always denied himself, living the vampire playboy lifestyle.  Until he gets a stern warning from the local vampire gang. He is not welcome - unless he plays by their rules.

Should Stefan fight for his right to party like it's 2027? Or will an encounter with a dangerous stranger change everything about his new existence? As clashes between vampire gangs and State Security escalate, Stefan just might be the key to changing the fate of Europe forever! . . . If he can survive three bloody nights in Budapest.

The sequel to A DRY PATCH of SKIN continues the trials and tribulations of Stefan Székely, Vampire.

In 2014 my medically accurate vampire novel A DRY PATCH OF SKIN came outto a rave review. My main purpose was to counter the hysteria of the Twilight experience with some medical research crossed with established legends. I wanted to tell a realistic vampire tale. I even set the story in my own city and the action in the story followed the actual days and months I was writing the story. The story and my writing of the story ended the same week. Of course, I revised and edited after that.

Then I thought . . . what could possibly happen next? So I chose a gap of, say, 13 years (the number seems significant in horror stories). Now, where did I leave my protagonist? How is he doing? What could have happened since the end of the first book? What has changed in the world during these 13 years? How would what's different in the world affect his own corner of the world? How would he cope with these changes?

As I started on another vampire story I quickly realized that I had to also write essentially a science-fiction story. A futuristic story. If I were setting the story 13 years after the end of the previous novel, then this sequel would be set in 2027. And it would be somewhere in Europe, which is where our hero was at the end of the first book. 

What did I know of 2027? Not much. Like many sci-fi writers writing about the future, I took the present circumstances, the way things are now (both good and bad), and extrapolated how they might logically progress. Remember that novel by George Orwell, 1984? It was published in 1948 just as fears of a Communist takeover gripped Europe. It was supposed to be a warning. Orwell imagined how the concerns of his present might play out in the future. 

With the current strife in Europe, mass immigration, refugees coming to Europe from the Middle East and Africa, the increase in crime, the open warfare between left and right political groups, I could see all of these happenings extending, continuing and growing through the following decade. The moral question that arises is whether the author should follow his/her own beliefs, that is, how the world should be, a Utopian view - or choose a path of development which would be the best setting for the story (given the plot that would likely unfold), however the society might become - or try to take an honest look at current events and let things fall where they might, for good or ill.

I chose both. If I have to make a choice, I will lean toward what makes a good story over what my own beliefs might be. For the sake of this story and for the way I think society will continue to "progress" or develop or evolve over the next 10 years, I'm letting the European conflicts play out in the sequel: my now less-medically accurate vampire novel, titled SUNRISE.

Today, the governments of Hungary and Poland are resisting the  acceptance refugees and other immigrants and the European Union chastises them for it. Both nations have refused to comply with orders from Brussels and are being threatened with economic punishment. Jump ahead 10 years (from now; 13 from the end of the previous novel) and these countries have broken away from the European Union, formed their own economic block, and run business as usual in ways which are more to their liking. This is the landscape Stefan Székely ventures into from the isolated precincts of his family villa.

As described in this sequel, the new Hungarian Federation is a strictly run Euro-centrist society. The State Security apparatus runs a tidy ship and getting in is very problematic. Staying in if you are a "diseased" resident such as a vampire is dangerous. However, our hero, Stefan Székely, is already within the boundaries of the Hungarian Federation at his family's estate in the former Croatia; therefore, I, the author, must deal with the vagaries of that location. It was not an unpleasant effort. I love to travel vicariously.

 

Needless to say, our hero has difficulties - or there wouldn't be a story. Yet as I charged through the final chapters and then undertook the revision stage, the look and feel, the horrors, and the dystopian ambiance seemed right. Will Stefan escape from the repressive Hungarian Federation? Or will evil powers greater than himself and the vampire gangs of Budapest have the final say? 

Regardless, in SUNRISE the world gets darker before the light shines again. Book 3, to be titled SUNSET, picks up the story even further into the future. By then, we are in full-fledged dystopia territory. But, hey! I'm sure everything will work out just fine...if you transform into a vampire in time, of course.

Look for SUNRISE on or about April 1.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
(C) Copyright 2010-2018 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.

SUNRISE: Sequel to "A Dry Patch of Skin" is ready to launch!

What can I say? I love a good sequel. 

Back in 2014 my one and only vampire novel launched. I was never very interested in vampire stories but with the world going crazy over the Twilight saga and TV shows, I had to do something. Even my own daughter got caught up it the frenzy, so I lectured her about the real background of vampirism and explained the medical side of the disease.

That led to my novel A DRY PATCH OF SKIN, the title referring to the first sign of turning into a vampire. I spent a lot of time doing medical research and scouring the legends to try to get at the truth of the condition. I formulated a story about a fellow who began to transform but didn't want to. I set the story in Oklahoma City, where I was living, and in the same year I was writing it, 2013-2014. In fact, the date in the story when novel ends was actually a week after the novel launched.

I thought I was done. I made my point about the medical accuracy angle (double checked and approved by two of my own doctors). I got a check on my Horror genre writing challenge. But a thread kept nagging at me, even as I moved on to other novels. Finally, I decided to see where that thread might go . . . and a sequel was born.

In this sequel titled SUNRISE (coming April 1st), our unlucky hero Stefan Székely has been living a miserable life in his family's castle in Croatia. 'Living' is a misnomer, of course. He is actually one of the undead. It's been 13 years and he can't stand it any longer. Determined to leave home and experience the exciting life of a vampire playboy, Stefan first faces a series of obstacles while trying to get to Budapest.

It is 2027 and Stefan is ready to party - but the world has changed while Stefan hid out. Now the new Hungarian Federation has consolidated much of southeast Europe and conflicts abound. Most importantly, State Security is on a vampire purge. As Stefan settles in, keeping away from the vampire gangs, one night he crosses paths with an unexpected stranger - an encounter which will change everything, including possibly the fate of Europe - if Stefan can resist temptations!

Starting on the sequel to what was supposed to be a stand-alone novel pretty much begs for a trilogy to complete the symmetry of the story. Fear not! The third volume of the DRY PATCH TRILOGY will be titled SUNSET. Look for it in 2019.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
(C) Copyright 2010-2018 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.

How to be a Vampire!

I know it's not even close to Halloween but, you see, a good vampire story can launch at any time of the year - because, as we all know, vampires can exist throughout the year, in every season - but not after sunrise.

The Vampire. From legends far and wide, comes the idea of someone who has died returning to life or of not truly dying but settling into a degree of existence between life and death, what many have termed the undead. It is a frightful situation, both for the poor sucker [pardon the pun] who must "live" such a "life" as well as for those who may encounter him or her. (Read more here.)

Last year I awoke from a nightmare - actually, fell off the darn night mare, hit my head on a stone--and had the idea of writing a vampire tale. Much in the vein of my paranormal-writing colleagues, I sought a story of Gothic pathos, a horror tale of bloody delight! Alas! I could not in good conscience create something along the lines of more recent Vampire fictions. They were too much magic, melodrama, and frou-frou accoutrements than suited my sophisticated tastes.

I knew there were some medical and biological causes of symptoms which are typical of those claiming vampirism. I did my research, both into the legends and customs of Eastern Europe, and into the science behind such disorders as porphyria. Is there such a thing as vampirism as a medical condition? And if so, how does one treat it? Is it genetic or does one catch it from someone who is already a vampire? One valuable resource was the scholarly book by Paul Barber.

So I sought to create a tale as contemporary and realistic as modern science and my twisted imagination would allow.

The result is the amazing true-to-life story of Stefan Szekely, doomed to become a vampire - and to do so at precisely the wrong time in his life. Just as Stefan is falling in love with his Beloved and they are planning to marry, he notices the first sign: A DRY PATCH of SKIN.

“I do care about you,” she whispered.

“Thanks,” I said, trying to sound positive. “We can’t let a dry patch of skin get between us, now can we?”

But I digress...

Now, comes the sequel to this 2014 medically accurate vampire novel: SUNRISE. Coming in April 2018 - the month of Easter, ironically. The title is not without irony itself within the pages of this new novel. In fact, with a second volume, there comes the urge to continue the story of Stefan Szekely, Vampire, into a third novel - which would make it a trilogy. Book 3 will be titled SUNSET.

SUNRISE picks up where A DRY PATCH OF SKIN left off. It has been 13 years since Stefan met his fate in Croatia. However, he eventually has realized the extent of his misery and seeks to venture forth from his isolated home into polite society. Maybe get his own castle, become a playboy, drink a better class of blood. 

But you can't just show up in the Hungarian capital of Budapest and start doing your own thing. The local vampire gangs have rules. The State Security also has rules: all vampires must be extinguished. Then, while Stefan is struggling to fit in, an unexpected stranger confronts him and upends his entire world, setting off a frantic battle for what may determine the future of Europe.

For further information, I recommend reading the following:

A DRY PATCH of SKIN.

The truth about being a vampire: It is not cool, not sexy. It’s a painful, miserable existence.

Good reason to avoid that situation, thinks Stefan Székely. He's too busy falling in love with TV reporter Penny Park, anyway. Until one day when she notices he has a dry patch of skin on his face.

At first it's annoying, nothing to worry about, some weird skin disease he can treat with lotions. However, as his affliction worsens, Stefan fears that his unsightly problem will ruin his relationship with Penny.

If only that was all Stefan has to worry about! 

He soon realizes there is a lot more at stake than his handsome face. To save himself, Stefan must go in search of a cure for the disease which is literally destroying him inch by inch. 

If only his parents had told him of his family's legacy.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
(C) Copyright 2010-2018 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.

The Truth About Blogging

I have fallen slack in the task of blogging. That I call it a "task" may give you the idea it is loathsome or difficult. That is far from the truth. Rather, in the past year, on the eve of posting a blog entry, there has been some unexpected horror in the world or else some serious topic has garnered the nation's attention - thus, rendering my decidedly more frou-frou account of random esoterica pointless. Said differently, bad things have happened about every time I've posted a blog. 

I have found it difficult to complain in a light-hearted way about trivia things as a form of entertainment when real, awful things have been happening. I could wax poetic on what political, social, economic, or artistic angle seems appropriate. I could offer my take on a tragedy - which would elicit both agreement and rebuke, neither of which does much for me personally and certainly does not further a solution to any problem. One problem of social media is the inability to have much of a calm, rational, substantive conversation involving opposing views; it is too easy to simply block anything/anyone that we disagree with. As a sometime author and teacher, I would be very unCarnegie-esque in not making friends and influencing people.

Take the still too recent shooting at a school in Florida, for example. I wanted to say something at the moment I first saw the news report and in the days that followed, to express my emotions like so many others - and perhaps propose solutions like others have. With an earful/eyeful of details, it occurred to me to think backwards: The shooter should not have been able to enter the school. Before that, the shooter should not have had access to the firearms. Before that, the shooter should not have had the desire to kill. And so on. If I express my thoughts, I open myself to criticism at many points and on many levels which does nothing productive in the end. We who were not involved in the original event merely lay wounded and ashamed. If there is an agenda pushed by anyone, I find I must either agree (disagree) or risk being accused of taking the opposing side - typically through a practiced retort like "Your silence is complicity" or similar mantras that easily fit on marching placards.

The world and the things in it are much more complicated that the majority of us would wish. Few things have simple solutions. Talk is cheap, too. Political ambitions rise and fall on so-called back-room deals that have nothing to do with solving problems or representing the wishes of the people back home. Smoke and mirrors still exist. And the drama, whatever the event, is fresh fodder for so many whose lifeblood is drama itself. Did you see what I just did there? I wrote in a decidedly neutral way so every side could believe I was writing in support of their side. But is this a suitable style of writing? For a blog? 

I guess blogging can serve a purpose aside from the ranting and raving of too many social media pundits. I can practice my craft - and walk the thin line between uncertainty and absolutism. For now, I shall wish every blog post in the weeks to come were something akin to Valentine's Day, full of love poetry, pretty flowers, and perhaps cute fluffy bunnies. Unfortunately, writing it will not make it so.

Until then...back to fiction, where I decide how horrible the world can be.


---------------------------------------------------------------------
(C) Copyright 2010-2018 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog. Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.