This advice is more specific than most of my posts, but I wanted to present a list of questions for authors of vampire literature, and fantasy writers in general, to consider. With Halloween recently passed, I’m still in the spooky mood and have been developing my own ideas around vampires; I plan to answer these questions in my own work, and thought I’d share them for other paranormal loving storytellers.
1) What are your vampire's strengths and weaknesses?
Classic weaknesses for vampires include fire, decapitation, and, of course, sunlight. However, authors are reinventing the wheel all the time, and you’ll need to establish how your vampires function. Does the sun kill vampires immediately, or does it only injure them? Does simply being near the sun have adverse effects on vampires, such as making them sleepy or queasy? Does sunlight have to touch a vampire directly, or can being in a well lit room harm them?
This is just the sun. If the sun doesn't hurt vampires, where do the legends come from? Do vampires stand out on a sunny day (such as sparkling when those UV rays hit them) or is this just a myth spread by ignorant humans to comfort themselves? You need to consider the other weaknesses of your vampire too - are they hurt by “old school” weapons like crosses, silver, stakes to the heart, or even certain plants? Is fire required to ensure permanent death?
On the other side of the coin, vampires have strengths. Do yours have super strength or speed? How are their regenerative abilities? Are they completely indestructible, or will jumping from a high enough building still shatter their legs? If vampires can be injured, how quickly do they heal? If they lose limbs, can they regrow them? Are there any injuries which could incapacitate your vampire for hours, or even days? If so, how badly hurt do vampires have to be? What does it take to kill them? Can they actually starve to death, or does abstaining from blood simply weaken them?
Are your vampires immune to the common cold? Are your vampires attractive, easily beguiling others, or are they hideous? Are they charming? Do they smell like flowers, or like rotting blood? The vampires in Twilight are described as having floral scents to invite humans in; conversely, the vampire Eli, from Let the Right One In, is described as smelling terrible as a result of not washing the blood of her victims from herself.
Additional abilities vampires may have could include reading minds, controlling minds, flying, transforming into various animals such as wolves or bats, or stealing into rooms as mist. Other weaknesses can include needing to be invited into the homes of their victims, garlic, or growing weak from a lack of blood.
Mythology of various cultures offer other strengths and weaknesses which could be applied to your vampires - in some stories certain types of trees work best for crafting stakes, while specific plants are anathema to vampires. Vampires may also be trapped in their coffins via the use of nails, or by having their heads placed between their legs.
It's up to the individual author how original, or traditional, their vampires should be.
2) What do your vampires look like?
In modern stories, most vampires are youthful and conventionally attractive. However, other stories old and new describe vampires as being hideous. They may be gnarled and old - assuming they look human at all. Some may switch between being young and pretty, and old and ugly. Do your vampires swap their forms at will, or do they need to feed on humans to prevent, or reverse, an aged appearance? Can they switch between a human form and a monster form where they more closely resemble a gargoyle or animal?
If your vampire can change into an animal, can they transform into any animal or are they limited to becoming a bat or a wolf?
Furthermore, do your vampires change with age? While they might not age in the traditional sense, are there characteristics which mark an ancient vampire from a fledgling? Does the texture of a vampire’s skin change over time? Does it become glassy or powdery? Do they look less human, losing colour in their cheeks or brightness in their eyes?
Are vampires all pale, or pasty in appearance? Do they have red eyes, or do their eyes remain the same colour as when they were human? Are they gaunt? Are they all beautiful? Does their skin have a weird texture, such as being smooth or hard as rock? Do they literally have fangs? And if they do, are the fangs always out or can the vampires retract them at will? Do they have unusually long fingernails? Do they fail to cast a shadow or show a reflection in the mirror? Also consider a vampire’s age. Do ancient vampires try to blend in with jeans, or do they wander about in waistcoats?
Do vampires have any special abilities beyond super strength and speed? If so, how do these abilities function? Are abilities, such as telepathy or the use of magic, universal to all vampires, or do individuals have their own unique powers? Do all vampires start with the same gifts, or do they have to develop them through the centuries? For example, can only ancient vampires fly? Do ancients have gifts fledglings couldn't even imagine? Whether abilities are universal or unique to each vampire, can gifts be developed further? Can a vampire increase the distance from which they can read a person’s mind?
What are the limits of your vampire’s powers? Do they have to be looking at a person to read their mind? Is it easier for a vampire to read the mind of somebody they know? Are there characters, or other creatures, who are immune to vampiric abilities? If so, why are they immune?
4) Can your vampires have children?
Can your female vampires become pregnant, or is it only the males who can impregnate humans? Are all vampires infertile? Can they breed with other vampires, breed only with humans, or not breed at all?
If vampires do impregnate a human, can the human survive the process? Is the pregnancy normal, or are there adverse effects for the parent? If a child is only half vampire, what abilities do they share, or not share, with either parent? Are all hybrids the same, or are there differences in individuals or sex groups? In Twilight, it is implied that only male vampire-human hybrids can change others, while females are not venomous.
If vampires can't create children of their own, can they change human children? Do these children mature, but grow frustrated at remaining in the bodies of children? Or do they remain at the same age mentally too? Generally speaking, changing children has consequences. In The Vampire Chronicles, Claudia gradually begins to hate her condition; she develops the mind of an adult woman, craving an adult’s body and autonomy, and being drawn to wearing mature fashions and performing tasks at an adult level. In Twilight, the children who are transformed remain children - toddlers are especially destructive, because they can't be taught to control themselves.
Ultimately, you should ask yourself how any vampire children, whether born or changed, function. Are they physically weaker than adults, or can they dispatch their prey with ease? Do they act like the age they appear, wanting to play games and draw with crayons, or do they act like adults, reading advanced books and speaking as someone much older? How do they survive when they can't hold down jobs, or lack the same physical prowess? Do they have to rely on others who are, or look, older? At what age does transformation into a vampire stop being taboo?
5) Do vampires in your world have to follow their own laws?
How organized are your vampires? Is there an official government, hidden from humans, which oversees vampire activities - or those of all mythical creatures? Are there gangs, exclusive to certain cities, which make up rules? Are there territories vampires respect or war over, or can they feed anywhere they please? Are there just general rules everyone knows to follow, like not revealing the existence of vampires to humans?
Can vampires have relationships, or children, with humans - or is this forbidden? If a vampire breaks any of the laws, are there consequences? Are these laws officially upheld, or are offenders punished by vigilante groups? If the laws are more organized, what are the specific consequences attached to each crime? Do all crimes end in death, or are there lesser punishments?
If there is a government, what is its hierarchy? Is there a single leader, or a group of elders, who rule over a coven? Is there a vampire guard? Are there titles within a vampire court, like vampire kings, duchesses, or dukes? Do they have human servants in the know? Are there vampire nobles, or can anyone gain power? Do any leaders have children, or favourite followers, who work with them? Is the government fair, or are they the antagonistic force of the book? Finally, do vampires have their own culture - if so, is it dependent on their rank or age?
6) Are there other creatures which co-exist with vampires?
What other creatures populate the vampire’s world? Even if vampires are the focus of the story, do they war, or work with, entities like werewolves, wizards, or elves? Do they all follow the same government, or does each group govern itself? Do humans know of the existence of vampires or other creatures, or are they a secret?
It's a popular trope for vampires and werewolves to be enemies, but if you choose to utilize this trope you’ll still need to explain why they're enemies. Is the hatred genetic, causing vampires and werewolves to be automatically repelled by one another? Or is it political, driven by factions, old grudges, or the need to rule over territory as a human gang might do?
Are vampires allowed to mingle with others? Can they have children with werewolves or elves? If they do, are those children attacked as abominations? What powers do the hybrid children of vampires and werewolves have? Can a human be bitten by both a vampire and a werewolf to become a hybrid, or is one trapped as one or the other? If someone is bitten by more than one monster, what happens? Is vampire venom poisonous to werewolves and vice versa? Are vampires immune to the spells cast by wizards? Are all of these entities immortal, or are vampires the only ones to claim eternal life?
7) How are vampires made? Can they be cured?
It's traditional for vampires (and werewolves, for that matter) to be made through a bite, but are there other ways your vampires can be changed? Is it enough for someone to be bitten, or do they have to complete the change by drinking the blood of a vampire? Are there half vampires and full vampires - that is, is a vampire only considered a “half” vampire if they haven't yet made their first kill? In some cases, half vampires can be cured through the death of the one who’s bitten them. In other stories, once bitten, there is no going back - regardless of feeding habits.
How was the original vampire made? Were vampires made by a furious god? Were they the result of a vengeful witch’s spell? Are all vampires made through a curse, a bite, or an untimely death? Can the disease be transmitted in other ways, such as by accidentally swallowing vampire blood or inheriting the curse from a parent?
Are there cures for your vampires, whether it be killing the one who made them or taking a special potion? Are vampires made through a bite, or are they just demons who happen to look like people? In some stories, vampires are born as a separate species and cannot change other humans; they are their own entities who survive by drinking human blood, and can only bolster their numbers by mating with one another or by relying on someone like Satan to cast a spell and make more. They might be the literal children of demons.
8) Do vampires remain themselves?
In the classic stories, vampires lose their souls. Do the vampires in your story lose their souls, or are they perfectly intact? If they do lose their souls, what does that mean? Do they lose their minds, becoming unfeeling monsters, or do they remain the people they were before turning?
In The Vampire Chronicles, the vampires are still very much themselves - they have the same morals, interests, manner of speech, and so on. They are the same people they were while human, just with a vampire’s abilities. On the other hand, the vampires in Buffy the Vampire lose themselves. Though they have distinct personalities, and can even form relationships, they are not themselves. They are demons inhabiting the bodies of humans who have lost their souls. Though still in a vampire body, Angel, Buffy’s undead boyfriend, is partially cured, because he regains his soul and therefore his sense of self.
Explore what vampires are. Are they terrifying creatures, or are they just people who now suck blood and have special powers? If they retain themselves, do your vampires have morals around the killing of humans? Do some try to abstain from killing humans, or survive off of animals?
9) What can vampires eat?
Typically, vampires drink blood. It's the only source of nutrition for remaining strong. However, stories vary on the relationship vampires have with food. Can vampires still enjoy human food, even if it offers them no nutritional value? In some cases, vampires can mix blood into human delicacies - serving blood milkshakes or plasma cakes as needed. However, food could also be undesirable. In the Twilight series, human food is described as tasting like dirt, or being sour to smell. Vampires can force themselves to eat it, but they'll need to regurgitate it later. In the Underworld series, it's noted that human food could even be lethal - if it doesn't cause death, it can make a vampire feel like they've come down with a case of human food poisoning.
For “good” vampires, are animals an adequate alternative to humans? Does human blood taste better, or offer more nutrition than animal blood? What are the disadvantages of subsisting on animal blood? Are those who do weaker, or do they just forego a certain level of pleasure in their diet? How do animals react to your vampires? Do they shy away, as if from a predator?
Taste should also be considered. Do humans of differing blood types taste different? Do individual vampires have preferences? Do people taste better, the younger they are? If vampires drink wine, can they become drunk? If a vampire actually absorbs alcohol or drugs from a human victim, does that substance affect them as well? Can your vampires become drunk, or high? Do humans with a poor diet, or drugs in their system, also have a different flavour? Can blood have varying levels of quality, depending on any, or all, of these variables? For example, a vegetarian human might be less appealing to a vampire because they offer less protein or lack the same salty flavour (that might sound gross, but we’re talking about vampires).
In Twilight, mountain lions, bears, and other animals have distinct flavours from one another. Edward likes lions best, while Emmett prefers bears. Human blood is the most delicious, causing vampires to be intoxicated when they are near it, but animal blood offers equal nutrition. Carnivores generally taste better, though not as good as humans, while herbivores can be filling but taste dull.
Your vampires might also have reactions to encountering blood. Do their throats burn? Do they feel literal thirst, or do their stomachs seize? Can they feel hunger pangs, or do they just suffer from dry throats? Do their mouths water? Does smelling blood cause their fangs to descend, their muscles to tense, or them to hiss? Remember, it's the little details that will bring your reader into the vampire’s mind and make their world come to life.
When writing vampires, worldbuilding is critical. It isn't everything, of course. Characters still need to be fleshed out, plots have to be original, and the pacing should feel comfortable to the reader. While Twilight had rich worldbuilding, it still received criticisms for its protagonist’s lack of character development. These questions should be a starting point for creating your vampires and establishing the world’s rules, before moving on to the work all writers need to do - creating the characters, making a story outline, and so on.
These questions can, and should, also be applied to any other creatures which coexist in the world alongside your vampires. Switch the word “vampire” out of each of these questions, and replace it with “werewolf,” “elf,” “witch,” and so on, depending on the creatures in your story, and you should be good to go.
