Why You Shouldn't Compare Vampire Diaries to Twilight.

Why You Shouldn't Compare "The Vampire Diaries" To "Twilight"

Now that the TV pilot for "The Vampire Diaries", based off of a book series of the same name by wonderful author L.J. Smith, has been picked up, it's gotten quite a bit of attention. Fan sites have been springing up everywhere, and since it is vampire fiction, fans of other vampire fiction series' have been checking it out. Now, believe me when I say that I am so happy for the continued success of Ms. Smith's work. She's been a favorite author of mine for many, many years and the attention is well-deserved. However, I've been noticing a trend that is upsetting me.

A lot of people have begun to compare "The Vampire Diaries" to "Twilight". Now, putting aside my disdain for the latter book series, this is just plain wrong. So, as a long-time fan of Ms. Smith and her incredible work, I decided to write a blog on why the two should never be compared. Ever.

First of all, let's discuss what is similar and different about each aspect of the stories. Here are a few points I think are particularly important:

• The characters are completely different. The characters in "The Vampire Diaries" are much deeper and well-done than in "Twilight". Stephanie Meyer, author of the "Twilight" series, specifically gave no description or characterization to Bella so readers could imagine themselves as her when they read. This clearly makes the heroine of "The Vampire Diaries", Elena, rounder and more developed. Also, while most of the characters in "Twilight" are all vampires (with a few werewolves thrown in), the cast of "The Vampire Diaries" is mostly human, save for a few ghosts and evil powers, the two main vampires, and one werewolf.
  
• The vampires are handled completely differently. I know i've discussed this in previous blogs, but it needs to be repeated. Besides the classic sparkling of the vampires in "Twilight", there are other key differences. The vampires in "The Vampire Diaries" are much more traditional; they burn in sunlight, need to be invited in to a home before they can enter, and are actually frightening and monstrous, something that I think Ms. Meyer left out in favor of making her vampires pretty to look at. Getting rid of the horror aspect of vampires really takes away a great pool of possible plot line with which you could really deepen and enrich a vampire story.
  
• The purpose and focus of each series seem to be very, very different. "Twilight" is quite obviously meant to be a romance, designed for you to meet these two main characters, see the attraction between them, and then watch the action and see if their love will persevere. "The Vampire Diaries" does have a human/vampire romance, and it does affect most of what goes on in the story, but the books are also largely about the place in which the characters live, Fell's Church, and some of the ancient evils that live there. The town happens to be situated on top of a place filled with much evil, and the main vampiric character, Stefan, does mention that it wasn't just Elena, but the evil in Fell's Church that drew him to the town. The romance is not nearly as central to the story as it is in "Twilight", but in my opinion that really allows for more satisfying storyline, both for the main characters and the side-characters.
  

Hopefully reading the above is enough to show you why both of these series' should never be compared. However, what started my desire to write this blog was not what you see above, but what will you will see below. There are several ramifications to comparing both of these books, and here are some of them.

• The crossover of fandoms could be very, very detrimental. We all have seen the stories about some of the more...passionate "Twilight" fans who go out of their way to hurt people, break things, or just plain torture people for not liking the series. Now before the "Twilight" fans reading this jump on me, I am very aware that not every "Twilight" fan is like this. In fact, I know a couple of fans of the series who are very intelligent and respectful of others' choice to not like "Twilight", and are even also fans of "The Vampire Diaries", although these fans are VERY rare. However, a great, big chunk of the "Twilight" fandom is immature, uncontrolled, and downright cruel and violent. I have spoken with Ms. Smith personally over MySpace a few times, and I am a subscriber to her blog, and from those brief encounters I can tell you that if these fans ever crossed over and became as destructive over her books as they are over "Twilight", she would be heartbroken. That kind of violence and negativity has no place in Ms. Smith's fanbase, and I think that comparing the two could lure these fans in and really do more harm than good.
  
• You could very easily alienate potential fans by comparing the two. If people who dislike "Twilight" but have never read "The Vampire Diaries" hear the two being compared, that can instantly turn those people off, even though they really are not alike at all. Unfortunately, we live in a society where people judge books by their covers, and so many fans who would genuinely love and appreciate Ms. Smith's work would never get to even read it if they were turned off by such a thing. I also would like to think that those who love Ms. Smith's work but never read "Twilight" and want to because they're being compared would be horrified at the troubling themes that are involved in those books (relationship abuse and youth pregnancy to name a few), but the masses in general clearly have no problem with these themes, hence the series' huge success. I really wanted to elaborate on this point, but I think that, for the sake of balance in this blog, it is best left untouched.
  

I hope this made you aware of the ramifications and plain inaccuracy of comparing "The Vampire Diaries" and "Twilight". The two really are nothing alike, and I truly hope that when people pick up one or the other (or even both), they keep them separate in their minds so that they can form a full and accurate opinion of both pieces of literature as separate entities and not as one genre, because as I hope the above illustrated, they are simply not.

Now go pick up some L.J. Smith and tune in for "The Vampire Diaries"' TV pilot debut this fall on the CW. Sometimes in September I think it will be. You won't regret it!

Book Review - "Night World: Daughters of Darkness" by LJane Smith

Night World: Daughters of Darkness
These girls are to die for...

"Daughters of Darkness" is part 2 in the 10-part "Night World" book series by LJane Smith. The Night World is the society of vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters, and other creatures of the night all around the world. They only have two rules: never tell a human about the Night World, and never fall in love with them. These books are tales of instances when these rules are broken, culminating into an apocalyptic war that will change the fate of the world.

In the first Night World book "Secret Vampire" we are introduced to a rather villainous man by the name of Ash Redfern. He's a descendant of the most powerful vampire family in existence, and he plays with "Secret Vampire"'s main character, Poppy, as if she were a toy. At the end of the book, his cousin James warns:

"You know, you never really cared about anyone. But someday you will, and it's going to hurt. It's going to hurt--a lot."

"Daughters of Darkness" is, in part, an exploration of this statement and the foreshadowing it holds for our dear Ash.

The story stars a normal small-town girl by the name of Mary-Lynette Carter, who spends her free time gazing at the stars and planets in the sky. The other big part of her live is her little brother Mark. She desperately wishes on the stars above for two things; for Mark to find a girlfriend to help pull him out of his shell and give him happiness, and for herself to become 'one with the night', since she feels as if the night sky is one of the few things in the world that understand her.

The place she lives in, a small Oregon town called Briar Creek, is a boring and rather lonely place. That all changes, however, when her neighbor, a kind elderly woman named Opal, informs Mary-Lynette that her three nieces, Rowan, Kestral, and Jade Redfern are coming to visit. These girls happen to be Ash's sisters, and they have run away from home. When Ash discovers them and decides to scope out Mary-Lynette's family for some information, their cataclysmic meeting will change both of their lives, and the course of Night World history, forever.

This is one of my favorite books in the whole Night World series. The in-depth review below will show you why.

IN-DEPTH REVIEW

• The characters in this book are beautifully crafted. Rowan, Kestral, and Jade are very different, yet work wonderfully together as sisters, and we really get a taste for their individual personalities. Mary-Lynette is an extremely relatable character as well, personifying the feeling of being ever-so-slightly out of place and yearning for a sign as to where she belongs, which is something that everyone goes through at some point in their lives. It is also very refreshing to see the return of Ash and to learn more about him. Rather than see his tough outside, we get to see him exposed to his sisters and learn a lot more about who he really is on the inside.
  
• The town of Briar Creek is almost a character in and of itself. Minor characters such as the troublemakers Vic and Todd, the mysterious store clerk Bunny, and the handsome and friendly gas station worker Jeremy all add to the charm of the town and really make you feel as if you can envision walking around the town with the characters.
  
• The relationship between Ash and Mary-Lynette is not the typical romance. Honestly, it isn't. I of course will not spoil the end, but not everything in the world can turn out perfectly.
  
• The book itself is fashion very much like "Secret Vampire". I own two versions of this book. The first one is the original 1996 228 page soft cover print of the book. The cover shows off a beautiful piece of artwork featuring Ash looming over his three sisters and their pet cat, Tiggy. The other version I own, which you will be most likely to find in store nowadays, is the first Night World omnibus, which features the first three Night World books. This book is larger than the original version (as you may imagine), but with the two other stories inside of it and its easier availability, its a much better value than trying to hunt down the original version, as it is out of print.
  

Not only is this a must-read because it is such a fantastic book, but like "Secret Vampire", it introduces a few key concepts to the rest of the series.

The first concept is the different facets of vampiric society. Rowan, Kestral, Jade, and Ash hail from an actual island that is inhabited by nothing but vampires, and they describe the island as a place that is such very much in medieval times, with servants and castles and forced marriages. We learn that this is only one type of place that vampires can live, and we get to see how a hunting creature like a vampire can be effected by the pressures of such a society.

The second thing that is introduced in this story is the concept of werewolves. We get to see one in action for the first time and learn about the rules and rituals they must obey in the Night World.

The last (but not least) important thing that is introduced in the story is another fairly important character in this series, known only in this book as the mysterious and deadly vampire Quinn. I won't spoil what we learn about him, but I will say that his exit from the story at the end of the book will leave you wanting to know more about the poor boy (and trust me, you will, but that will come in another book).

So, "Secret Vampire" introduced us to vampires, and "Daughters of Darkness" had our first ever werewolf. What's next? Well, you'll have to pick up the next book in the series, "Spellbinder", to learn about another important group of people in the Night World.



Watch my video review and commentary on "Night World: Daughters of Darkness" below:





You can also visit my YouTube channel to view other LJane Smith book reviews and other videos.

Book Review - "Night World: Secret Vampire" by LJane Smith

Night World: Secret Vampire
He was her only hope...

This is my first ever book review, and I'm VERY excited to be writing it! The book in question is the first in the 10-part Night World series written by LJane Smith, called "Secret Vampire". This review contains VERY minimal spoilers, if any.

"Secret Vampire" is a wonderful introduction into the Night World series, not only because its a wonderful story, but because its a fabulous introductory story. Allow me to explain.

The main character is a normal, everyday girl named Poppy North. Her best friend, James Rasmussen, is a vampire, but Poppy has no knowledge of this. Why? Well, first, let me explain a bit about what the Night World is.

The Night World is comprised of all of the vampires, werewolves, and witches in the world. They generally are not fond of humans and prefer to live their lives in their own way, never letting society know what they really are. There are two rules to the Night World: Never tell a human about the Night World, and never fall in love with them. The Night World series includes several stories of these rules being broken, and this is one of them.

The trouble for James starts when Poppy is discovered to have a fatal illness, forcing him to make a choice: either he can save Poppy by admitting his feelings for her and turning her into a vampire, breaking both above laws, or he can stand there and watch her die. You can probably guess what he decides to do.

This story is such a brilliant introduction into the Night World series because we get to watch Poppy find out about the Night World and learn all about it, and we take the journey with her. The book leaves you with a sense that you have truly been introduced into the Night World, and is a great set-up for the rest of the series. It not only encompasses an enjoyable and exciting story, it also immerses you in information that you will carry with you throughout the rest of the series, yet it's gently given to you in each book as a reminder so that you can enjoy each book no matter what order you pick them up in.


IN-DEPTH REVIEW

• The characters in this book are fairly well-developed. James is not developed as much as Poppy is, but that's okay, because Poppy is the main character and it is through her eyes that we are meant to see the Night World. Even the minor characters, from Poppy's over-protective brother Phillip to the deadly vampire Ash, have quite a bit of charm and presence in the story.
  
• The atmosphere of the story is very unique. Although the vampires in this universe are painted as beautiful and powerful creatures, we are also exposed to the ugly, vicious side of being undead, proving that while vampires may look pretty, actually being one isn't as glamorous as it may seem.
  
• The writing style of LJane Smith is something I have always enjoyed; no matter what book it is of hers that I'm reading, I can never seem to put it down. She is descriptive, but not overly so, and her vocabulary is approachable by readers young and old. Of course, preferences in writing style differ from person to person, but I happen to love hers.
  
• The physical book itself is a pleasure...in its original form. I have it in two versions. The first one is the original 1996 228-page paperback, complete with art of Poppy and James on the cover. It even boasts a contest for a Night World flower pin which ended in 1997, and a sheet of glow-in-the-dark star stickers inside. It's small enough to fit into a pocket or a purse, so its easy to take around with you. The second version I have is the recently released omnibus of the first three Night World books. This book is, as you can imagine, much larger, yet still manages to fit into my purse. The cover is a black and white photo of a girl with curly hair and green eyes, whom I can only assume is supposed to be Poppy herself.
  

Although you can indeed pick these books up in any order you like, I do recommend reading "Secret Vampire" first, as it introduces two very important things into the story.

The first one is the Soulmate Principle, which simply states that every person in the world has a Soulmate, someone who they are meant to be with. Whether they find that person or even want to be with them once they do is a moot point this early in the series; however, we learned that something kind of funky has been going on with the Soulmate Principle that is putting the Night World on edge. What is it? Well, you'll have to read to find out.

The second is a character named Ash Redfern, who is integral to the rest of the series. He's a dangerous, devil-may-care ass with a serious superiority complex, and he's one of my favorite characters in the entire series. His introduction is something not to be missed.

Whenever I think of Ash, I think of a line that James says to Ash toward the very end of "Secret Vampire" that goes a little something like this:

"You know, you never really cared about anyone. But someday you will, and it's going to hurt. It's going to hurt--a lot."

Foreshadowing perhaps? Well, you'll just have to wait for the second book in the series, "Daughters of Darkness". That review will be coming soon.


Watch my video review and commentary on "Night World: Secret Vampire" Below:

A Possible Cure for the 'T' Virus?

Yes, it just might be possible, and it comes in the form of one of my favorite authors.

Her name is LJane Smith, and her possible cure comes in the form of a TV pilot.

Back in the early 90's, Smith wrote a book series called The Vampire Diaries, about a popular high-school girl, two vampire brothers, and a little town called Fell's Church that all wind up colliding with each other. Now, this is considered Teen or Young Adult Fiction, but it actually wasn't by choice.

You see, Smith started writing in the 80's, and so she had been writing YA fiction for years before she created The Vampire Diaries. Those around her encouraged her to stay in the YA fiction genre where she was popular, even though she wanted to make The Vampire Diaries more adult. She's even talked about re-writing them the way she intended now that her original fan base is all grown up. I personally am hoping that this TV pilot will reflect that maturity, but we will see how it goes.

Anyway, the point of this is that I have already seen many articles comparing The Vampire Diaries to Twilight, and I really have to take a stand before it goes any further. Here are some key differences in the stories that will hopefully help you separate these two book series' in your mind:

• The main characters are a little different. The main character in Twilight, Bella Swan, is a pretty, perfect, popular girl who becomes so powerful and so amazing that she breaks the laws of the universe set by the author herself, Stephanie Meyer (we call this a Mary Sue). Smith's main character, Elena, is also a very pretty, popular high school girl, but she is far from perfect. We get to see that she is much more fragile than she let's on, and we get to see her change and mature throughout the series, something that Meyer's flat and stagnant main character cannot possibly achieve, since Meyer purposely did not develop her at all so that the reader could pretend to be Bella in their own minds.
  
• The vampires are handled differently in each book. Meyer paints her vampires as gorgeous, pale, perfect creatures who sparkle in the sunlight (I'm sorry, I just can't move past that). Smith's view of vampires however is much more traditional. They burn to death in sunlight and must feed, whether it be on humans or animals (although human blood gives them more strength and power than feeding on animals). Smith's vampires are admittedly not fully traditional however. They actually do not burn in the sun (but certainly do not sparkle), and they do not require any coffins or anything of that sort. They also have no aversion to holy items or places. The differences however are seamlessly woven into the story's universe, and make logical sense, unlike sparking in sunlight. I swear, that just drives me nuts. Also, while Meyers' vampires can reproduce, Smith's vampires can only reproduce and age if they were born vampires; if they were turned, they are stuck at their age and cannot reproduce. You can argue that vampires being able to breed at all is ridiculous, but this fact isn't even mentioned in The Vampire Diaries, it is only brought up in one of her other book series that also contains vampires.
  
• The storylines are completely different. While Twilight centers around the relationship between Bella and Edward, The Vampire Diaries gives all of its characters big and small some good screen time (or page time, if you will), and the story is not so much about the relationship between Elena and the two vampire brothers, Stefan and Damon, as it is about the town she lives in, Fell's Church, and some of the darker powers and creatures that dwell there. The town itself becomes a character in a way, making the story's universe rich and enjoyable.
  

I think the above illustrates my point pretty well. If you're a fan of vampire fiction, or are looking to become one, or have just been turned-off of the genre by Twilight, or even if, and I can't believe I'm saying this, you're a Twilight fan who is looking for something new to read (anyone can reform, right?), The Vampire Diaries is more than worth a look.

I urge everyone to tune in to the pilot (I have yet to see any information on when it is going to air) and give it a look. Even if you just leave your TV on for a half hour while the pilot is on to give it ratings, I wouldn't care at this point. Smith's work is amazing and deserves this wonderful exposure, and the world can use a refreshing break from Twilight.

tl,dr; The Vampire Diaries is the chemo that is curing vampire fiction.


Check out my vlog below on Vampire Diaries vs. Twilight to hear me talk about it in person and to check out my LJane Smith book collection.

A Brand New Kind Of 'T' Virus

So, Circuit City's gone out of business, I'm scrambling to find a job, and my pay and benefits are about to run out. So, what is this blog/rant going to be about?

Twilight.

Yes. Fucking. Twilight.

This godawful monstrosity of literature has finally pushed me over the edge. Allow me to explain what my thoughts have been on Twilight and guide you through how this built up and why I can no longer take the fandom and undeserved positive attention this book series is getting.

When I first saw the promos for the Twilight movie, I thought it looked really cool, and when I heard it was based on a book series, that immediately caught my interest. However, that didn't last long. A group of girls I role play with online were talking about the book series, and when I had told them it looked cool, they proceeded to show me summaries of the plot and blogs where people picked out certain parts of the story to examine, and I was completely and utterly horrified.

First of all, the main character, Bella Swan ('Beautiful Swan', oh TOTALLY a believable name!) is what we in the writing world call a Mary Sue. A Mary Sue is a character who is beautiful, popular, powerful, and all-around perfect, to the point where she is an unbelievable character and bends and breaks the laws of the universe set by the author themselves. The author of Twilight, Stephanie Meyer, has said herself that Bella was given very little personality and physical description so that the reader could place themselves in Bella's position and read the story as if they were Bella themselves. Self-insertion into a story and lack of personality are also two large symptoms of Mary Sueism, and in my personal opinion, it is a cheap way to get around giving your main character no development whatsoever.

Now, I have not read the books themselves, but I have heard several things about the plot which I would like to discuss so that you can see where I am coming from. Keep in mind while reading this that this is TEEN LITERATURE and that these stories are meant to be an influence on young girls.

To be fair, what is below are SPOILERS. Don't bitch at me if you read this and got spoiled.

• The Relationship between Bella and Edward is a huge problem in these books. From what I understand, Bella is extremely dependent upon Edward, so much so that in the second book I believe it is, she realizes that when she is in trouble, Edward will contact her telepathically. So she JUMPS. OFF. A. CLIFF for no other reason than to simply hear his voice. While this is obviously extremely destructive behavior, it is also important to point out that Edward himself is rather cold to Bella at times, and orders her around to stay put so she'll be safe and let him do what he wants, to which, like a good woman should, she immediately listens to, stripping her of all integrity as a woman.
  
  
• Vampires sparkling in sunlight is just unacceptable in my eyes. Now, I also have to play devil's advocate and point out that as an author, Meyer has the right to do whatever she pleases with her characters and story universe, and that most of her fan base will probably not care about this deviation, never minding that it goes against every single piece of vampiric literature ever written in history which that, up until now, always state that when a vampire goes into sunlight, they burn and die. Again, it is Meyer's prerogative to change this, but making a vampire sparkle in sunlight is not only just silly and nonsensical, it serves no story purpose whatsoever, other than reaffirming how damned pretty all her little bloodsuckers are.
  
  
• Edward knocks Bella up. Seriously. Vampires' bodies are dead, therefore they have no ability to procreate. Even Meyer makes it very clear that her vampires are dead creatures. Now again, she can change what she wants, so let's say that she legitimately says that they can indeed have children, and Edward has gotten Bella pregnant. Fine. However, the birth of said child is the problem. The baby is born TWO MONTHS after conception, and the child not 'born' per say, so much as it breaks Bella's hipbones and claws its way out of her stomach. No, I'm not kidding. In order to save her life, Edward turns her into a vampire. Now, remember how I mentioned above that he protects her like the fragile little useless woman she is? Well, apparently female vampires don't have this stigma, because once she is turned, she starts kicking everyone's asses and becomes one of the most powerful vampires in the entire story almost instantly. Again, unrealistic and completely unneeded. To add on to that, this werewolf guy who was head over heels for Bella (as is every other man in the story, another Mary Sue symptom) takes one look at her severely premature daughter and decides that they are soul mates, meant to be together forever (whether its just as friends or something more is your call, I don't want to imagine the latter), and so he marks the poor baby. To add on to this, said baby becomes the equivalent of a 3-4 year old child in just a few months, and is just as powerful, pretty, and perfect as her mommy. Just great.
  

I hope the above helps you see things from my perspective. As a writer, the above points make the story unbearable to read about and honestly make me nauseous. As I stated above, this is supposed to be something that young teen girls look up to. Not only is the entire concept of sleeping with a creepy stranger who breaks into your house to watch you sleep at night and having his children being a GOOD thing just sickening, but the state of Bella and Edward's relationship is unhealthy in every way, shape, and form.

Now, I don't read the books and I avoid them at all costs, so it really didn't effect me. Even working at Circuit City it didn't really bother me; we're closed already, and so I never had to deal with Twilight being released on DVD or anything like that. However, its spreading.

Everyone I know that reads these books gets horribly addicted to them. My mother's boyfriend's daughter started reading them, and then convinced my mother to do so. While on the phone with her today, she began talking about how much she loves Edward, and how she doesn't understand why I don't like the books. I simply said to her 'Mom, they sparkle in sunlight. Sunlight is supposed to make them burn and die!', to which she replied, and I am not exaggerating in any way, 'Well Edward said its just a myth, so I'm going to believe Edward!'

Oh, my god. My own MOTHER has been sucked in!

Now, besides also seeing Twilight paraphernalia everywhere I go, its branching out into other mediums. What finally got me to snap and write this whole post was this article:

Twilight Director Hardwicke Hints At Anime Version

...I'm sorry, what?

Well, I read it right the first time. Apparently, the Twilight movie's director Catherine Hardwicke inferred in one of the DVD extras that Japan was working on a Twilight anime series. The mere thought of them animating this absolutely horrid and unrealistic pile of horrible makes my stomach turn.

However, in a way, it makes sense. I mean, considering what you read above, what other medium is going to be able to capture the true essence of a child boring its way out of its mother's womb besides anime? Only the Japanese would be bold enough to even attempt such a thing.

Honestly though, I think that this Twilight phenomenon has just gone too far. I of course can do nothing to stop it. I can only hope that the teenagers who pick these books up are smart enough to resist the messages being sent to them via this story. With all of the media and parents blaming video games and anime and music for inspiring kids and teenagers to do stupid, reckless things, why is nobody concerned that some depressed 13 year old is going to jump off of her roof to try and hear her boyfriend's voice, or that an 11 or 12 year old might think it would be cool to have a child with a mysterious stranger? It sounds preposterous wording it that way, but let's face it, we've seen people do stupider things in the papers and on TV.

I'm also curious as to how certain things like the birthing scene will be portrayed in the movies to come, but I suppose we'll all find out eventually.