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The Vampire’s Heart is the story of Graham, a lonely
thirteen year old boy, who is searching for a friend and
maybe a boyfriend. The novel is a departure from my
usual storylines in a few ways. First of all, none of my
other books include vampires. Secondly, VH is not part
of the Gay Youth Chronicles and therefore has nothing to
do with Verona, Indiana and its cast of characters.
There is mention of a familiar character and one
location from the chronicles series, but the story and
setting is otherwise completely separate. Thirdly,
Graham is the youngest character I’ve written about. The
thoughts and struggles of a thirteen year old are quite
different from those of a sixteen or eighteen year old.
Graham finds himself swimming through a sea of gray,
discovering that the world is not all black and white.
Graham is a boy who’s not quite sure yet if he’s
straight, gay, or bisexual and part of the story is
about his struggle to seek how his identity. The story
is more than that, however, for there are vampires about
and meek Graham finds himself living a life that he
would have thought impossible just a short time before.
I don’t want to give away much about the vampires, but
have you ever wondered what it would be like to be
fifteen years old forever? If so, I think you’ll find
the vampire theme interesting.
I’ve always seen a parallel between vampires and gays.
Both are often forced to keep their true nature hidden.
Both are misunderstood. In The Soccer Field Is Empty,
Mark often compares himself to a vampire, living in fear
that the villagers will discover what he really is and
drive a stake through his heart. In VH, I explore this a
bit further, by bring a questioning youth into contact
with a creature of the night.
The Vampire’s Heart is my shortest novel, but was also
the most difficult to write. I’ve actually completed
five or six other novels while working on this one. I’d
originally planned it as the opening novel for an entire
series that would delve into the fantasy realm, but it
will likely be the only vampire novel I write, unless a
brilliant idea comes my way. It’s an interesting
departure from my other novels and yet those who have
read “The Gay Youth Chronicles” will find some familiar
things here.
Also
check out
The Vampire's Heart Web Toon by Spiral Shay |
