Quote:
Originally Posted by Katsunami
"Hot" is the wrong term for it. You should have said "blazing hot", or "has expanded to stratospheric proportions." Since Twilight came out, "Vampire Romance" is it's own genre, but most publishers (and sites) have not yet realized it. Both the Fantasy and Romance genres are ***SWAMPED WITH THAT UTTER CRAP***.
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To make my opinion on the genre clear so all doubt may be forever removed, I've accentuated it to some small degree. (Damn. Reading Professor Challenger seems to have had some unintended side-effects with regard to my way of expressing myself  )
Even the best and most masterfully constructed Vampire Romance novel wouldn't be for me. I've only read a part of Twilight, but it just feels wrong to me. Vampires aren't supposed to be like that; not for me, at least. |
You are generally correct but TWILIGHT was a *response* to the immense popularity of both vampire and werewolf paranormal romances over the past few decades, going back to the 90s and beyond.
Most of those titles, going back to Anne Rice's works, play up the horror and/or erotic aspects of the trope and Ms Meyer pointedly wanted to retain the romance while toning down the mature aspects. A wise business decision that expanded the vampire lover trope into the YA market and led to the billion dollar box office of the movie series.
As far back as 2004, the trope was being spoofed to great effect. One of the most popular spoofs has spawned over a dozen volumes in the last ten years: Mary Janice Davidson's UNDEAD series (aka: Betsy, Queen of vampires series).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Undead_(series)
Vampire fiction nowadays is really an industry unto itself, ranging from horror to romance, humor, YA, and even the fringes of SF.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Out_of_...rk_(2010_novel)
And, mind you, that is just within the bounds of traditional publishing.
