Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Guest Post with authors Clark Hays & Kathleen McFall



And God said, let there be Vampires
Are vampires a new religion?


A few days back, a tweet passed through our stream that asked the question: Are vampires the new religion? It got the Cowboy and I to thinking and then to talking. (Well, mostly it got her to thinking and talking. Cowboys already have the whole good versus evil things mostly worked out. But I was willing to listen. Love requires certain sacrifices.)

Eons ago, like the ancient Gods and Goddesses occupying Mount Olympus, vampires served a functional purpose for a largely illiterate and overwhelmed population — these mythical creatures helped explain mysterious aspects of life and death. 

The black plague? A vampire bite. Mysterious disappearance of loved ones? Stolen by a vampire. Uncontrollable lust for the neighborhood butcher? Wayward vampires leading good women (or men) astray. Lava-spewing volcanoes? Underground vampires. (Volcanoes? She’s gone a little bit off the deep end, but you get the drift.) 


Religion, in some ways, also helps us explain life; more specifically, it helps explain our fear of death and, if it’s all working correctly, imbues believers with a sense of purpose and an ethical framework for living. (Not so much with vampires though; if I saw one, I reckon I’d just stake him right in the heart.) 

Fear of death? Bingo! That is where religion and vampires rabidly intersect in ways reminiscent of the Middle Ages and the plague. Humans, as opposed to animals, worry about death, bringing to light what religion and vampirism have in common. It’s fascinating, when you break it down like this. (Fascinating might be too strong, but she’s mine, so I’ll keep listening.) 

The religious undercurrents of the vampire mythology catalyzed The Cowboy and Vampire Thriller Series itself. The action revolves around a prophecy in the vampire bible, which is a mirror image of the Judeo-Christian Bible. It includes an origin story from the Garden of Eden (the serpent), gives a new explanation for the rising of Lazarus, describes an anti- vampire savior (who establishes the ritual of nightly resurrection from death) and creates The Meta, a place where human and vampire consciousnesses reside in a heaven-like spiritual state. (I imagine it to be a lot like Tijuana, only not as hot.) 

And lest you be thinking that The Cowboy and Vampire Thriller Series is all serious, it has all kinds of action, passion and humor, but this guest post is motivated by the original twitter question. 

That’s the Cowboy talking by the way. He was awful nice, you know, so I let him take off his italics. Just for a sec. 

Returning to our subject, if we assume that vampires exist to help us with our sad little human fear about death, the next question is: why the current resurgence? (Ain’t that obvious?) 

Sadly, I fear it might be obvious. And not just as it’s reflected in the current vampire vogue. Have a look at the nihilism of movies, literature and music. Go on and insert your own answer and be truthful. Are you scared? Me too, a little bit. Why is everyone so worried about death? (I start to worry a little bit about it, but then I take a look at a sunset, maybe with a coffee cup full of whiskey, and everything makes sense. I like sunsets. And I love you too. That beats fear of death any day.) 

The Cowboy and I agree on one thing, at least.

Entry into a drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card for anyone that posts a review on Amazon, Goodreads or Powell's. Email authors at cowboyandvampire@gmail with link to review to be entered. It need not be a fancy review, just an indication of reading or wanting to read it.


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About the books 

Blood and Whiskey (Pumpjack Press, May 2012), by Kathleen McFall and Clark Hays, is the second book in the Cowboy and Vampire Thriller Series. It’s a wickedly funny tale of love, loyalty and sacrifice in the modern west.

About the authors

Stuff Clark likes: sagebrush, the American West, clouds, whiskey and graphic novels. Stuff he hates: running quarterbacks, drivers who don’t use turn signals and the sound of flip-flops. Stuff Kathleen likes: Russian literature, anarchy, martinis, lava and the ocean. Stuff she hates: intermissions, Halloween corn mazes and high-speed vehicular sandwiches. And the Muppets.

Find out more about The Cowboy and the Vampire Thriller Series: 
www.cowboyandvampire.com
www.facebook.com/cowboyandvampire
@cowboyvamp
#bloodandwhiskey

3 comments:

  1. Thanks John, we're glad it resonated with you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for having us on your site today. Nothing like a little early morning swerve into religious musings.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I actually enjoyed the post - I hadnt actually really considered it like that, but I can see it!

    Thanks for the post!

    ReplyDelete

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