Guest post with Elaine Bergstrom

*This post was originally scheduled to appear during our Dracula Event back in October but due to personal reasons and scheduling conflicts needed to be rescheduled. It has been years since I read Mina by Marie Kiraly but it has remained one of my all-time favorite novels. I've included both covers for the book- the reissue is very seductive while the original is mysterious. Which do you like better? I am very pleased to welcome Elaine to Bite Club for a discussion about Mina and her influence in the classic Stoker tale. Without further ado...

-By Elaine Bergstrom

I’m sure that I met Mina Harker early in my reading life. As a lover of all literature dark

and mysterious, I must have read Dracula but, frankly, it did not hold my interest enough

for me to even recall reading it. It’s likely that at the time I first read it, I was too young

to understand its subtext – the message Stoker was imparting, likely unconsciously.

Instead, I knew the Mina that Lugosi’s film made famous – pale, sweet and perfectly

Victorian – and every future Mina as envisioned by Hollywood directors. Oddly, one of

the lesser of the Dracula films, the 1979 version directed by John Badham and starring

Frank Langella, first hinted at the novel’s subtext – moving the story forward by just a

few years and making Mina and Lucy a pair of would-be suffragettes, chafing under the

strict Victorian moral code.

Thirteen years later, just divorced and with a few vampire novels of my own written, I

was asked by my publisher to do a newspaper interview, giving comments on Dracula for

a feature on the upcoming Coppola film. The reporter and I shared a common opinion –

that after everything Mina went through she would have a difficult time returning to the

life of a perfect Victorian wife.

With an idea of what my next novel would be about, I went back and read Dracula and

numerous accounts of Victorian life. And then I understood who Mina was, and why

it was likely that Victorian women shared copies of the novel, reading it in secret lest

their proper Victorian husbands find it scandalous. Not that there weren’t many husbands

feeling oppressed by a society that turned its back on sexual urges – the word “leg” was

considered impolite to say in polite company – and created a wealth of pornographic

writing so men and women could satisfy those urged in private, and likely alone.

As for the women, they were condemned to a life or rectitude as either a good wife and

mother, a nursemaid to her family, a worker in the accepted fields of teaching, serving or,

for some, the womanly arts of sewing and needlework; or to the fallen role of a mistress,

prostitute or, for those with talent, an actress. They possessed no right to inherit, to

control their own funds (should they have any), no recourse to divorce if their husbands

were brutes or unfaithful.

But Mina was a woman with one foot firmly in the Victorian era and the other in the

future when women would finally come into their own as partners to their men. She

ventured alone to Eastern Europe (an incredible act in that time) to nurse her fiancé back

to health and marry him. She returned to England, only to find herself, after an incredible

struggle, bound emotionally to the Count. And even though she was considered someone

to be protected by Jonathan, Van Helsing and the others, she was their partner in the

struggle to destroy the vampire.

And in that struggle of good and evil, in which she moves beyond the customary role of

polite women, it is her spirit which guides the book. She links her mind with Dracula’s

so that she and the others can find him, she ventures with Van Helsing to the vampires’

mountain lair, and in the epilogue to the novel, it is disclosed that the band even returns

to those mountains to see them in a new and better light. True to the style in which the 

novel was written, the final words are from Jonathan, who comments on the lack of

proof for their adventure and that the journals will be a legacy to their son, We want no

proofs. We ask none to believe us! This boy will some day know what a brave and gallant

woman his mother is. Already he knows her sweetness and loving care. Later on he will

understand how some men so loved her, that they did dare much for her sake.

But of course, what did she dare for them?

 

Book description for Mina:

In Bram Stoker's immortal novel, Mina Harker became a living, breathing object of obsession- only to fall prey to her stalker's seductive powers. There was only one way to save her soul-by destroying the life of Count Dracula, the creature who controlled and consumed her. But was the spell really broken? Could Mina return to the ordinary turns of a day, and to the restraints of a Victorian marriage, after the pleasures of such exquisite darkness? 

Visit Elaine's website for more information.

Dracula Event: Taliesin Meets the Vampires

"They learned his secrets in the Scholomance, amongst the mountains over Lake Hermanstadt, where the devil claims the tenth scholar as his due" as described by Van Helsing, is Andrew M Boylan's favourite quote, as it offers a wholly sinister insight into the source of Dracula's vampiric powers.

Andrew blogs as Taliesin_ttlg at Taliesin Meets the Vampires

Dracula Event: Marta Acosta

"Vampires are the new vampires" according to Dr. Derek Tatum, internationally renowned vampire scholar, and that's one of my favorite quotes.  I've been around paranormal/urban fantasy long enough to hear claims that vampires are "over" (and this comes up every few years), or that werewolves are the new vampires, or zombies are the new vampires.  But there are good reasons for the continued popularity of the vampire myth: it allows writers and readers to explore themes of immortality, sex, death, sin, power... The myth is flexible enough to be used in thrillers, horror, romance, mystery, comedy, fantasy, historicals, scifi, and any combination thereof.- author Marta Acosta

Marta Acosta is the author of the Casa Dracula series, including the just released Haunted Honeymoon, which I absolutely adored, and she blogs daily over at Vampire Wire.

Dracula Event: Roxanne Rhoads

"Dracula opened the doors for the vampire to be seductive, to be a
gentlemen that women wanted. Even though the premise of the story
was horror most of us see Dracula as a romantic, tortured soul- the
quintessential bad boy we can't resist- even if we have to stake him in
the end. This archetype has influenced much of modern romantic vampire
fiction including my own." — Roxanne Rhoads- paranormal erotic romance
author

www.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com



You won't want to miss Roxanne's newest release A Halloween to Remember- available at Excessica.com

The Dracula Event: Clay & Susan Griffith

            We are Clay and Susan Griffith, authors of The Greyfriar, Vampire Empire Book 1 (Pyr Books, Nov. 2010). Since we write about vampires, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that Dracula is an important book to us. When Michele invited us to say a few words about Dracula, it took a while to decide what to talk about. There are so many ways the book delivers an impact. But as we were thinking about Dracula again, and looking over the book, the structure of the narrative itself struck us. The book can be divided into three parts, almost three separate (but interrelated) stories. The first one is great, the second one is good, and the third one falls apart in many ways.

            Story 1: Jonathan Harker Goes to Transylvania. This section is tight, creepy, and smart. It is a nice progressive narrative. This section could easily have been a novella by itself, with a more definitive ending of course. It has everything that a great gothic needs. Naïve hero. Superstitious locals. A weird castle with a strange host. An increasing series of odd events spawning a deepening sense of dread. And finally a flat-out frightful encounter with the Brides and the otherworldly Count Dracula. The best part of this segment is that we get to see a great deal of Count Dracula, and he is a wonderfully menacing character.

            Story 2: Lucy and Dracula. This is the story of normal people menaced by an invading evil. Poor innocent Lucy becomes the target of an unstoppable occult predator. She is surrounded by her various friends and lovers, who can do nothing to stop the horror, and finally the odd grandfather figure, Van Helsing, who comes equipped with the arcane knowledge to help. This story is less direct and driving than the Harker bit. We’ve got the narrative off-ramps of Dr. Seward and his lunatic asylum including the supremely weird Renfield, as well as the “what the hell is he in here for” character of Quincy Morris (if this were a modern book, we’d suspect Stoker’s publisher demanded an American character for improved marketability; otherwise there’s no point in this bowie-knife wielding American to be here). But even so, the unflagging threat from (largely off-screen) Count Dracula, followed by the nicely spooky “vampire Lucy” segment, creates a strong narrative spine for the many characters to revolve around. Again, with a different ending, this could’ve been a solid story in itself.

            Story 3:  The Chase. This is the weakest part of the book. It doesn’t work as a stand-alone unit and, unfortunately, it barely works as a conclusion of a novel. It seems rushed and muddy. Count Dracula shows up occasionally, and there is the memorably kinky scene where he forces Mina to drink his blood, but in general this part of the novel is about racing around England tracking down boxes of dirt. It finally picks up as our heroes doggedly pursue Count Dracula back to Transylvania, racing for the castle as the sun sinks. Now finally, the reader thinks, oh man, this is going to be good! But it’s not. It’s one of the great letdowns of literature. The final reckoning with Count Dracula is a monolith of meh. Ride. Open box. Stake. The End. Well, okay, Quincy dies, but it happens with so little fanfare and emotion, that you almost miss it.

            What the hell? Did Stoker lose interest? Was his editor standing next to him tapping his foot, demanding the final pages? Did he forget he had a deadline and furiously scribbled the last few paragraphs early one morning before rushing off to work?

            Still, let’s not dwell on the end. The memories from the rest of the book are so strong and wonderful: Lucy and her midnight rambles; Renfield and his flies; the ghost ship arriving at Whitby; Van Helsing and his transfusions; the wolf crashing into the drawing room; the Borgo Pass; Count Dracula carrying a bag with an infant wriggling inside; the dead travel fast.

            All you have to do is go back and read the first part again to remember why you love this book.

Please visit Clay and Susan at their website!

Also stop by VampChix on October 25th for their guest spot and we'll be giving away a copy of The Greyfriar: Vampire Empire!
VampChix reviews The Greyfriar today!

Dracula Event: Emma Holly

Emma Holly's favorite quote is: "Yes, I too can love."--Count Dracula

Be sure to grab your copy of Emma's latest, DEVIL AT MIDNIGHT, which hits shelves in a bookstore near you this November!


For more information about all the fantastic titles by Emma Holly (my personal favs are Strange Attractions and any of the Demon books) visit her Facebook page, or her website (only if you are 18 or older).
And be sure to stop by VampChix on October 24th, during the VampBash, when we'll be giving away a copy of DEVIL AT MIDNIGHT!

The Dracula Event: Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

What a treat today!  Chelsea Quinn Yarbro talks about rediscovering Dracula.  Without further ado...

On (Re)Discovering Dracula

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro 

The first time I read Dracula, I was fourteen, in the 8th grade, and it was almost May,1957, providentially the same month that the novel begins.  Like most of my classmates, I had an impression of the book that came almost entirely from film — not that kids my age were encouraged to see horror films — and from comic books.  Since I already had ventured into 19th century fiction well beyond Dickens (whose work I dislike to this day; I’ll be happy to tell you why another time) to such writers as Wilkie Collins and non-Holmsian Conan Doyle, I was somewhat familiar with the storytelling techniques of the period.

      I found the scene-setting less purple than many of the far-away-places descriptions in other novels of the period, which interested me, since the setting really was a far-away place.  Being the daughter of a cartographer, I soon looked up Transylvania in the atlas and began to check out the places mentioned as they occurred in the book:  Bistritz, Varna, and Whitby for that matter.  It made the book more plausible to me, and more engaging.  I read the whole of it in just under three weeks, and prepared a book report on it — the last one for the semester, which shocked my English teacher, Mister Dunkel, who up until then, approved heartily of all my reading habits.  He thought the book was sensationalistic — which, of course, it was — and I think, in retrospect, the sexuality of the story troubled him, as it has so many others.  For the first and only time in his class, I got a B on a book report, more for the subject than my writing.  As I recall, I spent most of the report talking about the idea of a monster that doesn’t look like one, or generally behave like one, until you get to know him.  I had also been struck with Dracula’s remark that “time is on my side”, and although I understood it in context, I wondered if that was really true, considering how much you would lose as part of extreme longevity, a theme that has not only remained with me in my own work, but is a central aspect of Saint-Germain’s character.  So that first reading did start me thinking along what is now an obvious track.

      I came back to Dracula when I was 19, taking a course in Culture and Folklore as part of my social sciences requirements at college.  We had spent time on the more familiar archetypes of all cultures — gods, devils, angels, demons, vampires, werebeings, shape-changers (weres and shape-changers are not the same thing: werebeings are compelled to change by factors beyond their control; shape-changers control their transformations), tricksters, magicians, and dangerous females.  Having loaded up on vampire lore, I came back to Stoker and did a paper on what he had done with the archetype in the novel.  By then I knew more about Stoker himself, and had read some of his other work.  As a Theatre Arts and Music major, I was keenly aware of the theatricality of the book the second time through, and saw that Dracula, as a character, mirrored some of Sir Henry Irving’s performance as Mephistopheles in Faust; I commented on the blending of the vampire and the devil archetypes in Stoker, and tried to discuss what it is about the vampire that is so fascinating.  On that I didn’t get very far, but I knew the whole sex-and-death thing was an intrinsic part of it, and that the combination of a figure of great power who is nonetheless almost totally dependent on ordinary mortals for survival had all kinds of ambiguity about it, ambiguity that contributed to the enthralling force of the figure.  That paper got an A-, along with the note “good save”, which still puzzles me.

      I read Dracula again when I was 24 or 25 and had decided to switch from writing plays to writing stories, this time to see how Stoker had put it all together.  I hadn’t yet decided I would work on the vampire — or if I had, I wasn’t aware of it — but going through Dracula this time, I put most of my focus on the other characters, and did my best to figure out how the interactions of the various ordinary mortals evoked the differentness of Dracula, and what that differentness was comprised of, beyond the traditional folkloric vampire.  I also spent more time examining the personalities of Lucy and Mina, since they are the characters who interact most closely with Dracula in the story.

      When I began work on Hotel Transylvania  in the fall of 1971, along with my review of vampire folklore throughout the world, I had another look at Dracula as the ne plus ultra literary model, and the image I planned to work against by pushing my vampire as far to the positive as possible and still remain a vampire, an idea I’m still exploring.  A few years later I began work on an opera based on Dracula, which I continue to work at in fits and starts, which meant another read-through of the book looking for the crucial dramatic turning points in the story and adapting them to my purposes.  Then, quite deliberately, I put Dracula aside and didn’t look at it again until I was asked to do the ill-fated Dracula’s Brides trilogy, at which time I spent a fair amount of time looking at those parts of the book in which the three women appeared, and once again I put the book aside.
      Yet it seems I can’t get away from Dracula, because at present I’m involved in another Dracula-related project.  There is something about that figure that continues to haunt me, and, I suspect, most writers engaged in writing in the vampire sub-genre.  Stoker certainly struck a nerve — or a vein — when he came up with that character, and all of us who pursue the modern versions of the archetype owe him a debt of gratitude for creating such a durable figure and so broad an audience.

Dracula Event: David Doub

"Listen to them - children of the night. What music they make." -author David Doub's favorite line from Dracula

David's latest book is the vampire graphic novel, Dusk Vol 2.



Eve is still in a trap of her own devising. She tries to find her place in a horrid supernatural world that does not want her. She thinks she loves a vampire and is definitely addicted to the power of his blood. She encounters everything from Zombies to Demons and the morality of her life is always murky at best. Dusk continues to explore the dark recesses of the Vampire mythos, mining out a hauntingly entertaining read. Come join in Eve's continuing journey of damnation and possible redemption.

*Note from the Bite Club staff: Don't be put off by the graphic novel format- Dusk is a great story combined with wicked cool illustrations.

Dracula Event: E J Stevens

"My revenge has just begun! I spread it over centuries and time is on my side."-favorite Dracula quote for E.J. Stevens

E.J. Stevens new release is She Smells the Dead (Spirit Guide, book 1) and the official Spirit Guide series website is here. E.J. also has a blog over at this site http://www.FromTheShadows.info

Dracula Event: Skyler White

I love Van Helsing’s creepy, intimate, evangelical moment, situated in a little lull in graveyard violence, in which he persuades Arthur to drive the stake through Lucy’s heart so that “[i]nstead of working wickedness by night and growing more debased in the assimilation of it by day, she shall take her place with the other angels.”   

Skyler’s twist on the vampire tale is and Falling, Fly.

 http://www.skylerwhite.com/and-falling-fly

*From the Bite Club staff: Skyler's latest work, In Dreams Begin will be released on November 2nd, and she'll be stopping by for a guest post as part of her blog tour. This book looks as beautiful as the last and I am anxious to read it.

Dracula Event: Anne Frasier

Does this dress make me look fat?

Near the beginning of Dracula comes this great line: "The women looked pretty, except when

you got near them, but then they were clumsy about the waist."

Certainly not scary, but funny. — Anne Frasier

www.annefrasier.com

Dracula Event: Lucienne Diver

"Dracula: I adore Dracula because he’s dead and loving it. No whining, no pages and

pages of internal monologue, and he’s not granting any interviews. He’s reveling in his

nature. Part of the appeal of vampires is that they’re a dark side of us that we mostly

suppress…and for good reason! I’m not suggesting that we go about biting or seducing

each other…much. But I do think that one of the reasons vampires have gone from

creatures of horror to objects of desire is that they’re a walk on the wild side. If we lose

that, they become tame, mundane and a lot less interesting!" — Lucienne Diver, author of

REVAMPED

www.luciennediver.com

Dracula Event: Joanne Kenrick

Dracula’s infamous line, “I have crossed oceans of time to find you”,
was the inspiration for JoAnne Kenrick’s debut paranormal romance,
When a Mullo loves a Woman, which features a different kind of
vampire. The release date for this debut novel is December 3rd.

http://joannekenrick.blogspot.com

WHEN A MULLO LOVES A WOMAN:
http://joannekenrick.blogspot.com/2010/09/moment-writer-dreams-of-drum-roll.html

Dracula Event: Ryan Mecum

My 2 cents on Dracula by Ryan Mecum

On each Halloween
I dress as Count Dracula.
I’ve heard he does, too.
- from VAMPIRE HAIKU

"The doctor here will bear me out that on occasion I tried to kill him for the purpose of
strengthening my vital powers by the assimilation with my own body of life through the
medium of his blood - relying, of course, upon the scriptural phrase, 'for the blood of
life!' though indeed, the vendor of a certain nostrum has vulgarized the truism to the very
point of contempt." –Renfield!

Confession: Although I’ve enjoyed vampire fiction for most of my life, I had little
interest in reading Bram Stoker’s DRACULA. This was mainly because I felt like pop
culture had already fed me the whole story already. Why read DRACULA when I have
already devoured dozens of stories that took Stoker’s idea and made it better? Isn’t
DRACULA just a boring and outdated version of SALEM’S LOT? Didn’t Anne Rice
make write a contemporary version with INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE? I’ve already
devoured her VAMPIRE CHRONICLES and sat through the Pitt Cruise movie numerous
times, why read a long, boring version of the same thing?

Once I started writing VAMPIRE HAIKU, I was having lunch with a friend of mine
named Peter Raber, who was excited about my book and made numerous references to
how it could be like DRACULA. I admitted to have had never read the book, and he
looked like he was about to punch me. I threw out my flimsy argument about how it
was outdated and unnecessary, and he looked like he was about to cry. He told me that
I didn’t know what I was missing, and if I was planning on writing a vampire story I had
to read DRACULA. His guilt trip worked, and on the way home I decided to pick up the
book.

Sorry Pete, for being so naive and stupid. DRACULA was absolutely so insane and
wonderful. Renfield’s soliloquies while feasting on insects! The Demeter captain’s
log! Mina’s neck in the moonlight! Transylvanian gypsies! Gothic confrontations in
cemeteries! Van Helsing not described as looking anything like Hugh Jackman but
more like a sweet grandfather! The narration devices! Dracula’s moustache! This book
owned me.

If you have yet to read this book and feel like you don’t need to because you mostly
know the story, please learn from my mistakes. There is a reason why vampires are
still relevant in our culture, and it isn’t because they can symbolize celibacy or AIDS
or homosexuality or anything else our contemporary vampire authors hint as to why
they think vampires still matter. Vampire books still sell because Bram Stoker created
a monster that is so scary and so fascinating that thousands of vampire stories later we
have yet to fully mine the genius of his creation. My silly book of vampire poetry would
not exist without DRACULA, and I am indebted to my friend Pete for helping me see the
error of my ways. Some of you might now know who Renfield is, and that is a travesty.
If you enjoy vampire fiction, pay your dues and bow before the thrown of the Count.

Ryan Mecum

*Note from the Bite Club staff: If you haven't had the chance to read Ryan's  poetry then you are definitely missing out! His haiku are funny and highly entertaining. My husband bought me a copy of Vampire Haiku last year and we both had a blast reading it. What are you waiting for? Check out his website here.


There's still time to enter Ryan's Werewolf Haiku contest.  Enter through Wednesday!

Dracula Event: Angelique Armae

The vivid and so defining image brought to mind at the mention of the name Dracula is unlike any other.  He is king in the realm of horror novel characters. - Angelique Armae


Shadows of the Soul: http://www.angeliquearmae.com



SHADOWS OF THE SOUL - When a Grigori prince and a demon huntress team up to find the antidote to a supernatural disease,  the balance between good and evil is forever altered... AngeliqueArmae.com <http://www.angeliquearmae.com>  "...extremely talented..." - Sherrilyn Kenyon, #1 NY Times Bestselling author

Dracula Event: Jennifer Rardin

"No man knows till he experiences it, what it is like to feel his own life-blood drawn away into the woman he loves." — [from Chapter 10, Dracula]  Jennifer Rardin's favorite quote from the book.

As you may have heard, Jennifer Rardin passed away on September 20th. Here at Bite Club we are sending our thoughts and prayers to her friends and family in this time of sadness and loss. She will be greatly missed. The latest Jaz Parks vampire novel is called Bitten in Two and it will be released on November 8th.

Rardin gifted us with an exciting world featuring Jaz and Vayl.  If you like spunky, action-adventure mixed with danger, thrills, and a sexy vampire, Bite Club highly recommends the entire series.

   

The Dracula Event

In October, Bite Club's book selection is DRACULA.  To celebrate this classic vamp read, we'll be featuring authors, readers, and bloggers talking about the story all month.  So, authors, readers, and bloggers, we want you to email us with 'sound bites' about your favorite aspect of Dracula.  Go here for all the details, then email us!  And publishers and publicists, we'd love to hear from you regarding featuring your authors and giveaways!