I’ve been absent from facebook and the blog scene for the last six months, and thought I’d offer an explanation as to why.
With that in mind, I considered titling this post “Becoming a Vampire”.
Yeah, you read that correctly. Think
- extreme photosensitivity (unable to go out into the daylight without being covered head to toe)
- need for blood (hemolytic anemia in which red blood cells are destroyed faster than they can be made)
- rages and other wild emotional swings (due to the anemia)
But before I explain further, let’s take a step back into the past:
In December of 2008, I woke up with the tragic figure of a sad and lonely vampire woman in my head. I lay there wondering who she was and she began to show me her story. As her life unfolded in my head, movie fashion, I felt compelled to write it down as fast as I could. After five months of sleepless nights and weekend marathons with my laptop, I finished the initial draft.
And so, Watcher: Book I of The Chosen was born, and was published in its current version in October of 2011.
Fast forward to 2013:
In early July, I entered a clinical study to treat a long-term medical condition I’ve had for much of my life. After several weeks, I began to develop the side affects I listed earlier in my post. The photosensitivity is due to one of the new drugs, and the anemia is due to an old one that’s been in use about fifteen years. Fortunately, both were temporary conditions and resolved once I completed treatment.
So, yeah.
Couldn’t go outside during the day unless I was wrapped up like a Ninja.
Low on blood, which left me craving red meat, and well, needing more blood.
Rage issues, as in the least little upset triggered an emotional tsunami.
Vampire.
Life imitating art.
In spite of the above difficulties, I, along with my friends and family, had no choice but to laugh at the irony of writing a book about a vampire woman only to tread (somewhat) in her footsteps four years later. The experience certainly gave me fresh insight into what it means to be a creature of the night.
All I can say to my fellow writers is:
Be careful what you write, because you never know when you might become a character from one of your stories.
~roh~
