Women sink their teeth into urban fantasy novels
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Eris
Jul 19, 2009, 5:03:30 AM7/19/09
to AmberBensonFlorida
Reprinted without permission:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090717/ap_en_ot/us_urban_fantasy_novels_women_1
Women sink their teeth into urban fantasy novels
By SOLVEJ SCHOU, Associated Press Writer Solvej Schou, Associated
Press Writer
Fri Jul 17, 2009
LOS ANGELES – Headstrong Bella is in love with a vampire. Zoey has a
crescent moon seared onto her forehead, the mark of a fledgling
bloodsucker. Sixteen-year-old Ever can hear people's thoughts.
Calliope is, reluctantly, Death's daughter.
All are modern female heroes written by women, read by women and not
only obsessed over by teenagers but also their older sisters and
mothers. The economy may be deeply troubled, but urban fantasy novels
about vampires, werewolves, zombies, supernatural creatures, blood and
romance are booming, and women are sinking their teeth into them in
ravenous numbers.
"We're living in a frightening time. I don't know if it's an escapism
as in there's scary stuff out there so let me control it through the
medium of reading," says Amy Clarke, a lecturer at the University of
California, Davis who teaches science fiction literature.
"There's dreaming of being with a vampire or werewolf, but there's
always the danger of crossing over. I think it's a post-feminist way
of taking on power."
The trend gathered steam with Bella Swan and her conflicted romance
with gorgeous vampire Edward in Stephenie Meyer's four-book "Twilight"
series, which has sold more than 53 million copies worldwide since the
first book's release in 2005, according to publisher Little, Brown and
Company. Meyer's newest, the more adult-themed "The Host," has 2
million copies in print domestically.
Call it dark escapism with a racy flair. The "Twilight" explosion,
including its hit movie version, has deepened the needs of women urban
fantasy novel readers.
Other authors are jumping in: P.C. Cast and her daughter Kristin's
popular "House of Night" vampire series; Alyson Noel's "Immortals"
books: the "Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire Mysteries" novels by
Charlaine Harris, which inspired the TV series "True Blood" on HBO;
Richelle Mead's "Vampire Academy" trilogy; and books by more than half
a dozen other female writers.
The genre's popularity is bigger than just books, says P.C. Cast.
"With women, this is reflecting a shift in our society," Cast said in
an interview from her home in Tulsa, Okla. "I've seen a big shift,
especially in my classroom, with women standing up and demanding
respect. That's in every woman, whether 16, 26, 56."
"Our fiction is also reflecting that because we're writing the
fiction. We've given ourselves permission to be successful. We're also
giving ourselves permission to have fun," said Cast, a single mother
who taught high school English for 15 years before focusing only on
writing.
Her five "House of Night" books, starting in 2007 with "Marked,"
follow the adventures of Zoey Redbird, a high school student marked to
be a vamp, who must enter the House of Night. Described as a "vampyre
finishing school," it's filled with bratty girls, cute guys and no end
of drama.
Cast enlisted the help of daughter Kristin, 22, to ensure that the
teen-speak in her stories reflected current vernacular as opposed to
the author's "inner '70s teenager saying things that were so not
cool."
It paid off.
There are 5.5 million copies of the five "House of Night" books in
print in the United States and the series has been on The New York
Times list of best sellers for 63 weeks, according to publisher St.
Martin's Press. "Tempted," the sixth book, is due out in October. The
series has been optioned by Empire Pictures, with a film script in the
works.
"Vampires are super sexy. Vampires and teens have a lot in common.
Teens have surging hormones, vampires have surging blood lust.
Teenagers think they're immortal," Cast said.
And for older women, says UC Davis' Clarke, "hot blooded" has taken on
new meaning.
"All of the stuff I've read have some pretty heated sex scenes in
them, and that brings people into the world of it," Clarke said. "The
teens haven't had sex yet and the mothers have, and it's maybe not as
good as it was."
Noel's "Immortals" series focuses on the telepathic teen Ever, who
gains her abilities after surviving a car accident that kills her
family. Brooding and lonely at a new school in sunny California, she
meets handsome immortal Damen. They're drawn to each other like
magnets.
"All of us older people reading these books magically survived high
school even though we thought we wouldn't," Noel said in an interview
from her home in Laguna Beach, Calif. "To be young and beautiful and
have power forever is pretty alluring in this society."
More than 700,000 copies of the two "Immortals" books are in print,
according to St. Martin's Press. The first book, "Evermore," has been
on the Times list for 23 weeks since its release in February. The
second book, "Blue Moon," was released this month, with book three
scheduled for January 2010.
Mead's "Vampire Academy" series has 1.5 million books in print,
according to publisher Penguin Razorbill Books. The fourth book in the
series comes out in August.
Amber Benson, who earned a huge fan base as witch Tara on the cult-hit
TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," which ended in 2003, channeled her
love of urban fantasy into a trilogy, with the first book released
this year by venerable science fiction and fantasy publisher Ace
Books, an imprint of Penguin.
In "Death's Daughter," Calliope Reaper-Jones is a 25-year-old immortal
who works in New York City. After her father, the CEO of Death, Inc.,
is kidnapped, she must run the family business.
"That was the beauty of Buffy, this female protagonist who looked
totally harmless but could do all these amazing things and was trying
to be a real person at the same time. She definitely influenced
Calliope and her journey," says Benson, as she sits in her Los Angeles
home beneath a sign reading "Old Friends to Read, Old Friends to
Trust."
"We don't just want to be the tough chick who has no feelings, or the
super girly girl who can't do anything for herself. We want that
middle ground," she says.
With online word of mouth driving sales, fan gals have also started
churning out their own stories about witches, vampires, wolves and
half-bloods on such Web sites as http://www.textnovel.com under
categories such as "Romance — Paranormal" and "Romance — Urban
Fantasy."
"This is where the key demographic for the 'House of Night' lives,
these teenage girls that are online most of the time," Matthew Shear,
St. Martin's senior vice president of publishing, said.
Shear acknowledged Meyer's effect on Cast's series and other urban
fantasy novels.
"We didn't buy the 'House of Night' series because of 'Twilight,' but
when we saw sales increasing, we went to everywhere Stephenie Meyer
was selling," he said. "Stephenie Meyer started the boom, and 'House
of Night' has continued the boom."
He's cheering on sales.
"Is it welcome news to the publishing world? You bet it is," Shear
said. "We're thrilled that people want to buy these books."
___
On the Net:
http://www.houseofnightseries.com/
http://www.alysonnoel.com/
http://www.deathsdaughter.com/
http://www.charlaineharris.com/
http://www.richellemead.com/
http://www.textnovel.com
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090717/ap_en_ot/us_urban_fantasy_novels_women_1
Women sink their teeth into urban fantasy novels
By SOLVEJ SCHOU, Associated Press Writer Solvej Schou, Associated
Press Writer
Fri Jul 17, 2009
LOS ANGELES – Headstrong Bella is in love with a vampire. Zoey has a
crescent moon seared onto her forehead, the mark of a fledgling
bloodsucker. Sixteen-year-old Ever can hear people's thoughts.
Calliope is, reluctantly, Death's daughter.
All are modern female heroes written by women, read by women and not
only obsessed over by teenagers but also their older sisters and
mothers. The economy may be deeply troubled, but urban fantasy novels
about vampires, werewolves, zombies, supernatural creatures, blood and
romance are booming, and women are sinking their teeth into them in
ravenous numbers.
"We're living in a frightening time. I don't know if it's an escapism
as in there's scary stuff out there so let me control it through the
medium of reading," says Amy Clarke, a lecturer at the University of
California, Davis who teaches science fiction literature.
"There's dreaming of being with a vampire or werewolf, but there's
always the danger of crossing over. I think it's a post-feminist way
of taking on power."
The trend gathered steam with Bella Swan and her conflicted romance
with gorgeous vampire Edward in Stephenie Meyer's four-book "Twilight"
series, which has sold more than 53 million copies worldwide since the
first book's release in 2005, according to publisher Little, Brown and
Company. Meyer's newest, the more adult-themed "The Host," has 2
million copies in print domestically.
Call it dark escapism with a racy flair. The "Twilight" explosion,
including its hit movie version, has deepened the needs of women urban
fantasy novel readers.
Other authors are jumping in: P.C. Cast and her daughter Kristin's
popular "House of Night" vampire series; Alyson Noel's "Immortals"
books: the "Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire Mysteries" novels by
Charlaine Harris, which inspired the TV series "True Blood" on HBO;
Richelle Mead's "Vampire Academy" trilogy; and books by more than half
a dozen other female writers.
The genre's popularity is bigger than just books, says P.C. Cast.
"With women, this is reflecting a shift in our society," Cast said in
an interview from her home in Tulsa, Okla. "I've seen a big shift,
especially in my classroom, with women standing up and demanding
respect. That's in every woman, whether 16, 26, 56."
"Our fiction is also reflecting that because we're writing the
fiction. We've given ourselves permission to be successful. We're also
giving ourselves permission to have fun," said Cast, a single mother
who taught high school English for 15 years before focusing only on
writing.
Her five "House of Night" books, starting in 2007 with "Marked,"
follow the adventures of Zoey Redbird, a high school student marked to
be a vamp, who must enter the House of Night. Described as a "vampyre
finishing school," it's filled with bratty girls, cute guys and no end
of drama.
Cast enlisted the help of daughter Kristin, 22, to ensure that the
teen-speak in her stories reflected current vernacular as opposed to
the author's "inner '70s teenager saying things that were so not
cool."
It paid off.
There are 5.5 million copies of the five "House of Night" books in
print in the United States and the series has been on The New York
Times list of best sellers for 63 weeks, according to publisher St.
Martin's Press. "Tempted," the sixth book, is due out in October. The
series has been optioned by Empire Pictures, with a film script in the
works.
"Vampires are super sexy. Vampires and teens have a lot in common.
Teens have surging hormones, vampires have surging blood lust.
Teenagers think they're immortal," Cast said.
And for older women, says UC Davis' Clarke, "hot blooded" has taken on
new meaning.
"All of the stuff I've read have some pretty heated sex scenes in
them, and that brings people into the world of it," Clarke said. "The
teens haven't had sex yet and the mothers have, and it's maybe not as
good as it was."
Noel's "Immortals" series focuses on the telepathic teen Ever, who
gains her abilities after surviving a car accident that kills her
family. Brooding and lonely at a new school in sunny California, she
meets handsome immortal Damen. They're drawn to each other like
magnets.
"All of us older people reading these books magically survived high
school even though we thought we wouldn't," Noel said in an interview
from her home in Laguna Beach, Calif. "To be young and beautiful and
have power forever is pretty alluring in this society."
More than 700,000 copies of the two "Immortals" books are in print,
according to St. Martin's Press. The first book, "Evermore," has been
on the Times list for 23 weeks since its release in February. The
second book, "Blue Moon," was released this month, with book three
scheduled for January 2010.
Mead's "Vampire Academy" series has 1.5 million books in print,
according to publisher Penguin Razorbill Books. The fourth book in the
series comes out in August.
Amber Benson, who earned a huge fan base as witch Tara on the cult-hit
TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," which ended in 2003, channeled her
love of urban fantasy into a trilogy, with the first book released
this year by venerable science fiction and fantasy publisher Ace
Books, an imprint of Penguin.
In "Death's Daughter," Calliope Reaper-Jones is a 25-year-old immortal
who works in New York City. After her father, the CEO of Death, Inc.,
is kidnapped, she must run the family business.
"That was the beauty of Buffy, this female protagonist who looked
totally harmless but could do all these amazing things and was trying
to be a real person at the same time. She definitely influenced
Calliope and her journey," says Benson, as she sits in her Los Angeles
home beneath a sign reading "Old Friends to Read, Old Friends to
Trust."
"We don't just want to be the tough chick who has no feelings, or the
super girly girl who can't do anything for herself. We want that
middle ground," she says.
With online word of mouth driving sales, fan gals have also started
churning out their own stories about witches, vampires, wolves and
half-bloods on such Web sites as http://www.textnovel.com under
categories such as "Romance — Paranormal" and "Romance — Urban
Fantasy."
"This is where the key demographic for the 'House of Night' lives,
these teenage girls that are online most of the time," Matthew Shear,
St. Martin's senior vice president of publishing, said.
Shear acknowledged Meyer's effect on Cast's series and other urban
fantasy novels.
"We didn't buy the 'House of Night' series because of 'Twilight,' but
when we saw sales increasing, we went to everywhere Stephenie Meyer
was selling," he said. "Stephenie Meyer started the boom, and 'House
of Night' has continued the boom."
He's cheering on sales.
"Is it welcome news to the publishing world? You bet it is," Shear
said. "We're thrilled that people want to buy these books."
___
On the Net:
http://www.houseofnightseries.com/
http://www.alysonnoel.com/
http://www.deathsdaughter.com/
http://www.charlaineharris.com/
http://www.richellemead.com/
http://www.textnovel.com
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