Finished

Today I finished my vampire parody.  I had projected it to be 400 pages.  It turned out to be 395. 

When this sort of full-paged, double-spaced manuscript is turned into a typical paperback novel, it has about 25% less pages.  So a manuscript like this may have about 300 pages as a paperback. 

Much of the tone is light-hearted as I poke fun at some of tropes you see in typical urban fantasies.  At one point, Dee (the main character) and her sister make fun of all the bare midriffs you can see on the covers in that sub-genre, saying “Yeah, I’m sure I’ll dress that way when I go get in a knife fight with some creature with fangs and claws.” 

Another difference is that Dee is married and has children.  I don’t know of any other heroine who starts out that way in these sorts of stories.  This is my way of challenging the unwritten conventions that have developed already, though this newer, darker kind of urban fantasy has only dominated for a comparatively short amount of years.  Dee does not lead an unattached, single life.  She does not have any unusual strength or speed.  But she gets a full head of steam on when she sees something threatening the kids.  Wouldn’t you? 

Of course, there are scenes of suspense and action.  I posted one of them on this entry.  You might notice there’s still time for a funny exchange in the face of danger. 

None of this is meant to denigrate the sub-genre.  Suburban fantasy authors are some of the most cutting-edge writers out there.  But when you think about it, aren’t some parts of it kind of funny?