top of page
Search

The WIP Report: Vampire Dragons

  • Writer: Dan
    Dan
  • 25 minutes ago
  • 2 min read
Gargoyle statue with glowing red eyes in a dim, eerie setting. Orange candles and skulls on shelves add to the spooky atmosphere.

What is scarier than vampires and deadlier than dragons? Why, vampire dragons of course!



The WIP Report: Vampire Dragons


Are they vampires?

A bat soars through a dark, cloudy sky. The eerie setting is highlighted by dramatic lighting and ominous clouds, creating a moody atmosphere.

Not really.



Are they dragons?

A stone dragon head with glowing green eyes and veins emerges from the shadows; dark, misty cave setting enhances its eerie presence.


Nah…


An immune response?

Purple spiky cell against a black background; the cell has numerous protruding tendrils, creating a dynamic and energetic visual.

YES! 100%! This excerpt from the draft of Chapter 2: Monsters on the Station will give you an idea where the vampire dragons are from and why they were dispatched…


Near-light propulsion, or NLP, enabled humanity to become a galaxy-spanning civilization. Traveling at 99.9% the speed of light, starships could traverse Fold Space to the farthest reaches of the galaxy in a matter of weeks. Humanity spread across the stars like locusts and eventually abandoned Mars. There was no need to terraform an inhospitable hunk of red rock when there were ample earthlike planets ready to plunder. Mars and Earth, now known as Old Earth, became footnotes in humanity’s story.


For everything there is a consequence. In their wanton abandon to expand, humanity treated Fold Space like a superhighway, never realizing in their hubris that they might disturb something they should have left untouched. Humanity brushed up against an ancient entity, and in doing so, evoked what might be called an immune response.


Where did the idea for "Vampire Dragons" come from?

In this case, the germ for the vampire dragons and indeed the entire plot of my WIP came from my now 11-year-old. For about the past year or so, he'd been asking for a story featuring vampire dragons that would suck their prey dry of blood and all other fluids, leaving behind a desiccated husk. Where he came up with this idea, I'm not entirely sure, but like his father, he's always had a penchant for dragons and other monsters from Godzilla to zombies.


At first, I figured that the suggestion that I write a story about vampire dragons was just an idle comment. But then, every time I sat down to write Phantom Algebra or edit The Bane of Dragons, he wanted to know if I was working on that vampire dragon book for him. So in between other projects, I began drawing up a concept for his vampire dragon tale.


What I ended up settling on was a YA sci-fi thriller with a dash of cosmic horror for seasoning. Currently, I'm about twenty chapters into the draft, and I'm tickled with the results. Check back in three to four weeks for the next WIP Report!

© 2018 by Dan

bottom of page