ASMSG Scifi Fantasy Paranormal Emagazine March 2014 | Page 4

Vampire Tropes That Need To Be Staked
Brian Patrick McKinley

As a writer and avid reader of vampire fiction, I’ve seen a lot of different themes, styles, and clichés
come in and out of popularity over the years. Rather than nit-pick which is which, it’s easier to call all
of these things tropes, which is a more neutral term that has come to mean any sort of regularly
occurring metaphor, symbol, or literary device.

With that in mind, I decided to come up with a personal list of what I think are the top 5 vampirerelated tropes that have become over-used recently and need to be put to rest. You might agree, you
might disagree, and you might even want to put a sharp wooden stake through my eye, but I hope this
will give any vampire authors some food for thought.
Q