Emilie Rosson tackles a popular, albeit menacing, question that has plagued many a fantasy fan for some time now. Why do young adult fantasy novels suck? In her video blog she pulls no strings and cuts straight to the point: Vampires! This revelation probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise to you people. Ever since the release of Stephanie Meyer’s enormously popular vampire-romance series, The Twilight Saga, teens and adults alike can’t seem to get enough of the stuff. The vampire theme has pervaded itself so deeply into the American psyche that one author actually had the audacity to rewrite history, insinuating that former President Abraham Lincoln was an enthusiastic vampire slayer himself.
Although obnoxious, it would be unfair to blame the watering down of the YA fantasy genre on vampires alone. What most of these novels lack, according to Rosson, is a metaphorical connection that draws us back to reality itself. She cites two popular fantasy series that do this very well, Harry Potter and surprisingly Buffy: The Vampire Slayer. In her video blog, Rosson illustrates how these series tackle real-life situations indirectly without scaring off their target audiences. They take advantage of the solace readers and viewers find in their fiction and make it pertinent in their real lives.
While the recent vampire craze may be an unfortunate fad to some, it certainly has its place in the world of fantasy. Yes vampires seem like they’re all over the place thanks to Stephanie Meyers’ books (Vampire Diaries? Who ripped off whom?) but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few studs among the litter (Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles). Regardless, it’s unfair to discriminate against all young adult fantasy and vampires. But if the sheer number of books on Rosson’s bookshelf is any indication, I wouldn’t want to test her either.
CLICK HERE to check out Emilie Rosson’s Vlog and see what we mean.
Unreality 