Blood Relations follows an ageless vampire who is determined to find the Fountain of Youth to keep his love alive even if his thirst for female blood and her protective mother stand in the way. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The vampire in Blood Relations is a Prince named Eros, after the God of lust, love, and passion. I wanted to create a vampire that showed a different side – that of love for humans – a need not only for their blood but more for their embracing warmth, unlimited love, and deep compassion. Love was the inspiration for this story from the beginning in every way, especially through the eyes of a cold-blooded vampire from a world half-way across the galaxy. I also wanted to show a vampire in a more realistic light with a new human family, full of supportive friends and a story showing people having fun and an abundance of happiness. It’s not all love and happiness as you’ll see, but it is the main theme. It’s a story to take the reader away from the stresses and heartaches of the day. A lot of effort went into adding pieces of cutting-edge science and describing why Eros acts the way he does. Bite scenes for example are realistic and there’s an explanation to why they happen and where. So, the story has great depth and maintains that vampire edge.

In the beginning, Eros arrives on Earth with no memory of his past. He must learn and re-discover his strengths, needs and weaknesses. In this sense, we get to know Eros by following him as he grows. We feel his pains and celebrate his discoveries together.

Eros’s early discoveries teach him about his need for humans. The warm energy they radiate, their love and of course their Oxytocin enriched blood created from the love and happiness in the donor’s brain that he craves. He sees visions of Heaven too. His weaknesses follow similar weaknesses from other vampire stories but they’re also different. For example, the crucifix doesn’t affect him, but our hot yellow sun can turn him to ashes. And being cold-blooded, he comes close to death in the cold and gains needed energy from warmth. This drives him into the arms of his closest female lovers who embrace him. I feel love is the most powerful and universal language throughout the universe. In Blood Relations, I show examples of this love.

Another discovery he makes is how during a bite the venom released into his female donor changes her DNA. From curing most diseases to giving her incredible energy, beauty, and strength. Death was the only thing he could not prevent, and it tore him apart as well as confused him. He didn’t understand why he never died and yet lived to see everyone around him die. Searching for the Fountain of Youth became his obsession. Over time, he created a research center and devoted his life to finding a cure to human aging.  Like in real life, aging and dying are things I wish we could stop. Here, I wanted the story to take us down that fictional path. 

Eros is an intriguing and well-defined character. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?

First, making Eros as realistic and as human as possible with unique strengths and weaknesses that made him vulnerable and yet strong were important. I wanted his needs for humans to be more involved and meaningful than just blood. Second, love is always a central driving force between Eros and his female partner. They must have a strong bond and deep trust. The story must show the symbiotic relationship between Eros and his human lovers that’s beneficial to both made even better because Eros is a multi-billionaire vampire capable of so much.

Then there is the ESP experience that’s shared. For example, if a love interest of Eros is ever in danger, Eros would see it through her eyes and come to her rescue if possible and his love interest might see visions of Eros’s past that he can’t remember or explain, such as being a Prince and living in a castle.

Challenges surface when some women donors become lesbian as too much Oxytocin in their brains changes them. They may still love Eros, but the relationship goes through changes. It’s not immediately known what’s going on, but Oxytocin is the power behind the love Eros needs. He must learn to accept these new challenges.

What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?

Lots of themes. Love, relationships, heroism, living forever, cures to diseases, care of one another, sharing, kindness, no money worries, free food and entertainment, free insurance, and having great fun are a few. Blood Relations is a story about an alien who is fighting to survive on a hostile planet who falls in love with humans and works to make their human dreams come true as they devote their lives to keep him alive. It really is all fantasy of the best kind full of love and a little lust. A story I hope people enjoy reading and one that will flood their own minds with Oxytocin. 

What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?

Blood Relations – A New World was first written as a prequel to the original Blood Relations story because I needed to tell the story from the beginning. That prequel grew into what we see now. So, my next book is re-working the original story to include things I added in the prequel. The next book will include a return of the Scorpious, Eros discovering his spaceship and regaining his memory, ghosts, weddings, birth of twins, and an epic battle for Earth between the Scorpious and Eros in space. It will be awesome. My hope is to release this book by the end of 2024 if not sooner.

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Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2023/02/19/that-vampire-edge/