Hey there dear friends and gentle readers! It’s #FanGirlFriday and today we are talking about one of my favorite authors, spirit guides, and personal heroes: Anne Rice.
I read my first Anne Rice book when I was in the fifth grade. It was The Witching Hour and I have to be honest; I never finished it. It seems that her The Vampire Chronicles series was more my speed. The Vampire Lestat is still one of my favorite books. As I mentioned on Sunday, Anne Rice was the first author that made me think that writing could be a job. When Pandora came out in 1998, my mom taped her appearance on The Today Show for me since I was in school when she came on. That afternoon I watched her talk about writing her trip to Greece off on her taxes and thinking “Yes. This is what I want to do.” I haven’t made it to Anne Rice levels of success yet, but I’m working on it and I remain a true fan.
Not only did Anne Rice teach me that writing can be a job, she bestowed upon me the knowledge of how to make first person narrative work in fiction. The woman is the master of the first person narrative and the wraparound story. Every one of her books that I’ve read is told in first person, a technique enabled by her use of the interview. All these vampires and witches are just telling the stories of their (immortal) lives and it works brilliantly. She is able to get into their heads and tell their stories from their eyes. It’s kind of the best.
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| Every great author needs a kitty. Maybe this is what's holding me back . . . |
Meanwhile, if it weren’t for Anne Rice, I might not have such an appreciation for Tom Cruise. She was hesitant about his being cast as Lestat in Interview with the Vampire but I think he did a fabulous job. He is The Brat Prince. I can’t even imagine anyone else in the role, although Julian Sands would have been interesting. I should note that I have never read Interview with the Vampire all the way through because I can’t get over how different it is from the movie. Maybe one day I will overcome this issue, but for now I remain a philistine.
Rice is also the master of social media engagement. I don’t know how she has the time to be on Facebook as often as she is, but I think it’s great and I have a lot to learn from her. She’s always been ahead of the curve when it comes to engaging her fans. How many authors sell t-shirts of their brain scans? Such a clever idea – I wish I had one. Sadly, I don’t think they are available anymore. And then there’s the Vampire Lestat Ball and Undead Con; two events I hope to attend someday. How cool would it be to have such an event based on your works? Anne Rice is the master.
What about you? Who do you think is just the greatest? Let me know in the comments! :-D
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