Guest Blogger: Dez Del Rio, Author of The Lipstick Killerz

Dez Del Rio, author of the book The Lipstick Killerz, dropped by our site to discuss why he believes we’re still so fascinated with vampires and how the vamp phenomenon can be linked to gender equality. I think you’ll enjoy hearing what he has to say:

TRUE POWER

I was thinking recently about the fascination we Americans (especially our youth) have developed for vampires and vampirism. I know many have addressed this issue, but I personally have not been satisfied with the conventional wisdom regarding this matter, i.e., vampires are sensuous, they’re alluring, they’re stylish, they’re hip, powerful, carefree and dangerous, but most of all, vampires are cool as hell. Yes, they are all that and we love them for it, but superficiality does not stand the test of time. Since vampires do and in my opinion, always will, there has to be more to it than that, a deeper underlying social significance as yet unidentified.

A life long fan of horror movies, as a young boy I remember loving the Dracula, Werewolf and Frankenstein movies. Vampires were something boys loved and girls for the most part avoided like the plague. But this is definitely no longer the case; girls now love vampires as much as boys do, if not more. This got me thinking about the reasons for this shift in attitude, when I realized that it corresponded directly to the rise in feminine power over the last forty years in movies, music, politics and spirituality.

Believe it or not, this revitalization of feminine energy was predicted to reoccur at this time in our history long ago by ancient civilizations from around the world. In a time long before the rise of the monotheistic religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam, women, as I’m sure many of you know, were as powerful as men in many aspects of society. They were said to control the forces of nature and beyond, with great generals and armies relying on the power of their mystical intuition for the strength to fight and win epic battles.

That’s when it hit me; vampirism has become the great equalizer. Although traditionally the male vampire has been the dominant powerful character lusting for the blood of weak helpless women, in recent times with more writers of vampire fiction being women, this has given way to a new breed of powerful female vampires. And this is as it should be; since both male and female vampires possess the same powers of immortality, they should possess equal supernatural powers.

These mythical creatures (werewolves and zombies included) balance the power between the genders. Though an older vampire (because of his experience) may be more resourceful or cunning, male vampires are no more powerful than female vampires, and I believe this to be at the heart of the vampire phenomenon in pop culture today.

In my book The Lipstick Killerz Sophia Sage, the central character (named in honor of Sophia the Goddess of Wisdom) and her counterpart Mary Ellen are both smart, strong women. I delve more deeply into the occult powers generated by the balance of male and female energy and our need to return to this ancient form of wisdom and spirituality, and the imbalance not doing so has created within humanity.

But make no mistake, this balance of power runs both ways. In vampires, both men and women (whether consciously or subconsciously) find the powers they from time immemorial have secretly or not so secretly desired. For women, it is the strength to conquer and overcome any man who does not respect her or her boundaries. For men, it is the power to hypnotize any beautiful woman he chooses, rendering her helpless to his seductive charm as he takes from her what he wants.

And that power, the power of equality, granted to us by the Vampire I call: True Power.

Dez Del Rio, author of the book The Lipstick Killerz, got the inspiration for the book’s title by his band, which shares the same name. In addition to writing, Dez is a big music lover who got his first electric guitar when he was 13 and formed his first band by the age of 16. You can learn more about Dez by visiting Dez’s Dungeon at his website. Be sure to check out his slide show at the bottom of the page – it’s got some great photos!