Hunter and prey, vampire and human, dominance and submission. That is the natural law. Anything else is perversion.
Have taken the chance to dive into the world of Light Play by Jaap Boekestein in our Ravenous anthology?
Today we give you a behind the scenes look at the story.
Five Quirky facts about Light Play
Writing a story, any story, is like a journey. Sometimes it is a run of the mill journey, nothing more than getting groceries: you travel familiar territory, it is all routine. The best stories for me as a writer are the wild ones, which bring you new insights. Sure, you are driving your old trusted car, you have your favorite sandwiches, but you have no idea what you will see or who you will pick up along the ride. Light Play was such a story for me.
Not going to happen
I almost didn’t write this story. Vampire Erotica, I thought, what can I possibly write which hasn’t done a thousand times before?
You want to know a writing secret? Everything has been done before in one way or another. I really depends on how you tell the story, which elements you use, how you present your characters.
I remembered that secret and I decided to write a story.
So I wrote about a human and a vampire, about a man a woman, about blood, and lust, and pain and trust.
Sure, everything has been done before.
But not in this exact combination.
Artwork by Jaap Boekestein
Messing around
When I write horror, I am a sadistic bastard who wants to mess around with the reader’s mind. Fear, or at least revulsion is what you can expect if you read a horror story.
When I write erotica, I am a pleaser. I want to arouse the reader, or at least leave something satisfying.
And then you have dark erotica. Erotica, with a certain shade of darkness (I refuse to call it Grey!). Now I have to be a sweet bastard. A sadist and a giver. I don’t give the give the reader what they want. I aim to give them what they need. Shivers of excitement? Sure! But combined with a little fear. Just enough to get the blood pumping. It is a fine line, and I hope Light Play does for… no, to you.
It is you
The opening sentence of Light Play is:
You check your skirt and blouse for the last time.
Not: She checked…
Not: I checked…
It is you, dear reader, I want to reach. I want you to feel, to experience. Not some distant she. Not some unknown I. No, you!
You already know yourself. I don’t have to explain your desires, your dark dreams. You know them all too well. In Light Play the story revolves around you. What you would feel, what you would experience in that room? Up close and very personal. A hot bath, a lover’s embrace.
Dear reader, you are my character. That is why the story starts with: You check your skirt…
Darkness come to me! And another cappuccino please.
Do I need a secret routine to write? Of course not. Except that I tend to write 95% of my work in coffee houses. Give me a table for my notebook, give me a cappuccino and some cake, and I am good. Light Play is pretty hot, and has a dark edge. I wrote it surrounded by babbling hipsters and gossiping housewives. Domination and blood combined with cappucino and French chocolate cake, while on the 
background Amy Winehouse or Frank Sinatra were playing.
Weird? Yes.
But it worked.
Can I have another cup? I got a sexy scene to write…
And I took pictures along the way
A Dutchman once said: “I’ve seen things you wouldn’t believe.” Being Dutch and a man myself, I can only nod. Light Play took me to places I hadn’t visited before. Sure, powerplay, surrender, trust, pain, lust, care, love… I am pretty familiar with those, but until now I had never incorporated those elements into the vampire lore. In hindsight combining vampires and bdsm was obvious, but it was something I had to discover for myself. Of course I wasn’t the first to make this connection, not by a long shot, but hey, for me it was something like a revelation.
I suspect as a writer I will never be able to separate those elements ever again. Vampires are the ultimate tops, they ooze power, they want one of the most intimate things in the world, and heck yes, it possibly hurts and sure is scary as hell.
If you are still a Light Play virgin, enjoy the journey. If you have lost your Light Play cherrie by now, I hope you have fun rereading it one day. 🙂
Jaap Boekestein (1968) is an award winning Dutch writer of science fiction, fantasy, horror, thrillers and whatever else takes his fancy. Five novels and almost three hundred of his stories have been published. His has made his living as a bouncer, working for a detective agency and as editor. He currently works for the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security.
Find him on his website or Amazon author page.
