Chain Story - Bathtubs and Broomsticks

[AlinaX]

Anyone in need of a visual muse could do worse than watching Vampyros Lesbos...

 

[Erozetta]

Just to confuse the issue, there are the vampire traits within the film being made, where sunlight, religious symbols, running water, silver and shapeshifting are suggested...

... and then there are the traits we imagine our real-world vampires have that can all be explained away, e.g., no real appetite for food, a dislike of sunlight; think Carmilla's languor, and maybe a fondness for hot chocolate? A coolness to the skin, a startling (but not obviously inhuman) strength and speed at times...

A split between real and film, I like that. Also, the hot chocolate, having hot drinks around constantly even though it's not freezing out could be really interesting. Are they really that fond of hot chocolate, has anyone actually seen any of them drinking it? Do they just hold it between scenes? Or before a scene with someone not on the "regular" film crew?

The other thing is:

What season are we looking at? Fall might be ideal as slightly shorter days without being absolutely freezing or risking rough weather like winter and tends to be a little drier than spring. But winter storms could lead to greater ambiance and feelings of "trapped" for both Mina and Lucy where they would easily be able to leave if things get a bit much for them in other seasons.

Weather patterns around Cachtice Castle

(I don't expect us to be picture perfect on anything around this, but I just like to get a feel for weather/hours of daylight/seasonality of clothing for scenes)

 

[Erozetta]

Anyone in need of a visual muse could do worse than watching Vampyros Lesbos...

I'm ahead of the game with this one, but will revisit as it's been a while.

 

[AlinaX]

I really like that idea. Filming in November to avoid the tourist season, Short, crisp, sunny days turning brutally cold at night, the constant worry by the film makers about finishing the exterior shots before the predicted storm, retreating to a nearby mansion/hotel/castle for the main shoot.

 

[AlinaX]

I'm ahead of the game with this one, but will revisit as it's been a while.

I adore this film, although the plot could have been so much better.

 

[Omenainen]

Well, we won’t be going for full realism anyway, since the castle is actually in ruins. My usual MO is to be vague enough to pull off stuff but now I’ll have it easy since you guys will already have done all the scene setting work

 

[AlinaX]

Well, we won’t be going for full realism anyway, since the castle is actually in ruins. My usual MO is to be vague enough to pull off stuff but now I’ll have it easy since you guys will already have done all the scene setting work

Yes, but I like the idea of film itself starting with modern-era Bathory returning to the place where she supposedly died, then shifting to a different nearby location where the old castle is recreated on stage.

 

[Erozetta]

Well, we won’t be going for full realism anyway, since the castle is actually in ruins. My usual MO is to be vague enough to pull off stuff but now I’ll have it easy since you guys will already have done all the scene setting work

You say that like we aren't going to be handing you a mess of strings to untangle for the ending.

And yeah, liberties will obviously be being taken with realism, lol. Although, finding out our secretive filmmaker had part of the castle rebuilt in a historically accurate way for the film probably wouldn't be out of line. (Even if it's just the front and side walls for exterior shots to be rendered out using that placement with CGI filling in the remainder. (permits and historical protections would be overlooked, hopefully...)

 

[StillStunned]

Or the castle is in ruins at the start, but as the story progresses bits of it are mysteriously restored to how they were in Elizabeth Bathory's time. As a parallel to her growing powers, as it were.

 

[AlinaX]

Damn, we'll have a script to sell to Hollywood at this rate.

 

[Erozetta]

Or the castle is in ruins at the start, but as the story progresses bits of it are mysteriously restored to how they were in Elizabeth Bathory's time. As a parallel to her growing powers, as it were.

I like that.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Anyone in need of a visual muse could do worse than watching Vampyros Lesbos...

I was going to mention this film ...

 

[Tio_Narratore]

Tentatively, then, how about:
1. Lucy/Mina - Tio_Narratore
2. Mariska/Adimir - StillStunned
3. Things get complicated - pink_silk_glove
4. Things get dark - Erozetta
5. Things get desperate - AlinaX
6. Things get resolved - Omenainen

So, it would seem I'm to start. It's already been forming in my mind, and I'll start committing it to virtual paper soon. I am working on a historical research project now (as well as some erotica and RPs), but I expect I should have a good beginning down in a week. I'll post it in docs for others to consider before I continue in that vein (likely the jugular).

 

[AlinaX]

Not even a draft, just an idea:

“They say I bathed in blood.”


The words sent a shiver down Mina's spine. Mariska's embodiment of the undead countess had become profound, and as impressive as that was with the cameras rolling, in the comparative privacy of her bedchamber it was chilling. “This isn't good for you,” Mina ventured to say. “This method acting may be good for the film, but you have to consider your health. It simply isn't safe to inhabit a mind as evil as Bathory's. Heath Ledger played The Joker, remember, and it killed him.”


For a brief moment, the mask slipped and it was Mariska who scowled blackly at Mina. “Lies! He was -” And just as abruptly, the anger was extinguished. Her lips curled into a wry smile, admonishment for Mina briefly in her eyes. “Did you come here to play games with me?”


The vampire was back, perceivable in every precise, deliberate movement. Mariska seated herself by the mirror, as if lost in distraction of herself as she brushed her already immaculate hair that cascaded like a black curtain about her shoulders. Not for the first time, Mina half expected the mirror to reflect nothing, except maybe the brush itself, but this was real life, not the absurd fantasy they were filming. Mariska's dark eyes were unveiled and staring back at her. “I don't think you came here for games.”

 

[Erozetta]

Have to admit that @AlinaX's idea sparked renewed interest in a short I started years ago on Bathory and the last writing exercise (a party from the past) @StillStunned posted made me dust it off, flesh it out and clean it up, then I finished it for the pandemonium challenge. Only thing I really changed from the original 100 word story was removing her name and only leaving allusions to who she is as she dances naked in hell with a minor demonic deity.

But I'm excited to post that in September and even more excited to work on this long form Bathory story with so many ridiculously talented authors.

I kept the one for Pandemonium at 2k words, so I'm feeling a little more confident I might be able to manage to keep the length of my entry for this in check, lol.

 

[AlinaX]

Hmm, I always thought one of the three brides of Dracula was a redhead. I guess that's a later invention.

 

[StillStunned]

Hmm, I always thought one of the three brides of Dracula was a redhead. I guess that's a later invention.

Probably added because redheads are hot.

 

[AlinaX]

Interesting aside (from here):

The early Greeks believed redheads would turn into vampires.

From which you can safely assume I have a red haired vampire in draft...

 

[Erozetta]

Interesting aside (from here):

From which you can safely assume I have a red haired vampire in draft...

I may be biased, but redheads make the best vampires. (Said the redhead with a sunlight sensitivity.)

 

[AlinaX]

Well, she's in the shared document now, if you're curious.

 

[StillStunned]

Maybe her hair turns redder the more blood she consumes...

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Redheads are fucking crazy. We hear it all the time. I thought it was just made up shit, someone's excuse for their own issues, another round of the blame game, etc. Then I befriended a couple of redheads over the years and hung out a bit. Total bat shit mental. Good sweet hearts inside but totally fucked up brains and emotions. One of them was literally a paranoid schizophrenic. Coincidence? Maybe I need a bigger sample size but I'm afraid to expand the pool. At two for two, both right off the charts fucked up, there might be something to this. : P

 

[StillStunned]

I wouldn't trade my redhead for the world. Crazy and all. What does that say about me?

 

[Erozetta]

Redheads are fucking crazy. We hear it all the time. I thought it was just made up shit, someone's excuse for their own issues, another round of the blame game, etc. Then I befriended a couple of redheads over the years and hung out a bit. Total bat shit mental. Good sweet hearts inside but totally fucked up brains and emotions. One of them was literally a paranoid schizophrenic. Coincidence? Maybe I need a bigger sample size but I'm afraid to expand the pool. At two for two, both right off the charts fucked up, there might be something to this. : P

I'm sure it's a mix, but I'd wager we lean insane. Might be in the gene mutations. Lends greatly to the idea that redheads make the best vampires. And Alina's redhead is fire.

 

[AlinaX]

Disconnected temporarily from the Internet, I searched my Kindle for something different to read (other than my favourite Bathory book and also, sort of, Dracula, weirdly for the first time properly) I found Venandi, a decent F/F romance and also a decent vampire story, although irritating also in the way romances get squeamish about vampires being vampires.

Oh, the chemistry between the leads is undeniable. Indeed, the word chemistry appears fourteen times, which may be a record.

Anyway, the story is about a real vampire in Hollywood directing a film about vampires, which was an unexpected parallel to our endeavour...