Today we're excited to talk with Adrienne Barbeau, author of Love Bites (Vampyres of Hollywood).

FQ: With the vampire phenomenon being what it is with the success of books, movies, and television shows like True Blood, are you amazed that this particular subject has turned into such a sensation?

I was amazed 4 years ago, before the Twilight phenomenon, when I started doing research for Vampyres of Hollywood and found an entire wall full of vampire novels at my local scifi bookstore. I mean, floor to ceiling, ten feet across. Romance vampire, historical vampire, erotic vampire, gay vampire - you name it, they had it. And then when Twilight hit, there was no turning back. But it makes sense, especially from a Young Adult perspective - what could be more empowering for teen-agers than to identify with a vampire?

FQ: What would you consider more gratifying --- being an author or an actress? I’m sure each has its benefits, but being that writing is a more solitary pursuit, do you enjoy it as much as acting?

Well, writing doesn’t come as easily to me as acting does because I’m still so new at it, but consequently, when I get a positive response to my writing, that’s all the more gratifying. I do love almost every aspect of acting - even getting up at 4 a.m. for an early call or sitting in my trailer for 4 hours while the crew is getting a difficult stunt filmed. And it’s not as much fun having a writing deadline hanging over my head - like a massive homework assignment. Especially since I don’t know my writing ability well enough to trust I can take a break at night and still make my deadline. So I find the work as a writer to be all encompassing, and I have to be careful to live the rest of my life at times.

FQ: I have to say that the werewolf photographers and paparazzi seem to be as harsh and painful as the real paparazzi. Have people in that particular profession driven you mad over your career, and that’s why they were written as they were?

Honestly, I’ve always had a good relationship with the paparazzi. When we were doing Maude I knew almost all of them by name and they were always gracious and polite. It seems in the last couple of years, as a group they’ve become more insistent and aggressive, but no, I’ve never had a personal experience that was unpleasant. The profession does offer easy parallels to werewolves, though - stalking their prey, traveling in packs.

FQ: I assume over the years you’ve attended many a Hollywood party. Did you ever wonder if there were supernatural species in that particular clique?

I hate to disappoint you, but I avoid Hollywood parties whenever I can. Maybe it’s a sixth sense.

FQ: You, of course, have a background in being a Scream Queen with performances in Swamp Thing, The Fog, Creepshow, and others; can I assume that Ovsanna is close to your heart in that way?

Oh yes, definitely. You know the adage, “Write what you know,” well, I know what it’s like to be a Scream Queen, and that’s what I wrote for Ovsanna. I had a great time coming up with the titles for the films she’s starred in. Vatican Vampyres reminds me of a film I did called The Convent where I played a female Snake Plissken, blowing away nuns with my M-16.

FQ: I have to know and the readers of this book will absolutely burst into laughter at this part of the story. Does the L.A. Coroner’s Office have a gift shop called Skeletons in the Closet where they sell things like mouse pads decorated with chalk outlines, and Undertaker boxer shorts? (If they don’t, they should. It is a truly hysterical idea.)

They do! I’m not sure that’s one I could make up. You can go online and shop the catalogue. I bought home lunchboxes for my kids with the Coroner’s logo on it - they wouldn’t touch them. Now I use one as a first aid kit for their club soccer team.

To learn more about Love Bites (Vampyres of Hollywood) please visit our website and read the review at: Feathered Quill Book Reviews.