DEDICATION

To George R. R. Martin for Fevre Dream, and Joshua York’s struggle to use science to live with his vampirism without killing humans.

I want to acknowledge a variety of help with this novel.

Jean Lorrah—professor of English, and sometime co-author of my Sime~Gen books as well as creator of the Savage Empire universe—in her review of my first novel, the Sime~Gen novel House of Zeor, called one of my protagonists a "vampire in muddy boots"—which is true. The primary archetype behind the Sime~Gen concept is the vampire archetype. After seven Sime~Gen novels, plus the one by Jean Lorrah, Ambrov Keon, I decided I was ready to try the real thing because it finally struck me that Jean and I both love "Star Trek" for how it uses one minor component of the vampire archetype—dangerous relationships—with love substituted for "evil" and "horror."

Diana Stuart, the romance writer who often deals in fantasy elements such as werewolves, gave me vital technical tips as did Jane Toombs, who works in romantic historicals as well as historical romances.

Claire Gabriel, a consummate professional in the general fiction field who has come to sf/f through "Star Trek," returned after a ten-year absence to let a later draft of this manuscript keep her up till 2 a.m.—repeatedly. Since she has a deep aversion to vampire novels but loved this one, and didn’t get nightmares, I’m most especially pleased.

Judy Segal, science teacher, literary agent, and dear friend, who does not believe in nor enjoy stories about vampires, read and enjoyed a very early draft of this one.

Anne Pinzow, a professional video producer, journalist and sometime slush pile reader for publishers and agents, made time to read and comment on a later draft, as did Roberta Klein-Mendelson whose professionalism lies in stagecraft. Katie Filipowicz who has been deeply involved in Sime~Gen fanzine production, and has proofed many a manuscript for me, made time to go over this one while running her school library.

Marjorie Robbins, who has headed the Sime~Gen Welcommittee, and now (2003) is assistant manager of the simegen.com Reviews Department worked hard to reduce the workload of mail I handle so I’d have time to write this novel. Through the Sime~Gen fanzines she published, Householding Chanel Inquirer and First Transfer, which are now posted online in www.simegen.com/sgfandom/rimonslibrary/, she has kept Sime~Gen fans in touch with the progress of Those of My Blood and kept me aware of how much they are looking forward to my vampire novel.

Susan M. Garrett, publisher of the Vampire Quarterly, has kept fannish interest in vampires alive and well fed with her work on Forever Knight and her professional writing.

Victor Schmidt introduced me to Frank Kurt Cylke, the director of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, the division of the Library of Congress that records books and which has recorded some of my novels. I have gained great respect for these people and their high professional standards, but from my readers, I have also gained a deep appreciation of the hunger among the users of the national service for total access to my writing as well as to other "Star Trek" and sf publications.

As a result of this, Kerry Lindemann-Schaefer, editor and publisher of the Sime~Gen fanzine Ambrov Zeor, Marjorie Robbins, Ellie Miller, and a host of other volunteers energized and organized by Karen MacLeod, editor and publisher of Companion in Zeor, have run an auction and book sale to raise money for a pair of the special tape recorders needed, and the Sime~Gen fans are now finishing the job of putting all the Sime~Gen fanzines and many other materials on tape. Victor Schmidt, a quality assurance technician for the national recording service, strives mightily to help us achieve the highest possible standards.

As we have struggled with this task, our admiration for Mr. Cylke’s achievements at the National Library Service has grown daily. There is no substitute for the quality product his service turns out, and we can only hope that sighted readers will write their congressmen urging greater appropriations for the recording program. Of the over eight hundred titles in sf/f published last year, (1988)they could only record seventy-two, a colossal achievement but far short of adequate.

For contact with any of the above-mentioned individuals, with Sime~Gen fandom, or its publications, or for current status and availability on Sime~Gen or any of my other novels, email simegen@simegen.com .

And now I come to the foundation of all the efforts alluded to above. My husband, Salomon, does what husbands do and it works. Who’d dare to ask for more?

Much has changed in 15 years and my new editor, Glenn Yeffeth has taken the bold step of re-issuing an updated version of this novel.

Perhaps most amazing is how much has not changed. All of the people listed above are still part of my life. But many more have been added and a lot of them are vampire fans - fans of the Vampire As Good Guy.

In addition to this novel and its companion volume Dreamspy, I have written a number of vampire short stories - two about Titus Shiddehara, the lead vampire in this novel, and several more in a fantasy universe. All of those stories and more are being recorded for presentation on the Web in MP3 format.

Sime~Gen and many of my other novels are being reprinted - and also made into e-books. I am perennially indebted to Jean Lorrah and to Chandra L. Morgan-Henley for introducing me to web-commerce, web-fandom, and most especially to the world of e-books. It was Jean Lorrah (author of the vampire-detective-romance Blood Will Tell, also a BenBella Book) who first brought BenBella Books to my attention -- and if not for that, you wouldn't be holding this novel in your hands (or palmpilot) now.

For current information on Jean Lorrah and Jacqueline Lichtenberg projects, see www.simegen.com/releases/  or at simegen.com subscribe to our newsletter Lifeforce-l  -- or sign up to be notified on amazon.com.

Jacqueline Lichtenberg

simegen@simegen.com 

http://www.simegen.com/jl/ 

Chapter One