Bringing The Dark Series To Television: An Interview With Author Christine Feehan

When Christine Feehan's Dark Series debuted in 1999 with 'Dark Prince,' the book took the reading community by storm. Though appealing to lovers of vampire romance, the books showed a different side of the undead, making them unappealing beings to be avoided. We were introduced to the Carpathians, a race of unbelievably powerful, immortal beings that could shapeshift into exotic animals, control the minds of humans, fly, and battle the most heinous of beings. They could do everything....except live without love.

Last month, I wrote an article about three fantasy series that would rock on television; included in that list was Feehan's Dark Series. This month, I had the opportunity to talk with the author about bringing the Carpathians to television, which, for now, is still a supposition.

Feehan has written over thirty novels in the series and doesn't show any signs of slowing down. She keeps a thick file of notes to keep everything straight and says writing about the Carpathians is like visiting old friends.

It’s a huge world and in that world there have only been thirty couples found to repopulate them. I’m always interested in where the story will take me next, what’s happened to older characters and who’s new. It’s like being with old friends.

Whether or not a Carpathian television series is created, it brings us comfort to know the stories will continue, but I'm still holding out hope for a network to make an offer and for a producer to get on board. I even asked Christine about fan casting (because I have several ideas in mind), but she has her own vision of what the characters look like so she'd have a hard time picking an actor to portray her characters. The members in her fan community, though, have a lot of fun with who might play these mighty warriors.

So what makes vampires and this paranormal world so popular anyway? Feehan has the perfect answer.

I think each person is different in why it appeals to them, but immortal love and the ultimate dangerous predator tamed by his eternal love is appealing. It can also be the thing of nightmares and very scary. With that kind of mixture it is hard to not be intrigued.

Christine and all her fans believe the Dark Series would be a good fit for television, preferably on a cable channel to say true to the series, but as much as we want it to happen, we know the decision is out of our hands. We also know there's is nothing like this series on television today.

I hope my books are very unique and that if they were ever introduced on screen that the tone of the show would be something nobody has ever felt or seen before.

This isn't just a series about immortal beings fighting against the very thing they don't want to become. It's about family, ties that bind, and the connection that only being unique can bring. It's about love, determination, fighting to stay true to one's self, and knowing when to walk away. Having read the books myself, I can tell you there is nothing comparable to them on television today or even in the past.

For over seventeen years these books have kept us entertained. That type of longevity should be a producer's dream. Books, television shows, and movies are only popular because of the fans. Christine's have shown that they're not going anywhere as evidenced by the rush for her books when a new one is released. However these books are brought to screen, whether it's television or movies, there will be viewers.

We could not have said it better ourselves.