So, I wrote a WWI action-adventure-horror story with a simple premise: What if the Germans, in their desperation to break the stalemate of trench warfare, lobbed a vampire over to the Allied side to wreak havoc? And naturally, things don't go according to plan.
A few publishers have had some nice things to say about it, but so far no takers. I’ll keep putting it out there. I’ve even made proof of concept graphic novel samples should a publisher want to go that route.
In the meantime, I’m placing all pertinent information below to make it easier to share. Enjoy.
Teaser:
"A weapon of mass-destruction is only as good as your ability to control it."
Logline:
"During World War I, desperate German forces unleash a power they cannot control. Now, disillusioned American pilot Jack Bishop and an unlikely band of Allies and Germans must stop an ancient horror before it reshapes the war—and the world—forever."
Query-Pitch:
“In the hellish trenches of World War I, an ancient vampire, unleashed by German scientists, turns the deadliest conflict in human history into a battle for the survival of mankind.
Jack Bishop, a disillusioned American pilot, and a group of Allied and German soldiers must join forces to stop the vampire from raising an army of undead soldiers on the Western Front. Trapped in a bombed-out church, surrounded by horrors both living and dead, they must overcome their differences to survive the night and prevent the creature from turning the tide of war.
As the group confronts both the bloodthirsty undead and their own moral struggles, the novel explores the darkness that war unleashes—not just from the monsters, but from the soldiers themselves. This is a story of sacrifice, redemption, and the terrifying price of power.”
Perfect for fans of horror and history, this novel blends the grim realism of World War I with the chilling horror of a vampire mythos, offering readers both historical intrigue and supernatural thrills.
Comparable literary titles include World War Z and Pride, Prejudice & Zombies.
I am the author of the Avalon series and Midnight in Silverton: American Gothic, and have published short stories in Wisegoddess magazine, Nightshift Radio’s Storyteller Series, and Miscreant Anthology Vol. 1. I am a co-founder of the Northwest Independent Writers Association (NIWA).
One Page Synopsis:
Amid the horrors of World War I, French soldier Etienne fights at Verdun, where a German dirigible carrying a mysterious canister is shot down by American pilot Tommy Thompson, who sacrifices himself in the process. Grieving his loss, Tommy’s friend Jack Bishop, an American pilot with L'Escadrille Lafayette, is coerced into a mission by British intelligence officer Lieutenant-Colonel Bixby to retrieve the fallen canister after hinting at Jack’s possible past involvement with an Ottoman gold heist. Jack, alongside Etienne and a team of soldiers, ventures into No-Man’s Land, only to discover that the canister held something terrifying—something that has escaped. Their search is interrupted by a German team with scientist Dr. Braun and his daughter Ingrid, who are desperate to recover the cargo. But before either side can act, a monstrous skeletal creature emerges, slaughtering soldiers indiscriminately.
Seeking refuge in a ruined church, the survivors, both Allied and German, learn the truth: the creature is a vampire, an ancient being unearthed by the Germans in Romania and now weaponized. With the vampire unable to cross the church’s hallowed ground, it summons an army of undead soldiers from the landscape of No-Man’s Land to force them out. As the group struggles to hold off the relentless horde, they realize that merely surviving until dawn won’t be enough—the vampire must be destroyed. While bonding, and promising to meet at the Parisian Café Quasimodo after the war, Jack and Ingrid form a desperate plan to lure the vampire into an explosive trap, but when Etienne is killed and their demolition expert Thornton falls to a swarm of rats, their last hope begins to unravel. Betrayal strikes when Dr. Braun, revealed to be in league with the vampire, tries to bargain for his daughter’s life, only for the creature to kill him in contempt.
As the undead breach the church, Jack and Ingrid retreat to the tower for a final stand. At the last moment, German officer Dedrik manages to detonate the explosives, consuming the church and vampire in flames. Jack and Ingrid escape aboard a German scout airship, but as it struggles under their weight, Jack sacrifices himself, leaping into the night and leaving Ingrid to escape. A year after the war’s end, Ingrid waits at Café Quasimodo in Paris, clinging to the hope that Jack survived. Just as she is about to give up, a mysterious note and an Ottoman gold coin arrive—Jack’s invitation to new adventures."
And now, for you visual pleasure (which can also be found on Instagram, with some cool animation added), the graphic novel proof of concept samples--artwork by David Greene:
