Troy Wall talks Red Blood Run
kdmelrose | BloodRayne, Interviews
With the second BloodRayne miniseries, Red Blood Run, set to kick off next week July 11, I cornered writer Troy Wall to find out what brings everyone’s favorite dhampir to Mexico City.
Kevin: Fingers crossed, BloodRayne: Red Blood Run #1 should hit stores next week. What can readers expect from the new miniseries?
Troy: Yeah, hopefully the evil empire also known as Diamond will get the book out next week and, most importantly, on shelves across America. We’ve had problems with Diamond missing release dates and also releasing it on only one side of the Mississippi. But those are the dice when you have a monopolistic company as your sole option. Ha! *Ahem* … With Red Blood Run, readers can certainly look forward to a decidedly darker direction for the book. Seedier settings, more mature plots and subplots that were developed specifically for a trip to the shadowy underworld of Mexico City.
The miniseries itself is named for the vampire slave trade that Rayne and her pal Valerio investigate during the series — the Red Blood Run.
Kevin: You already know I’m a big fan of Valerio. Can you give a little background on him, or would that be giving too much away?
Troy: We can side-step anything that might give away to much. Valerio is an original character I created for the Rayne mythos, and his role in Red Blood Run is second only to Rayne’s. After reading the third issue, it might even be said that his role in the unfolding events of the miniseries was even greater than Rayne’s; after all, it’s Valerio that calls Rayne down to Mexico City for help with the mysterious Red Blood Run in the first place. What inspired me to create him was the notion of American born vampires and how they came to be, they’re origins if you will. Vampirism in the Americas had to begin somewhere, right? And that’s the hook, line and sinker of Valerio’s character: He is the first American vampire, created around 500 years ago by European vampires that stowed away on Spanish ships during the Age of Discovery. Originally a citizen of the Aztec Empire, Valerio was the first human to be turned into a vampire in all of the Americas.
And of course, “Valerio” isn’t his real name. It’s a name he adopted for himself as the centuries rolled on and his Aztecan name became extremely unfashionable.
Kevin: Small pox, vampirism — those European conquerors came bearing gifts!
Troy: Damn, skippy, they did!
Kevin: At the risk of asking one of those awful “Where do you get your ideas?” questions, where did the idea for the Red Blood Run come from?
Troy: This is a fun question to answer because my idea process is so unconventional. Let’s back up to the Plague of Dreams miniseries for a moment. The entire basis for the character of Garek came from my envisioning this crazy paramilitary revolutionary hell bent on conquering the human race and making vampires the dominant species. I saw him as a guy that would wear camoflauge pants and army boots and all that good jazz. There were no psychic powers for Garek in the beginning, and he certainly wasn’t Rayne’s long-lost half-brother. The idea started with the basis of the character, and from there I just continued to flesh everything out, connect dots and write a miniseries. Now, for Red Blood Run, which is the second BloodRayne miniseries, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do besides continue the revelations of the Brimstone Society possibly not being the nicest kids on the block. But the entire basis for the Red Blood Run miniseries began with my coming up with the actual title. I liked the title “Red Blood Run” and decided to run with it. And I thought, wouldn’t it be cool if this mini-series was set up as a mystery, and the Red Blood Run was some kind of evil operation that Rayne had to uncover? I’ve always loved that type of story, when the protagonist doesn’t fully understand what it is he/she is delving into. ” What is the Matrix?” “What is the Rabbit’s Foot?” You can see my thought processes and influences here: “What is the Red Blood Run?”
Kevin: I like the title, too, though I keep wanting to call it “Blood Red Run,” for some reason. I have to double-check every time I type it.
Troy: Ha! Yeah, the title can be interpreted a couple different ways. The “Run” part of the title can be interpreted as a kind of mission … a run. That’s the way I interpret it.
But, red blood does run if you have a cut!
Kevin: You mention the revelations of the Brimstone Society. Although there was a bit of a breather with the Tibetan Heights one-shot, the internal intrigue hasn’t been forgotten just because Rayne is halfway around the world in Mexico. The pot’s still simmering in the background of Red Blood Run, isn’t it?
Troy: Hell, yes. It’s simmering quite nicely and could come to a boil at any given time. Without giving anything away, we’re approaching the halfway marker of my initial tenure on the book. When we hit that mark, everything changes and chaos on a world-wide level ensues. After my first tour of duty on the book is over with, there will be a completely new status quo.
Kevin: So, you have this whole sweeping arc planned out already?
Troy: Sho ’nuff. The whole over arching storyline has been ironed out for a long time now. Writing Red Blood Run was the key for me to flesh out the subsequent stories, Tokyo Rogue and Old World Order.
Kevin: Then when should we expect that world-shaking halfway mark? Old World Order, or before?
Troy: Before. Old World Order is going to be the resolution to the problem. But that’s all I’m at liberty to say. Ha!
Kevin: Bastard.
Troy: I am. I’m a huge bastard. So much so that I’m going to drive to Kody’s house and rob him of his new found movie money.
Kevin: Do it! Then give me half of it.
Troy: No doubt. I’ll share the wealth. I’m not just a bastard, I’m a commie-pinko bastard!
Kevin: You mention your “tour of duty” on BloodRayne. Do you see a jumping-off point for you, or are you sticking around for as long as everyone can stand you?
Troy: It depends on the status of the book when Old World Order ends and Ed’s feelings regarding said status quo. Without a doubt, I’ve designed my run with a place for me to make my exit, but I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to staying on the book if presented the opportunity and the fans are digging the stuff. I love writing this book. I feel like I know the characters and how they think and operate. It’s a joy to write characters you love.
4 Responses to “Troy Wall talks Red Blood Run”
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June 27th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
If you rob Kody, let me know.
June 27th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
And me! Great interview, guys. It was nice to get some insight into the way this book is written, and it was cool to see mention of other books and creators in the DW stable too. Tight-knit!
July 1st, 2007 at 10:48 am
Update on the release date: July 11th
July 29th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
Nice interview, it’s interesting to see how the minds of writers work and it seems like there’s going to be even more action coming up in the next few issues of BloodRayne. I can’t wait to see what’s coming up next.