the vampire diaries fanfic writing tips

✧ vampire transition

here i just wanna break down some things about transitioning into a vampire.

so first let's start with the basics? how do you become a vampire.

you have to die after drinking vampire's blood.

now a few things to note here:

the character does actually have to die for it to work.

for example, jeremy tried to turn by overdosing, but he didn't take enough to kill him so the blood actually healed him.

once the person dies, they'll awake.

however, they're not very clear on when they awake and if they stay awake.

when stefan, damon, and caroline turned, they seemed to wake up after a few hours. elena woke up shortly after and the passed out again and woke up hours later.

i don't think they ever confirm what the difference was.

once they awake, they have twenty four hours to drink human blood.

the longer the wait, the more effects of the transition they feel. i could be wrong but i think both caroline and elena complained about their gums hurting, lights were much brighter, food didn't taste good, and elena kept getting dizzy.

when they turn their emotions are heightened.

they do not become completely new people. traits that they had get amplified which might make it seem like they're a new person.

their senses are heightened. they can see and hear better, probably smell too but i don't think that's ever explicitly said and they can feel more in terms of touching.

now this is the part that's a little unclear.

do they need to do things that humans do? like eat, drink, sleep, use the bathroom etc.

well in season one it was said that as long as they drank blood they functioned like normal.

we do see them sleep, we see them eat.

do they need it?

it's never really said. and i don't think it matters.

i think they don't need to eat human food as long as they drink blood because blood is their food. but i think they can eat and probably want to. the show isn't really clear on how long for them to get their taste back.

i think stefan said elena's body was rejecting the food because it wanted blood to complete the transition. so does that mean once she drank blood her body wouldn't reject food? or did it take a while?

they're not very clear. but we know it goes away because we do see them eating.

we've also seen them drink water before. elena brought it when they went to go find the cure.

i think they do need sleep because not sleeping can lead to death. and we know that vampires do die but they come back. for example, stefan drowning. he clearly needed air. not getting oxygen didn't cause him to stay dead, but it did kill him.

so my guess is that blood can be used in place of food, but they do need sleep. maybe not as much. maybe not as often. blood increases their strength, but no where is it said that it makes them invincible. maybe the more blood they drink the longer they can last without sleeping. maybe not. i think it's up to you whatever you decide since it's not clearly stated in the show.

also even if they don't get physically tired, they probably would at the very least be emotionally tired.

and we've seen klaus, elena, damon, stefan, caroline, and i'm probably forgetting a few sleep before.

also remember that they have to get a daylight ring. they will burn in the sun.

they need to be invited into homes with an owner. although they're not very clear about the rules of that either.

in one instance i think they said that the person's name had to be on the deed to the house. but jo was able to invite damon into the parker's house but if she hadn't been there since she was much younger i don't see why her name would be on the deed?

also both elena and jeremy could invite people in, again not sure why both their names were on the deed. maybe their names were on it?

there's a few other instances where it confused me.

their strength is also dependent on what type of blood they drink. damon was stronger than stefan because damon drank human blood and stefan drank from animals.

i'm guessing amount also matters.

hope this helps!