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Damien Daville, Producer
LA Judge, Editor


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Interview with Damien Daville
Interviewed by LA Judge

Over the years VC Magazine has provided a creative outlet for many non-mainstream cultural traditions. Original poetry, literature and art with a Gothic or Dark Culture edge have monthly graced its electronic pages for half a decade. This year the interview section of VC Magazine will be looking at the creative side of its contributors. The focus will be on exploring how their lives intertwine with their art and are influenced by energy. It is my hope that their creativity can inspire yours.

"LA Judge: Greetings Damien and thank you for once again allowing VC Magazine readers a peek into your private world. Many know you to be the founder of the Vampire Church but what they do not know is that you are a sensitive creative man on many levels. If I may, I would like to push that private door open a bit. Can you give us a sense of your creative side?

Damien: Well, there are many levels to my creative side. One common creative venue has been my desire to write poetry. I have written much in this vein over the years, however, writing just does not come easy for me. I need to be in the right emotional vein at a time when I feel "ready" for any writing to happen. I have recently written two poems this past month and I have decided to enclose them in this Issue, since it has been several months since I have written and put anything in here. Many years ago, I studied bushido with a Japanese master and since have channeled much creative energy thru the samurai sword thru kata or movement. I have also taught the philosophy and physical skill included in the discipline. At one time, I voyaged into graphic design for a while creating images for websites, but I have had little time for this now. Now I have been putting time when I can into making hunting knives using deer horn for the handles. I have a collection of old knives and still look for the "old" stuff.

LA Judge: You have been involved in actively creating music, art and poetry on a semi-professional level since your early 20’s, is there a style that you would typify as your own or with which you identify?

Damien: Well, I grew up with little support from family, ultimately having to leave them all behind. I did have an abusive father and mother, although I did not carry that with me. Having seen the "dark" and poor side of humanity all my life prompted me to express thru my art the gloom and suffering of life. In the music and writing which I have written, I wanted to express in various forms the "tortures" of this life and the imperfections that contribute to the pain of working and living in a society with very little. In all my work this can be seen.

LA Judge: What would you say is at the heart of your creative muse? What inspires your work? How do you know when it is time to write?

Damien: This is difficult to say. My inspiration is not an easy and common thing. I take advantage of the moments I get to write about the themes I will experience and the emotion of them. My life has been a difficult one of survival and that is readily seen in my writing. Being empathic, I sense and feel the "pain" of other people as well as myself. Despite my life being what it is, my creative moments are usually not plentiful, I have to withdraw from the distractions and chaotic energies of others and the environment around me to focus on the emotion at hand. My writing is reflective on the emotion present, and that comes from the suffering themes of life I see and experience.

LA Judge: I have been a fan of your poetry for several years. While you are a very private person, you are very personal and emotional in your writings and poetry – that is quite a difference how do you approach that?

Damien: My poetry is generally difficult to write, the words I use don't come easily and I have to work out the best ways to say what I want about the subject I sense and feel. I have a tendency to search for the "perfect" words that will convey generally a complex emotion tied in with the woes and pain of survival. I don't write often and what I do write conveys often a personal involvement that takes time to express the right way.

LA Judge: From the very start both the Vampire Church and your personal websites (Darkfear) have included places for the artistic expressions of you and others. How important was that of a consideration when building those websites and is that focus just as important today?

Damien: Well, I started Darkfear.com at a time when I was researching the fears of people, I wanted to look at what other people fear and compare those with my own. Fear for me was a dark place to be in the unknown and the unseen, and that is reflective of the creative look of the website. I have accumulated the expressed fears of other people over the years from the website and it has been a source of interesting information. I also wanted a look on the Vampire Church site that was somewhat "neutral" but still reflective of the Vampire condition. I sought professionalism in design and look, but with some of my own creative side.

LA Judge: Let’s talk a little bit about VC Magazine … two years ago you took over the reigns of the monthly newsletter attached to your organizations. At that time you rapidly pushed it into becoming a well respected non traditional arts journal. It’s a place where many hone their creative skills. What is your motivation in providing such a place and why do you keep going?

Damien: The VC Magazine has been my "baby"; it is the one thing I do for the creative and informational pleasure of the online community. I have believed for some time that the Magazine has the best potential for providing a vehicle for the writers to "creatively" communicate to the reading public about topics from real vampirism to reviews of community events. My energy will continue to go into producing the VC Magazine and I expect it to continue well into the future.

LA Judge: As I am rapidly learning, time and age are the greatest teacher and very much an influence on energy levels and art. How has growing older changed your creative perspective and where do you see your creative energies turning towards in the next few years?

Damien: At this point in my life, I would like to move to more time teaching to others philosophy, bushido, Zen meditation, and alternative lifestyles. I will continue to write as time permits and experience affects me. I want to have more direct one on one interaction with selected people and less work required of me on the internet.

LA Judge: Any final creative tips or tidbits that you would like to share?

Damien: I would simply say that one must find their creative energies within and complement them with the path of life that best takes them thru life. Creative energies are a reflection of yourself and it is their expression that helps give meaning to life.

LA Judge: Thank you so much Damien for your candid honesty and your time. Interviewing you has been a pure pleasure

Damien: Thank you again LA for the conversation

For Questions, please contact the VC Magazine Staff at VCMagazine_Staff@yahoogroups.com

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