Meyer decbribes her "VAMPIRES"

The vampires of the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer have certain, distinctive characteristics that set them apart from other fictional vampires, some of which include appearance, hunting styles and legends that differ from others.

Appearance

Twilight vampires are said to possess supernatural beauty, making them all the more alluring to human victims. It is said that upon transformation, a very unattractive human would become average looking, and average looking person would become beautiful, and a beautiful person would become stunning beyond description. All of the Cullens seem to be included in the latter category. Their skin is flawless & has the texture and cold feel of marble, and sparkles in sunlight. They are extremely pale but flush with slight color immediately after feeding, and purplish under eye circles appear as their thirst intensifies. Newborn vampires have startling bright red eyes, though they fade to a deeper crimson over about the course of a year - when their own blood is burned out. If a vampire choses to survive on animal blood their eyes become a golden butterscotch color, but remain red on a human diet. Regardless of meal preference, all vampire's eyes grow darker with hunger, eventually fading to black when in need of blood.

Abilities

All vampires are described as having incredible superhuman strength. It is known that they can toss cars like basketballs, uproot trees, and tear big screen televisions in half with supreme ease. Human blood is the most revitalizing kind of blood for a vampire to drink. Thus, newly made vampires are said to possess a supreme level of strength compared to others of their kind, because of the vast amount of their own human blood that still remains in their system. They have very keen senses and are able to see and hear clearly for miles. They can move with such speed that they become nothing more than a blur to the human eye and have been shown to easily keep up with vehicles. They are immortal by nature, and very difficult to destroy- only permanently killed when dismembered and then burned. It should be noted that their body parts continue to move even after detached, but it is unclear whether or not these removed "pieces" have feeling or are merely twitching in a kind of muscle spasm. Certain vampires are higher skilled and/or more powerful than others, depending on who they were as a human, such as, for example- if they were perhaps a marathon runner than they would be faster than others of their kind, or if they were a body builder they would presumably become stronger than most others of their species. They never tire, or become physically weaker, and completely without need of rest. They are also capable of speaking quieter and quicker than a human being would be capable of understanding. Their skin is described as being rock hard and as smooth as marble, as well as cold- they can project no body heat of their own and are highly durable due to the toughness of their flesh. Stephenie Meyer once joked that a vampire could only die at the hands of human with the assistance of something as powerful as a rocket launcher, but they'd have to be convinced to remain still and allow themselves to be hit by it. So it can be safely assumed that no human could defend themselves against a predator this strong.

Special talents

There is also a "special ability" that varies from vampire to vampire. Some do not get any extra ability, while others do. It is not definite, but the theory put forth in the book is that the power is reminiscent of the individual's original personality—Edward was able to tell roughly what people were thinking from body language and expression, and was thus given the ability to hear people's thoughts; Jasper was very charismatic, able to influence others, and was thus given the ability to feel and control the emotions of those around him; Alice could see visions of the future (and was labeled insane for it) and was thus given the ability to see the future more often and more clearly; and Jane was burnt at the stake, thus now able to create the illusion of severe pain in her chosen victims as a result of what she suffered. A small number of vampires gain special talents when they are changed into their new form- they are described as the "freaks among freaks". If they had a characteristic or personality that was very dominant in their human life (such as charisma or sensitivity), it would be possible for it to be magnified into an active power or talent after their "change". Some talents mentioned are telepathy, clairvoyance, hallucinative torture, tracking, and emotion manipulation. Less significant talents are such as Carlisle Cullen's magnified compassion, Esme's ability to love passionately, Emmett's enhanced strength, or Rosalie's extreme physical beauty.

Deviations from vampire legend

Author Stephenie Meyer admits to not having researched vampire mythology before writing Twilight. Thus, vampires in the Twilight world are different from any other literary vampires. One fact is that they have no weaknesses—they are not harmed by holy water, garlic, stakes, crosses, or even the sun. They do however, remain hidden during daylight hours or reside in highly clouded areas to avoid being seen in direct sunlight due to the fact that they sparkle like crystals under its rays, even though they could easily conquer, kill, or control any who see them. They need no invitation to enter one's home, they have a reflection in mirrored surfaces, and they show up on film. They are incapable of sleep and require no rest whatsoever. Their teeth are sharp as blades but do not elongate or become fangs and their venom gives off a smell which is alluring to humans, as if their inhuman beauty wasn't enough, or their special talents and abilities enough to hunt any prey they wish without a need for bait. It is also a topic of debate whether or not they lose their souls upon becoming immortal, or if God even exists in the Twilight universe. The book itself suggests that vampires are more science than spirituality, as the change is stated to occur through a venomous bite rather than a dark birth of damnation, but this is not backed by any scientific data or research. Few similarities exist between traditional vampires and Stephenie Meyer's creations, however, there are a few match-ups: extreme paleness, lack of pulse, immortality, and the sole reliance on blood for nourishment, although the blood issue is discardable as they can survive without consuming any blood whatsoever.