Went up to Dublin on Saturday to go to the All Ireland hurling final. For those who don't know, hurling is an Irish sport, the fastest team sport in the world!! If you want to find out more about it, Google it. I met up with my uncle Derek and we went to a few pubs and a nightclub on Saturday. There were loads of Limerick people in the city -- this was the first time in 11 years that Limerick had been in a final, and it had been 34 years since they last won one!! We pretty much took over Dublin for the weekend -- at times it seemed like everyone from Limerick had come to the capital to party!!!!

On Sunday we met up with my cousin, Little John, and some of his family and friends. After a few hours in the city centre, we went out to Croke Park, the GAA stadium. There's a Jurys hotel just outside the ground and we planned to drink there. But when we arrived, it was incredibly crowded, and the general public were being denied access to the hotel -- barriers had been erected in front of the main doors, and lots of people were waiting by them, in the hope of getting in. We decided to move on and try somewhere else, but then Little John found an unguarded side door and moments later we were at the fulcrum of the party!!!! A bit naughty, I know, but sometimes you just have to seize an opportunity when it presents itself!! A Limerick station, 9tFM, was broadcasting live from the hotel, and when my young cousin Shaun told them I was there, they came over and did a quick interview with me!!!! Even on my days off I have to give interviews -- the curse of being a writer!!!!!

Then it was time for the match. The other team, Kilkenny, were strong favourites to win, and while everyone from Limerick hoped for an upset, it was hard to believe it would really happen. Any sense of hope we had disappeared in the first ten minutes, when Kilkenny tore us apart and surged into an uncatchable lead. The game was pretty much over by that stage, and all that remained was to see if Limerick could close the gap to a halfway respectable score, or get absolutely trounced. We fought hard and did claw some points back, and the players' heads didn't drop, so although in the end we were well beaten, at least we left with a bit of pride. Still, it was disappointing to lose, especially in such a fashion, and it definitely put a damper on the rest of the night. But there's no point moping about these things, so most people just got on with things and did their best to enjoy the night, and while I saw plenty of glum faces afterwards, I didn't see anyone crying. Sometimes you just get beaten by someone better than you, and you just have to accept that. There's always another day ...

I had a bit of a sore head this morning, but I didn't feel TOO bad. Got a lift down to Limerick from another of my uncles, Mike. Caught up with my emails, then watched "Return of the Jedi", bringing the "Star Wars" series to a close. While "Jedi" was the weakest of the original three films, I've always enjoyed it, and this occasion was no different. The Ewoks are ridiculous, of course, but I like them regardless!!! All in all it was a pretty good way to wind the series up. Now I'm off to watch a few episodes of "Frasier", then I'll be hitting the sack earlyish for what I'm sure will be a VERY good night's sleep!!!

Worked on the latest issue of the Shanville Monthly for most of today -- it required quite a bit of tinkering with, as it involved both a major competition and a listing for my upcoming October UK tour. You can check it out by clicking here: Shanville Monthly

Saw another episode of "House" and of season 7 of "Frasier", which I began watching last night -- I meant to move on to a different series, and leave "Frasier" for a while, but I couldn't resist!!! I'll be off to watch another couple of edisodes after this!! Also saw "Star Wars - The Empire Strikes Back". The fifth episode is definitely the best of the series in my opinion -- everything in it works perfectly. Although it was strange watching Yoda having just seen the first 3 episodes -- while he was digitally created in the new films, he was just a puppet when he first appeared back in 1980, and he looks very stiff and lifeless in his original incarnation now. He's still my favourite character from the series, but it's such a shame they didn't have today's technology back when they were first creating him. Then again, the fact that he IS a puppet is nice in an odd way -- for all the ground-breaking effects and sets, it's wonderful to see an old-style puppet steal the show!!! (p.s. I've actually met one of the women who worked the puppet of Yoda during the filming of "Empire" -- she's a colleague of Bas's. I think she had maybe the coolest job ever doing that!!!!!)

This email came in from a teacher called Terry, in Texas, and it gave me the nicest feeling inside that I've had in quite a while -- the perfect pick-me-up after a summer of nervous hospital visits:

I'm sure you receive many commentaries about your books from teachers and kids. I need to thank you for the Cirque series. I teach in an urban school where many of the students would not dream of picking up a book of their own free will. Many are gang members or reluctant readers. Getting any work out of them is next to impossible. The content is exciting for them and "safe" enough for me as a teacher - I don..'t worry that parents will breathe down my neck because of objectionable material. It is not "dark" for darkness' sake. As a class novel, I present A Living Nightmare; it NEVER fails to capture their interest, hook them into finding out what happens next, AND to pursue the other books to complete the story. Then they actually begin to explore other books and they turn into readers - thanks to your series.Last year, 3 of my students obtained a near perfect score on the state assessment - 2 had not passed it EVER! For me, as well as the other teachers at my school using the series, NOTHING has made so much of a difference in "turning on" my students to reading as the series. For that, as an educator, I thank you. Again, I'm sure you hear this all the time, but I've never read a book that has ever transformed my students like yours has.

I hope you all have a great weekend, gang. I'm off to see the All Ireland hurling final on Sunday -- COME ON, LIMERICK!!!!!!!

Started editing book 9 of "The Demonata" yesterday. This is my third edit of the book, so there's still a long way to go on it. The ninth book is definitely the most challenging of the series. A lot of the higher concepts of the storyline are explained in this one, and the middle section is probably the least action-orientated of any of my books. One of my favourite films is "2001: A Space Odyssey", and this book reflects that!!! I'm working on tightening the middle third up a lot, to make it as painless as possible for those who read my books primarily for the suspense, but I know that no matter how hard I work on it, quite a few of my readers are going to grumble at the relatively slow and concept-heavy stretch. But to sweeten the deal, the last third plays out at a frantic, action-packed, bloodthirsty pace -- I think it will leave everyone frothing at the lips in eager anticipation of the final book in the series!!! The way I look at it, a slow one-third of a single book out of a ten book series isn't going to kill anybody!!!!!

Went out with my friend Kenny last night for a few drinks. Saw the last few episodes of season 6 of "Frasier" -- fantastic stuff!!! I was worried it might start to drag after so many years, but the sixth season was one of the best so far. As always, when I'm watching "Frasier", I feel both regret at not catching it sooner, when it was first on the air -- it galls me to have gone so many years without experiencing the pleasure of such a brilliant show -- but also relief at the fact that, by not watching it until now, I'm able to see it all for the first time, as if it was brand spanking new.

Saw the film "Sunshine" tonight. Didn't like it at all. A major disappointment -- I expect much more from director Danny Boyle. It looked neat, but it just didn't work. It wanted to be a thought-provoking, serious piece of sci-fi -- but it also threw in a big bang or action scene every few minutes, and even dengerated into a ridiculous horror flick towards the end. Parts were good, but the parts didn't fit together, at least not for me. It has its fans but I won't be watching it again. A pity, because I do love a good sci-fi film or book -- many of the ideas in "The Demonata" were inspired by films like "2001" (as mentioned above), writers like Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asmiov and Arthur C Clarke, and by all manner of space-related comics. I've always been fascinated by space the mysteries it holds (or might hold). Looking up into a sky full of stars, I always wonder what's up there, and those wonderings provide me with much fuel for thought. When I see a good sci-fi film, I like it for tapping into my love of the genre. When I see a bad one, I get annoyed, even more annoyed than if I see a bad horror or action flick. I always say in interviews that horror was my first love as a child, and that's true. But maybe science fiction is my TRUE love ...

Finished my latest edit of Book 8 of "The Demonata". I hadn't planned to wrap it up until tomorrow, but I got sucked into it and had to push on!!! I'm very pleased with the book the way it stands, though I found quite a lot to tighten, so I'm probably another couple of drafts away from the actual finish of the book -- my general rule of thumb is that if I find a lot to change in the course of an edit, I'm going to find quite a bit to change next time round too! It's only when I do an edit and execute extremely minor changes that I know I'm coming to the end of the editing process. But, overall, I think book 8 is in very good shape -- a few more polishes and it should be ready to roar into action!!!

I spent a bit of time collating "writing advice" blogs. Those who take the time to scroll back through my older blog entries will find lots of tips about writing, and descriptions of the problems I face on a day to day basis, and how I go about solving them. To make it easier for people to access, I plan to group all those snippets into one place on my web site. I'm not sure when I'll get round to putting that up, but hopefully it won't be in the TOO distant future ...

Saw another episode of "House" and episode 4 of "Star Wars" (i.e. the original film). Like millions of others around the world, I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for the film which introduced us all to Luke, Darth Vader and co. Yes, some of the acting is extraordinarily wooden, and some of the dialogue is woeful, and the effects are quite dated (even in the re-touched edition). But, despite all its flaws, it works wonderfully and is just as impressive all these years and viewings later as it was when I first saw it at the time of its initial release back in 1977. (Not that I came away with a vivid memory of it then -- my clearest recollection is of running around in the cinema, playing games with my friends!!) "Empire Strikes Back" is a much stronger, darker, better film -- but this is great fun!!!!!

I'm very pleased to be able to announce that I'm the Limerick Person Of The Month for August!!! The awards are run by local newspaper, The Limerick Leader, and sponsored by Southern Advertising and the Clarion hotel. They pick a local person every month -- sometimes a sports person, or a successful business person, or someone who's done a very good charitable deed, and so on. Then, at the end of the year, they pick a person of the year from the 12 month winners. I was Person Of The Month once before, way back in 2000, when I was a fresh young author and my books were first making waves. This second award came entirely out of the blue, so it was a nice surprise!! I've lived in Limerick for 29 years, so although this is a minor award in the grander scheme of things, it means a lot to me. My local fans have always been incredibly supportive of me, even in the early days, which is why I try to do signings and events regularly here. To get a public acknowledgment like this makes me feel well-chuffed!!! I went in to the Clarion hotel today to receive my award, have my photo taken, and give a short interview to the Limerick Leader -- the photo and interview should appear in this week's issue, so if you're local, look out for it!!!

Went to see my Granny after picking up my award, then came home, checked my emails and mowed my lawn. Well, I mowed half of it -- Bas mowed the other half while I was online! We're an equal opportunities household!!!! Then watched episode 3 of "Star Wars". For me this is easily the best of the new trilogy -- incredibly dark, fast-paced and brutal. I even think it matches the quality of the original trilogy -- it's from this point that the story really moves up a gear. If only the first two parts could have been as pacy and artfully structured as this one ...

Answered another batch of fan mail, including one letter which dated all the way back to November 2006!!!! Yikes!! There aren't many to go now -- I might get through the remaining pile next time round! Oh, forgot to say, I edited some more of Book 8 of "The Demonata" this morning. I think the eighth book is one of the most exciting of the series. I've played around with structure a lot with these books, trying different things, experimenting with various set-ups. Book 1, for instance, had the bloodiest, scariest scene in chapter two -- in most books, that would have been the climax. It then dipped into madness for a while, returned to normality, then the main storyline kicked in and it sped towards a reunion with Lord Loss. Book 2 was a chase story, and the characters spun from one weird demon pocket to another. Book 4 was a classic quest tale. Book 7 will be a three-part story, in which each part features its own savage battle and climax. Book 8 is a book of two halves -- the first sets the scene and builds up the tension, while the second half is virtually non-stop, wicked action. I've liked the different challenges and structural play of every book so far, but I have to say that for my money, Book 8 is the most out-and-out fun. It's a real roller-coaster ride of a book!! I don't think ANYONE will be putting this baby down once they hit the halfway mark and the story explodes into action -- I foresee fans picking up lots of blisters from turning the pages so swiftly!!!!!

I answered another batch of fan mail tonight. Most of the letters were from fans in the States, and most date back to March and April, or even February!! Most fans who want to write to me look up my web site, find my contact details there, and send their letter that way. But some send it to my publishers and that always slows the process down -- first the letters get "sorted" in the publising house and assigned to the correct department; then that department waits until they have several letters to send; then the letters get sent to my agent, who sends them to me; then I have to give them to Pablo, who addresses the envelopes, then gives them back to me ... In short, unless you don't mind a 4 or 5 month wait, you should NEVER send a letter to an author via their publisher before checking online to find out if there's any other, quicker way of doing it.

I've had a busy few days. Been to see my Granny a couple of times. Watched several episodes of "Frasier" and the first few episodes of "House" -- it's very well made, although the format seems quite limited. I'll be interested to see if it widens its scope as the series progresses. Bas and I also started watching the entire "Star Wars" series from start to finish -- this is the first time I've ever watched the films one after the other!!! The first two are fun, but definitely not up to the standards of the "later" films, particularly episodes 4 to 6. They look superb, of course, but Jar Jar Binks should never have progressed beyond the initial idea ... a Han Solo-style character is sorely missing ... and although a lot of the dialogue and acting in the original three films was pretty patchy, it seems even worse in the newer films! That's not to say I don't enjoy them -- I do -- but they don't have the same place in my heart as the older trilogy. Still, it's intriguing watching them in sequence and I'm looking forward a lot to the next week's viewing!!!

Checked through the Americanized version of Book 6 of "The Demonata" today. I don't have much to do with the Americanizing of my books -- an American editor goes through each book and makes small changes to words or phrases which aren't common in the States. But I always check to make sure they haven't changed TOO much! I'm pleased to report that there were only minimal changes made to Book 6, and all are positive changes, so fans in the States will be getting the full, blood-charged effect when it comes out in April 2008!!!!

There was a lengthy interview with me in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday August 25th. You can check it out online by clicking on the following link: DAILY TELEGRAPH

I received the following email from a teenager called Josh today:

Just wondered if I could ask my advice about something. I'm 13 and have always wanted to be a writer. I love writing and have mentally planned a few simple story-lines in my head. I would like to write the stories up as practice for my possible future career, (also i just love to write so much it makes me sick). But I am embarrassed that my parents and friends laugh at me. Should I tell them about my love for writing, or just not write at all?

As I told Josh, I never showed my work to anyone until it was published (and still don't), no matter how much friends and family bugged me to see it. What most people don't realise is that every writer starts out awkwardly -- writing a story or book is a LONG process, and a first draft is always a lot rougher than the finished product. People who don't work in the publishing industry will almost always find it difficult to judge the quality of a young writer's first efforts, since they'll only be able to compare it to the quality of finished books. I think this means they can't give a truly objective opinion -- they can be supportive and say "This is great!!" or they can be critical and say "This isn't as good as so-and-so's book!!" but I don't think they can offer constructive, useful feedback. So I don't think any writer should ever worry about not showing their work to others until they're happy with it. Friends and family won't always understand, and if you choose to be secretive, many people will probably think you're only pretending to write, or that your work must be no good if you don't show it to them. Some of them might even tease you about it!! If so ... DON'T WORRY!!!! I had to endure scepticism and taunts like that myself for many years, and I bet most other writers have gone through exactly the same thing early in their careers. The opinions of your friends and family should never matter to you. Have belief in yourself and in your stories. Work hard on them. Send them to professionals when you feel the time is right. Stay focused on the goal. Then try hard to mask your smile in later years when, having succeeded in getting your work published (and, as I always say, most people who REALLY work at being a writer will succeed -- those who fail are usually those who quit when the going gets tought), those same friends and family members beam big and proclaim, "I always knew you were going to make it!!!" Some of them might even try to claim some of your success for themselves!! That's just the way of the world, people. You can get mad about it ... or you can shrug it off, smile, and just carry on writing.

Edited almost 50 pages of Book 8 of "The Demonata", which I was very pleased with. I'm not making any critical changes, but I'm finding plenty of ways to tighten things up. I never worry about writing more than I need in an early draft, since I know I'll have lots of opportunities to go through and spruce things up later. I always think it's easier to cut something down in an edit than come up with new material. I often let myself waffle on in a first draft, describing more than I need to and adding in unnecessary lines and asides. Then, in later drafts, I focus on what I have and what I NEED, and trim as I see fit. I think a lot of young writers make the mistake of trying to get everything right first time round -- when things go wrong, they think the story is a disaster and quit. But a first draft (regardless of whether you're a novice or a seasoned pro) is never more than a starting point. Your only concern should be to finish it -- the finished quality and style will come later, in the several re-writes and edits that are necessary for any halfway decent book.

I've added the "Heroes" speech that I gave at the Edinburgh Book Festival to my site. You can check it out by clicking here: WE COULD BE HEROES!

Fans in the UK and Ireland, please note that there will be an interview with me in this Saturday's edition (i.e. Saturday August 25th) of The Daily Telegraph. It was a fun interview (I gave it last Sunday) and I think it should be a good one. I'm also interested to see what the photo turns out like!!!!

I got through another large pile of mail tonight -- I reckon another go or two and I'll be done!!!! I came across a great quote from a fan called Sam Slater in tonight's batch. Writing about Lord Loss, he said, "The Saga died and out of ther ashes came a roaring beast that made me laugh, cry and downright pooh myself!" I think that's one of the best quotes I've ever received!!! It just goes to show, some12 year old boys can be even more eloquent than any number of authors and adult critics!!!!! If I had any say in such matters, I'd stick that quote on Lord Loss, regardless of where it came from. Maybe I'll suggest it as a tagline to my publicity team: "Lord Loss -- it will make you pooh yourself!!!!"

Before you read any further, click on this link, and have a look at a short video on YouTube: CAMP OKUTTA

I started editing Book 8 of "The Demonata" again today. This is the fourth draft of the book. It's been just over a year since I last worked on it. That's how I like to write -- do a first draft, leave it a few months, do another draft, leave it a while, do another draft, etc. I normally wouldn't leave such a long time between drafts, but I've had lots of other things to work on over the last year, and I was very pleased with the previous draft, so I wanted to give myself enough time away from it to get over my pleasure -- you should never be too happy about a draft you've just completed, because you should always be looking for flaws and way to improve it -- I can guarantee you, if YOU don't find the flaws before a story is published, your readers WILL!!!!!!!

Went in to see my Granny at hospital after lunch. She's doing fine, in good spirits, and a bit better than she felt a few days ago. She'll probably have to stay in for a week or more for various tests, but we're hoping it won't be any more serious than that. Popped in to see my Grandad on the way home, then had dinner and watched a film, then went for a long walk. I started watching season 6 of "Frasier" last night. I saw 3 episodes, and now I'm off to see another 3 -- delicious!!!!

Now, back to that Camp Okutta video ... How many of you thought it was real?!? It certainly looks authentic, and my girlfriend and her ex-boss believed it. But, actually, it's not -- it's a spoof, but one with a very serious message. It's been made by Warchild Canada, to highlight the fact that in many countries children ARE trained in the ways of warfare like this -- they're called child soldiers. You can find more fun Camp Okutta info by clicking here: Camp Okutta Site Then, when you're finished laughing (and it IS very funny, so don't feel too guilty for chuckling!!), check out the Warchild Canada web site for details about the facts behind the fun: Warchild Canada And when you've done all that, people, please do pass on the links -- this is an important thing for people to know about, and spreading the word through laughter is an inspired idea. Warchild deserve all the publicity they can get for it, and all the help that we can give them to spread the word around ...

My entry yesterday was a bit premature! Although I finished my edit of "Procession of the Dead", I forgot that I had to go back today and incorporate the changes on my Word document, so that I had a copy in case thr proofs got lost in the post!! While I was bringing my PC version up to date, I made a few very tiny last tweaks, meaning the official beginning and end of work on the book now stands at: October 18th 1993 to Agust 21st 2007. And that really IS the final nail in the coffin!!!

Made the draw for the Shanville Monthly competition this morning. You can find a list of the winners in the NEWS forum on my Message Board, by going to my web site, www.darrenshan.com. Signed the prizes and packaged them. Answered another 20 fan letters. Responded to some work emails. Went for a walk. Saw a Robin Williams film called "R V" which was funnier than I thought it would be -- no classic, but fun. Went for a walk. etc. etc.

Received a nice email from a lady called Lisa today: I work in a secondary school in Nottingham where one of my responsibilities is to manage the school Resource Centres/Libraries. For the past couple of years I've compiled some 'End of the year' stats for fun, which I then make up into posters for display. This year, there's been a great surge of interest in your books and you came out top in the 'Most Borrowed Author for Boys' category and were joint second [along with Louise Rennison] in the 'Most Borrowed Author' poll. I realise it's not quite the same as having a No.1 bestseller, but here in our little corner of the reading sphere you're very popular indeed!

I was delighted to hear that, and for me feedback like that is even more important than bestseller charts!! The charts can be deceptive -- in a weak week (i.e. a week in which there aren't many good books on sale) you can top the charts with quite low sales. Other times, you might sell more, but only place lower down. Charts only reflect numbers of copies SOLD, not READ -- I know when I was at school, a good book was often shared between 5, 10, 15 friends or more, and I'm sure that's no different today. Being one of the most borrowed authors at a school shows that there's a strong fan base there, and it's great to know that my books are flying off the shelves and gathering more fans each term -- that shows signs of the type of popularity and longevity that most authors would kill (or at least cut off an arm or leg) for!!!!

The children's market is very different to the adult market, where books get lots of publicity and are judged successes or failures purely by the amount sold in the short term. In the children's world, word of mouth is everything, and most successful children's authors only grow slowly with it -- typically, it takes a kid's author a long time to establish themselves, as word spreads and books are passed on from brothers and sisters to their younger siblings, and from them to their friends, and so on. It's like an underground movement -- most adults aren't aware that it's happening, even if you end up selling vastly more copies of your books in the long run than your adult-orientated counterparts. I always grin when a reporter or adult asks "If you've sold so many books, why haven't I heard of you?" The answer, of course, is because they're not a child, and they don't belong to the same magical, thrilling network of friends that most children do. Adults rely for the most part on reviews and charts to guide their reading habits. Kids don't need to do that, because they have far more powerful and insightful guids -- teacher, librarian, older brothers and sisters, and friends. When I hear that my books are doing well on that underground network, I always get a special buzz, because I know that's where they'll REALLY ultimately succeed or fail. So, Lisa, no, it's not the same as having a No. 1 bestseller -- it's BETTER!!!!!!

Oh -- almost forgot to mention -- my Granny got taken to hospital today. Problems with her breathing, which she's had before. Hopefully it's nothing too serious, but it looks like my hospital visits aren't quite done with just yet!!! Some summer of fun this is turning out to be!!!!!!!!!

I finished editing the page proofs of "Procession of the Dead" -- hurrah!!!!! That means I am finally, truly, totally DONE!!!! The book is complete and I will never again do any more work on it. I started writing the novel (known then as "Ayuamarca") on October 18th 1993, meaning it's been just under 14 years in the making!!!!! I assumed, back in 1998, shortly before its publication, that I was done with the book -- but the fact that I never got to do a final edit ( for various publishing reasons) meant I never considered it "truly" finished. I decided long ago that if it was ever republished, that I would go back and do the final edit which had been denied me first time around. Now that edit is in the bag and the book is done and dusted, for better or worse. I'm officially washing my hands of it now, sending it out in the world to stand or fall by itself. I'll miss the little blighter, but I'm looking forward immensely to seeing how it fares, and what people make of the new, streamlined, faster moving version ...

Didn't do too much else today, apart from answer emails, watch some of the extras on the "Dr Who" second season DVD, go for a walk, visit my parents and grandparents, and watch the "Hogfather" TV movie -- I've actually only seen the first half as I'm writing this, but I'm about to head through to see the second half now, before heading up to bed. I liked the first 90 minutes -- not as addictive as the books, of course, but a pretty decent stab!