Saturday was a day for families. First Bas and I went to visit her brother Justin and his wife and two boys in their new home. The boys are a fun, lively pair, and it was nice to play with them for a few hours and catch up with their parents at the same time. Because this has been such a busy year for me, I haven't seen some of the people in my family as much as I would have liked to. In an ideal world work should never come before family, and I try hard not to let it, but in reality it often does, and sometimes a plan to visit someone in a month or two's time can fall to pieces, and six months or a year can pass, almost without you knowing it!!! I don't know about other people, but the way my brain works is that meetings with people I like usually stay very fresh inside my head, as if they only happened a short while ago. I'm often amazed, when meeting up with an old friend, to find out that a year or more has passed since our last chat together. "That can't be right" I often exclaim. "It only feels like a month!" But the calendar never lies ...

Later my uncle Derek and his wife and son came to our flat. We went to a nearby pub to watch an England footbal match (they beat Estonia 3-0), then went to Covent Garden for a family party to celebrate my grand-aunt Nora's 40th wedding anniversary. It wasn't a huge affair, but most of the people there were people I really like (and in a big family like mine, there are plenty of people I don't know very well or don't have much in common with), so I really enjoyed mingling. I also love Nora and Davey loads, so I was delighted to be able to be there to toast their long-lasting marriage. I was there for their 25th anniversary, and in this case that DOES seem like a long time ago -- I've changed hugely over the last 15 years, and so have many of the others who were there last night, so it was an occasion to look back and marvel at where life has taken us in the decade and a half since we last gathered under similar circumstances. As you get older I think most people find that a lot of life is about introspection, looking back at what you've done, what your friends have done, the hard times, the good times, thinking about the things you might have done differently, etc. In a way we're all story-tellers, and the story of our life is the one we keep returning to and focusing on, re-telling it to ourselves, re-structuring it, revising and editing, remembering bits we thoughts we'd forgotten and forgetting bits we were sure we'd always remember. Our story will never mean as much to others as it does to ourselves, and nobody will ever know it even a fraction of the way we do, but that's what makes it so special -- it's a personal, one-of-a-kind story, unique to each of us, and while it might not mean much in the grand, universal scheme of things, on a personal level it's what gives our lives meaning and allows us to place ourselves in context of life, the universe and everything.

Anyway, the next leg of my life is about to unfold (each day brings a new leg to every person's life, even though we don't normally think much of it), and I'll be heading for the airport soon to catch my flight to Canada. This is my first visit, and I'm looking forward to seeing a small bit of the country and hopefully meeting lots of fans and signing shed-loads of books!!! I'm not sure what sort of internet access I'll have while I'm on the road. I'll try to update my blog as often as possible, but as you guys know, sometimes that just can't be done. So if you don't hear from me for a while, don't panic -- I'll be back soon!!!!!

Went to the Frieze Art Fair in Regent's Park in the morning. This is a HUGE art fair that's held annually in London. It's all contemporary work by modern artists. It was very interesting to walk around, although most of the art on display wasn't my cup of tea -- for me, most of the work was high on concept but low on talent. A lot of new art seems to be all about the idea behind the work, of giving people something that SAYS something, whether it's about society, politics, sex or whatever -- but (in my view) most of it isn't actually any bloody GOOD!!!!! For me, a good work of art involves me and makes me go WOW -- it doesn't just make me nod seriously and think "That's clever." I think artists should always strive to put their talent first, not just come across as being clever. Too much of what I saw today struck me as being of the "Emperor's New Cothes" strand of art-making. Of course, other people will rave about it and claim it's the artistic heart and soul of our modern times -- but I very much doubt if a lot of what I say today will be causing a stir a hundred years from now ...

Having said all that, a few of the pieces DID tickle my fancy or impress me. There were some paintings or sculptures which showed a lot of work and imagination, which made me laugh or ogle. I even bought a couple of pieces, a painting and a sculpture! But, overall, it wasn't for me. Still, to each their own ...

Came back to the flat and sorted through some of my own art pieces -- I have quite a lot of art over here, which I've bought over the last few years, some of which will be staying in the flat, some of which I'm moving back to Ireland. I'd been putting off going through it for ages, but the art fair inspired me into action, so Bas and I spent the afternoon working on it. We even hung a few small pieces up! It's amazing the difference even a minor painting can make to a wall and a room.

Later, we went to see Maximo Park at the Brixton Academy. We arrived only about half an hour before they went on, but we managed to get to the very front! We were off the far left, but it was still a great view. My concert-going tip for people is to always approach the stage from the sides -- you can usually get really close to the front if you're prepared to sacrifice a middle view. The band put on a strong, vibrant set, playing most of the tracks from their two albums. I enjoyed it a lot, though I feel they need at least another album, maybe two, of similar quality to their debut, before they can put on a really great gig -- they have several stand-out songs at the moment, but another several of those they played are just average. The singer, Paul Smith, is a great performer, and he captures the crowd on the better songs. In another couple of years, with 5 or 6 more songs of the claibre of "Under Pressure" and "Graffiti", and they might be one of the best bands around. For now they're still pretenders to the throne. But damn fine pretenders!!!!

Sorry it's taken me so long to get round to this, but the last half of the tour was full-on, and I've been bouncing about the place since finishing!! Anyway, after a hugely successful stint on the south coast, I flew up north and had an equally enjoyable and busy time up there. Newcastle was first up, where I did a couple of schools and a big public signing in the massive Metro Centre -- how big IS that place?!? I did a multi-school event in Kendal the next day -- several schools came to the Kendal leisure centre and I addressed them all at the same time. I really like this format, and we're going to try and do most of our school events this way in the future in the UK and Ireland -- because we get so many requests, it's the fairest, easiest and only way to fit in even a fairly good number of them. By bringing several schools together at the same time, we give far more groups a chance of seeing me -- it's impossible to visit every single school or library that asks for me. So any of you thinking of sending in a pitch for me to my publishers, please note that a willingness to travel (or if you have access to a large venue and you're prepared to help accomodate other groups) will bump you WAY up the waiting list ...

I did a talk and signing in Preston on Friday evening, in a court!! No, not a tennis court -- a court where a judge and jury hear trials!!!!! It was a fun, interesting location, a bit different to my usual type of venue, and I enjoyed the setting tremendously!! It was on to Leeds after that. I got a good night's sleep, while my publicist Geraldine was up dancing the night away with Chris Moyles (heh heh -- sorry, Geraldine, I couldn't resist!!!!). Did two good signings the next day, in Wakefield and Leeds, then went on to Manchester, where I did a big public signing on Sunday at WHSmith in the Arndale centre, then signed stock at 3 more shops later in the day. On Monday we finished up in York, where I did one final school event (I finished with my favourite scene, the hand-biting one from "Cirque Du Freak"), and one last public signing in the afternoon ... and that was that!!! Overall it was an excellent tour -- huge turnouts, lots of copies of "Demon Apocalypse" bought by fans, no crap schools (I usually get at least one stinker, but this time they were all top-notch!), nice hotels, perfect organisation. It was busy, but much less so than my massive "Blood Beast" tour, and I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. Also, because it was half the length of the BB tour, I never got to the stage where I was sick of signing copies of the book! I have to admit, after 3 weeks of writing similar messages in endless copies of BB, I could have quite happily never looked at another copy of that book again!!! But I don't feel that way with "Demon Apocalypse". Maybe I'll stick to the 10 or 11 day tours in future, to keep things more interesting for myself -- I always think that if an author's having fun on the road, that comes through, and people enjoy his events and signings more. I was able to do a lot more talking to people in lines on this tour, because I wasn't as exhausted as I was in the last half of the BB tour four months ago!!!!

As always, endless thanks to Geraldine, Mary, Catherine and Emma for organising the tour, escorting me around, and ensuring everything passed as smoothly as possible. And everybody else who helped out in any way, shape or form along the way -- you're too innumerable to mention, but I appreciate the input of each and every one of you!!! And, of course, my greatest thanks as ever to those of you who turned up to say hello to me, whether you were a long-established fan who'd seen me before (and I met some fans who'd seen me 7or more years ago!!), or a brand new fan who was coming to meet me for the first time. You guys are what it's all about at the end of the day, and as long as you lot keep turning up, so will I!!!!

Got back to London on Monday night, then went to visit Bas's aunt the next day. Mary is a Carmelite nun -- she lives in an enclosed order in a convent near Norwich. We spent a couple of days there, chatting with her and relaxing. It was a nice way to calm down after the tour! We also got to visit Banham zoo, which impressed us both -- if you're in the area, it's definitely worth a visit! We got back to the flat late on Wednesday, then strolled around central London for a while today, before going to see a new version of "Glengarry Glen Ross" at the theatre. Jonathan Pryce is the star. I've seen him before on stage and he was electric, and he was brilliant as usual tonight -- he's one of the most commanding and charismatic actors I've seen live. If you can ever catch him (in anything), do. He could make even the dullest of plays seem like a classic! And in a strong play like GGR, he leaves you feeling dazed and slightly awed.

The tour is over -- and it's been a brilliant one!!! I planned to write up a full report of what I've been up to for the last few days, but it's after 11 at night and I'm exhausted -- so I'm afraid it'll have to wait! And I'm off to spend a couple of days with Bas's aunt (she's a Carmelite nun, who lives in an enclosed order in the middle of nowhere) so it'll be Wednesday night or Thursday before I can get round to it. Sorry -- but that's one of the downsides of life on the road!

Apologies also for not being able to reply to any of your emails over the last ten days or so. As I make clear on my site, I don't respond to most emails, since it's just not possible. But (off the record -- so don't tell anyone!!!) I DO try to reply to at least a few of the more interesting emails that I receive each day. To be honest, most days the emails I get aren't overly exciting -- the vast majority simply want to know more details about the movie (it's as if they think I'm holding back secret info from the general public, but that I'm going to share it exclusively with THEM!!!!), or just say how much they like to read my books (I always love getting feedback like that, but there's not much I can say in the way of a reply, except "Thanks!", and if I said that to every fan who wrote to me saying they liked my books, I'd end up doing little else most days!!!). Sod's Law, of course -- while I've been on tour, there have been quite a lot of interesting emails which I would have normally responded to under different circumstances!!!!! Sadly, there wasn't time while on the road, and saving them to respond later wasn't an option, as that would have meant a backlog of emails, something I try VERY hard never to let happen -- it's bad enough having a backlog of letters, but if I let the emails back up too, I'd be in REAL trouble!!!!! So, sorry if you sent me a thought-provoking email over the last week and a half  but didn't get a response. Unfortunately, unlike Mr Tiny, I can't bend the laws of time ...

Typing this at Gatwick airport, before my flight up to Newcastle, so have to be quick!! The tour's going excellently -- no bad events or signing so far! Did a small but enjoyable school event in Winchester on Tuesday, then signed stock in Waterstones stores in Eastleigh and Portsmouth. Then my publicist Mary and I went to Hayling Island, where we had a nice hour's walk, befor doing a very big public event in the community hall -- I was speaking for almost an hour, then signing for two and a half hours!! It was nearly 11.00pm before we got to Worthing -- a LONG day, but a good one. Today was quieter -- did a nice school event in the morning, then had a break. Went for a walk around Worthing -- the pier and beach were nice, but the highlight for me was finding an old cinema with a pair of 1920s and 1930s projectors in the window -- VERY cool!!!! I love old movies and anything associated with them, especially cameras of the period -- they're works of art in my view!!! After that I did a signing at Waterstones -- was there for an hour, which was a good crowd for a town of Worthing's size. And now I'm about to board my flight -- onwards and upwards!!!!

Went out for a meal with my cousin Davina, her boyfriend Mark and a couple of their friends, and my publicist Emma last night. It was nice to catch up with Davina, and the grub was pretty good too!! Did a good school event in Southampton this morning, then a lunchtime signing at Waterstones. There was a very good crowd for lunch -- a few kids had a half-day, another few skipped school altogether, some others were brought by their teachers, and a lot of Mums, Dads and grandparents also turned up to get books for their young ones. I was there an hour, and also signed plenty of stock. Then I went to Winchester, where I did an evening event. A good crowd, not huge, but very sizeable for a town of Winchester's size. Did a short talk, answered some questions, then signed for everyone -- it took an hour and a half in total. After that myself, Bas and my other publicist, Mary, went to a pub to see Spurs play Aston Villa. With 20 minutes to go, we were losing 4-1, so I left in disgust -- only to find out later that we made a late comeback and drew 4-4!!!!!! I give up -- you just can't win when you're a Spurs fan!!! Demon Apocalypse has been selling like hot cakes on Amazon UK -- the last time I checked, it was Number 1 on the children's chart, and Number 6 on the overall chart!!! That's incredible, even if it's only the first day -- the highest I've ever been on the Amazon chart!! Hopefully it's a good omen for the book's future success ... I'd like to say farewell to Emma, my publicist, who did her last event with me today -- she's moving to another company in a couple of weeks. She's been an important part of the Shan team over the last couple of years, and was always good company on the road. I'll miss her, but wish her well in her new position, and lots of luck in the future. Now I'm off to bed early, before day 4 of the blisteringly paced Apocalypse tour. Night all!!!

Yes, it can finally be revealed -- the title of book 6 is DEMON APOCALPYSE!!!! With as bold and ambitious a title as that, you need a pretty strong story to match, but I don't think this little monstrous baby is going to disappoint too many of you! I had a ball launching it at Bath. I travelled there on Friday and had a nice meal with some of my publishers and fellow authors Nick Butterworth, Louise Rennison and Rob Scotton. On Saturday I rose bright and early and went to the Forum, where I did an interview with radio show Go4it, then met the winners of the Bath competition. We didn't have a huge amount of time together, but I answered as many questions as I could before I was whisked away. Then I did my event, chaired by Damian Kelleher. I read extracts from book 5 and book 6, took some questions from the audience, then did the big reveal -- there were lots of excited gasps and a massive round of applause when the gruesome cover (it's one of my favourites!!) and title were revealed!!! I rounded things off with a reading from the book I was working on earlier this year (I'm keeping it a secret on this blog, in order to heighten the impact when I read the extract out live at events), then signed for 3 hours -- busy busy!!!! After that I went to see Eoin Colfer give a talk -- he was brilliant. Then I went to see Rob Scotton -- it was fun sitting in on an event for little children -- I got to baaaa loudly like a sheep, and some of the kids stared at me as if I was mad!!! Then I went to see Neil Gaiman, which was as neat a way to round off the day as any!!! I drove on to Bournemouth with my publicist Emma, then did a signing at Waterstones this morning -- was in the chair for 3 hours!!! This looks like it's going to be a manic tour, so I'm not sure how often I'll get to update my blog over the next week -- so don't panic if I'm a bit on the quiet side! In the meantime, Book 6 goes on general sale on October 1st in the UK and Ireland, so I guess all that remains to be said is, "I hope you enjoy the APOCALYPSE!!!!!"

Flew over to London this morning, ahead of the UK leg of my upcoming tour. Got to the flat, checked emails, sorted out my flights to and back from Canada, tried to print out details -- printer wasn't working. Finally fixed it. Then did the October issue of the Shanville Monthly and sent out an email to everyone (though lots of fans won't get it for another 6 or 7 hours -- it takes a LONG time to send out emails to a list as long as this one!!!). Got some treats from a noodle house after 9.00pm and had a late dinner while watching "Evan Almighty", which was harmless enough fun -- no classic, but then I don't think there was any danger that it might be! Ideal for late night munching, when you don't want to use your brain too much!!!

And now here I am, at the start of another tour. It seems like only a few weeks since I was saying much the same thing at the start of June, when my "Blood Beast" tour was about to begin!! The last 4 months have whizzed by at a crazy pace. While I'm sure I'll have fun on this tour (it's always a buzz to meet my fans), I have to admit I'm looking forward to some time away from the road after this. Come mid-October, that's it, end of the promotions for a while -- in fact, I don't plan to do any more touring until a short trip to Hungary next April, then probably an Irish and UK tour for Book 7 next June. Famous last words???? I hope not!!! I never like saying no to tours when the opportunities arise, because I know how fortunate I am to be in demand -- there are untold thousands of writers out there who would give their right arm to be able to go on a book tour like mine -- but sometimes you've got to take a break, just to keep things fresh, or you can run out of steam and start operating on miserable auto-pilot, which isn't good for anybody. A winter break from touring, some real time spent writing, and I'm sure I'll be itching to get back on the road by next spring!!! But in the meantime, I have the UK tour to get through, and then the Canadian tour -- so come on, anyone living anywhere near any of the venues where I'll be hitting -- come on out and give me your support, and help me close out the year (touring-wise) on a frenzied, happy high!!!!!!!!

Spent the morning adding more photos to my site. Managed to get through all that I had available, so now I'm officially all-photoed-out!!!! You can check them all out by going to my web site and clicking on the PHOTOS link.

A couple of statues for my garden arrived in the afternoon, so I was busy overseeing the installation of them. (Well, busy fetching cups of tea for those doing the hard work, but "foreman" is a far nicer position than "teaboy"!!!) They're big, gorgeous pieces -- very imposing!!! Although I decided to put one of them down at the end of my garden, and it's rather diminished when viewed from the house. It'll be great when you're up close to it, but people looking at it from my kitchen will be going with mild curiosity, "What's that?" rather than exclaiming "What the hell is THAT?!?!?!" Oh well, too late to change my mind now -- it weighs 560kg, so I can't just move it around willy-nilly!!!!!!!

Time got away from me later. I'd planned to go to with my friend Kenny, but the statues were late arriving and took longer to install than normal, so I had to cancel. I then thought I'd watch a film, visit my parents and grandparents, and have a nice long bath. Nope!!! Wasn't time for that either! I managed to squeeze in a quick visit, but the film and bath had to be forgotten. Instead I packed my bag (I've got two tours almost back-to-back, so I have to make sure I don't forget anything), and made sure I had all the pens, business cards, and everything else I need for life on the road. I THINK I've remembered everything ...

Came across a fun web site the other day. It allows you to virtually "marry" the fictional character of your choice! So if any of you have ever faniced being Mrs Larten Crepsley, Mrs Darren Shan, or Mr Arra Sails, click on the following link and may your nights be long and happy and blessed with freakish joy!!!! MARRY HERE!!!

Spent much of today uploading photos to my web site. I always like looking through old(ish) photos -- they revive lots of happy memories, make me smile when I recall something I haven't thought about in ages, remind me of friends and acquaintances I might not have seen in a long time. In today's case there were photos from my brother Declan's wedding in Cyprus last year ... my tour of the States in April ... holidays to Boston and Italy ... and lots more! You can check them all out (along with my vast library of photos from the last 7 or 8 years) here: PHOTOS LINK

Answered more fan mail tonight. I picked up a load of letters from Pablo at the weekend (including some from my trip to Japan, which had got mixed in with more recent mail -- sorry for the long wait, folks!!). I answered 20 letters last night and another 20 tonight. There are more than 20 still waiting on my shelf -- I'll try to answer them tomorrow, before I set off on tour, but I can't make any promises! As I always say to people who write to me -- you WILL get a reply, but it can take 2 or 3 months sometimes!!! It's usually NOT that long, but it can be -- so be prepared to be patient!!

Saw the movie of "Miami Vice" last night. Very disappointing. I used to like the old TV show, and while that was often all style and little substance, I thought writer/director Michael Mann would bring something new to the mix this time round, given the experience he's accrued since then (on such great films as "Heat" and "Last of the Mohicans"). Sadly, this was as heartless as Lord Loss. While the style was admirable in parts, I didn't give two hoots about any of the characters, and the whole thing just felt hollow. Today, on the other hand, I saw a film with LOTS of depth -- "This is England", a UK film set in 1983, about a young boy who gets linked with a group of skinheads. It's a fascinating look at alienation, friendship, nationalism, and a whole lot more. Like all of Shane Meadows' films to date, this one comes highly recommended by me. It has some flaws, certainly, but its strength far outweigh them.

I'm coming to Canada in less than 3 weeks.

Heh heh -- thought that might throw a few of you!!! Yup, you read it right, Canadian Shansters -- I'll be with you in mid-October!!! I'm coming to Vancouver and Toronto. Sorry for the late notice, but the offer to go came up only very recently, and while I normally like at least a few months in which to warn fans that I'm coming (to give them a chance to try and get me to come to their area), in this instance it was either jump at the opportunity or not get there until at least October 2008. I decided to throw caution to the wind and sign up for the trip -- if it goes well, I can hopefully come again within the next couple of years and give more warning next time. For a list of where I'm going to be and when, click here: CANADA TOUR