Day 10 of the tour marks almost the mid-point -- it's a 21 day tour, so I suppose officially the middle comes halfway through tomorrow -- but this is close enough to it for me to celebrate!!!

Had another good day in Texas. The panel event that I did at the festival in the morning was fun. I read out some of the "Guyifesto" that I wrote for the book "Guys write for Guys read". It was the first time I'd read the piece out, and I have to say I really enjoyed it -- a lot different to what I normally do at an event!!! There were three other writers on stage with me, and a moderator. We all read a bit, then answered questions. It was slightly embarrassing, since most of the questions were directed at me, and were about my own books, not the "Guys" book!!! It was flattering, of course, to be the focus of attention, but I always feel a bit uneasy when that happens (OK -- it's only happened once or twice, but then I've only done a very few panel events!). I don't like to talk about my own work when I'm sharing a stage with other writers -- it's not fair on them, and I know I wouldn't like it if the positions were reversed. So I tried to open the questions up, to include the others, or else answered very briefly.

Signed for about 40 minutes after the event, then did a solo event in the Capitol building. It's a lovely old building (well, old by American standards!), but quite a maze inside. I'm surprised any of my fans were able to find their way to the room where I was!!!! Had a good crowd, and answered lots of questions. Then signed for another 40 or so minutes. My overall impression of the festival is favourable. Apart from the poor communication in terms of them telling me what they wanted me to do, it was very well set-up, with a huge team working to facilitate score-loads of writers. There were loads of people at it, and plenty of copies of books to buy. I certainly wouldn't say no if I was ever invited again while I was over here on a tour.

Had a couple of hours to relax. Packed my bag (I got some laundry done today -- hurrah!! I'll smell nice and clean for the next half of the tour!), then went to do another event at the Book People shop. A nice event, with a good crowd for a Saturday evening. I read my "Lord Loss" extract again. I've been focusing on that more than any of my other pieces, since it's such a powerful chunk of text, and since that's really the book I'm here to promote. I was a bit worried that some parents might think it was too bloody for younger kids, but I've had no negative feedback so far.

Went for a Mexican meal (probably my last of the tour, since I'm heading north after this) with Jennifer and Sabrina. They're great company -- we had lots of laughs together, and ended up telling each other dirty jokes and talking about dubious sexual practices!!!!! That's the side of Darren Shan the fans don't see on tour. I might look sweet and innocent at my events, but it's all a facade, Shansters -- away from the limelight, I'm a crude, rude, foul-mouthed dude!!!!!!!!!!

:-)