GREETINGS!
click on card
for xmas
greeting from
darren shan
Welcome to the
December edition
of the Shanville
Monthly!!! And
what a Christmas
issue it is!!
I've some news
snippets to
offer up this
month which will
beat any number
of presents
under your tree
on Christmas
Day!!! First,
there's some
incredibly
exciting news
about the
long-in-the-pipeline
Cirque Du
Freak movie.
After a lengthy
spell in
development, it
finally looks to
be moving
forward, with
filming
scheduled to
start in New
Orleans next
February!! Some
actors have
already been
cast, and
they're
provoking plenty
of debate on my
message
boards!!!
Personally I'm
delighted with
the choices so
far, and very
excited by the
thought that
appears to have
gone into the
selection
process -- these
guys really seem
to be coming at
the books from a
sharp,
imaginative,
dare I say
freakish
angle!! A lot of
book adaptations
fail because the
people turning
them into movies
don't truly
understand the
books, and
therefore aren't
equipped to
capture the
mood, the
atmosphere that
makes them
special. Every
movie-maker must
make changes
when adapting a
work. It doesn't
really matter if
they cut
characters or
storyline or
change things
around -- that's
par for the
course. But the
really good film
folk never lose
track of what
made the books
work, and they
hold on to the
vibe of
the piece. That
seems to be
happening here,
so I'm looking
forward
optimistically!!!!
I'm also
announcing the
title of Book 7
of The
Demonata
this month, as
well as details
of a slight
change to the UK
publication
schedule which
I'm sure will
come as great
news to my more
impatient
fans!!! As if
that's not
enough, I've
added my
Demon Apocalypse
notes to the
site at last,
along with
loads of new
covers,
interviews,
photos and
reviews. And
I've even thrown
in probably my
most
wide-ranging
competition
ever!!!!! It's
Christmas, O
loyal and
bloodthirsty
ones, done up a
freakish,
blood-red treat,
as only Darren
Shan knows
how!!!!!!
LIGHTS! CAMERA!!
CIRQUE DU FREAK!!!
It's been a long
time coming, but
I'm delighted to
be able to
announce that
the Cirque
Du Freak
movie is due
to begin filming
in February
2008!!! This is
the official
announcement
from Universal,
the company
making the film:
“Cirque du Freak” by Darren Shan – Movie
Announcement
The
“Cirque du
Freak” series of
bestselling
children’s
novels by Irish
author Darren
Shan has been
acquired by
Universal
Pictures and
will be adapted
for a motion
picture of the
same name. The
film is due to
begin shooting
in February 2008
in New Orleans
under the
direction of
Paul Weitz
(About A Boy, In
Good Company),
and will star
John C. Reilly
(Gangs of New
York, Walk Hard:
The Dewey Cox
Story) as Larten
Crepsley; Josh
Hutcherson
(Bridge to
Terabithia) as
Steve Leonard;
and newcomer
Chris J Kelly as
Darren Shan.
Weitz is
adapting some of
the storylines
from the novels
for the screen.
He and Lauren
Shuler Donner
(X-Men) will
produce for
their production
companies, Depth
of Field and The
Donner's
Company.
There's not much
more for me to
add, except --
whoopee!!!!
There's no
telling how the
film will turn
out, but I think
it's in very
safe, capable
hands, and I'm
really excited
about the cast
so far. I've
seen Josh
Hutcherson in a
number of films
(most recently
R.V. with
Robin Williams),
and I've been a
BIG John C
Reilly fan since
I saw him in
Boogie Nights
-- he never
seems to put in
anything but an
excellent
performance. I
know some fans
are perturbed,
since they've
only seen him in
the recent
comedy films
that he's been
in, but those
with more
knowledge of his
work will know
that he's done
all sorts of
movies --
dramatic,
serious and
scary.
No release date
has yet been set
for the movie,
so ignore any
online rumours
you might come
across. As soon
as I know
anything more
about that, and
about other cast
members, I'll
include the info
in the Shanville
Monthly -- I
plan to keep
fans regularly
updated over the
next few months.
You can also
look up
Cirque Du Freak
on
www.imdb.com
-- that's where
you'll be able
to find details
about the crew.
Plus, I've
created a
Message Board
especially for
it, where fans
can chat about
the cast, crew,
and anything
else thay have a
mind to. You can
find it here:
FILM FORUM
I know a lot of
you have been
dreaming of a
Cirque Du Freak
movie for a
number of years
-- I've received
emails and
letters about it
virtually every
day since the
first book was
published back
in January 2000!
Now, at last,
the dream is
poised to become
a reality. I
hope you're all
as psyched about
the news as I
am!!!
BOOK 7 TITLE
REVEAL
I know I made
you all wait
until
publication to
reveal the title
of Book 6 of
The Demonata,
but I'm
delighted to be
able to reveal
the title of
Book 7 a lot
earlier. In
fact, several
months earlier.
In fact ...
NOW!!!!! Yes
folks, there's
no need to wait
on tenter hooks
any longer, as I
can reveal that
the title for
Book 7 of The
Demonata is
...
DEATH'S SHADOW
As you can tell
from the cheery
title, this is a
lighthearted
departure, in
which Lord Loss
discovers his
more sensitive
side and puts
aside his
differences with
the Disiples;
they all go off
on a picnic; and
end up thwarting
a gang of
smugglers and
adopting a dog
called Woofie.
Yeah, right!!!!!
No, rest assured
book 7 is a
frantic,
blood-drenched
romp of a book,
with all sorts
of mean, nasty,
vicious villains
on the loose!
Books 5 and 6
served to bring
together all the
various
story-lines and
characters of
the first 4
books. Now the
main story kicks
in and we begin
to see just how
high the stakes
really are, and
just how
difficult it's
going to be for
ANY of the
characters to
walk out alive
at the end of
this series.
Things were bad
before. but
they're about to
get worse. A
HELL of a lot
worse ...
BOOK 7 -
SCHEDULE CHANGE
And the good
news about Book
7 doesn't stop
there!!! As
long-time fans
in the UK and
Ireland know,
the release
dates for the
series so far
have been June
and October.
That has now
been adjusted
slightly, which
I'm very pleased
about, since I
felt 8 months
was a very long
wait, and 4
months was too
short!!! Book
7 will now
be released in
May 2008
-- one month
earlier than
planned, so you
have one month
less to wait for
it!!! Book 8
will be released
as previously
planned, in
October 2008.
Then Books 9
and 10
will come out in
May 2009
and October
2009
respectively.
There's also
good news for
those of you who
prefer to buy
the paperback
versions too.
Book 5 comes out
in paperback in
January 2008 as
planned, then
book 6 in May
2008. But Book 7
will be
published in
October 2008
instead of
January 2009,
meaning THREE of
the books will
be published in
paperback in
2008 -- hurrah!!
After that, Book
8 comes out in
May 2009, Book 9
in October 2009,
and Book 10 in
May 2010.
SIGNED COPIES
The web site
Play.com
still has some
signed copies of
Demon
Apocalypse
for sale
on their web
site -- and it
actually costs
less than the
unsigned
edition!!! These
are genuine,
validated
signatures -- I
signed the books
exclusively for
Play at the
start of my tour
at the beginning
of October. They
were actually
the very first
books that I
signed during
the tour!!!
Stocks are
limited, so if
you want to get
hold of a signed
copy of
Demon
Apocalypse,
my advice is to
act swiftly!!!!
You can find it
by clicking
here:
BUY A SIGNED
COPY OF DEMON
APOCALYPSE
DEMON
APOCALYPSE
NOTES
I've
finally
added my
notes for
Demon
Apocalypse
to my site,
in which I
talk about
the creation
of the book
and how it
helped me
figure out
the overall
shape of the
series. Book
6 is one of
the most
crucial of
the series,
and I hope
the notes
help shed
some light
on how
everything
came
together and
began to
make sense.
I would warn
readers,
these notes
contain
MAJOR PLOT
SPOILERS!!!!!
I very
seriously
recommend
you NOT to
read the
notes UNTIL
you have
read book 6.
If you
ignore my
advice,
you'll spoil
quite a few
of the
book's plot
twists for
yourself.
For those
who HAVE
read Book 6,
click on the
following
link to find
the notes
about it,
and about
all of my
other
Demonata
books too:
DEMONATA
BOOK NOTES
DAVE FANNING
SHOW
Dave
Fanning
is one of
Ireland's
longest-standing
and (if you're
an indie fan)
best DJs. I
listened to him
all the time in
my mid-to-late
teens, and still
count myself as
a fan. I was
recently asked
to go on his
show and talk
about one of my
all-time
favourite
albums, and
select a few
tracks from it.
I picked "Trompe
Le Monde" by
The
Pixies.
The interview
was broadcast on
Halloween, and,
with the songs,
it runs for over
22 minutes.You
can hear the
full interview
(and four great
tracks by The
Pixies) by
clicking on this
link:
DAVE FANNING
INTERVIEW
NEW COVERS
I've added the
German
covers for
Blood Beast
and
Demon
Apocalypse
to my web site
(many thanks,
Gyuszi, for
supplying me
with them!!!).
Since they won't
be published
until 2008, I've
added the images
to Secret
Shanville. Click
here for them:
GERMAN COVERS
I've also added
the
Hungarian
cover for
Blood Beast
to my site.
Click here for
it:
HUNGARY BLOOD
BEAST
NEW INTERVIEWS
I've added
LOTS
of new
interviews
to my web
site,
including a
selection of
reports
about the
film news
which was
announced
mid-November.
You can find
them (along
with loads
of other
interviews
with me) by
clicking
here:
NEW
INTERVIEWS
NEW
REVIEWS
I've
added
several new
reviews of
Blood
Beast
to my site,
along with
the first
couple of
reviews of
Demon
Apocalypse,
and some new
reviews of
Slawter
and
Bec
too. To
check them
all out,
click on the
ink here:
NEW REVIEWS
NEW
PHOTOS
I've added a
new folder
of photos to
my site,
from a
holiday I
went on to
Florida in
October and
November.
You can
check them
out (along
with lots of
others) by
clicking
here:
NEW PHOTOS
SHOPS
It's
shameless,
self-promoting
plug
time!!!!!
Christmas is
a special,
loving,
peaceful
time of
year, blah
blah blah,
but we all
know that
the real
reason it
exists is so
that people
can buy lots
of copies of
my books,
either for
themselves
or as
presents!!
So make sure
you stock up
on lots of
Shan titles
this
yuletide, or
I'll sic a
reindeer-shaped
demon on
you!!!!!
Seriously,
if you ARE
looking to
get any of
my books
this
Christmas,
you should
be able to
find copies
in your
nearest book
store, but
in case you
can't, or
prefer
buying
online, or
want to
check first
to find out
names of my
books and
how many are
on sale, you
can visit
the SHOPS on my
web site,
which list all the
various
editions
(hardbacks,
paperbacks
and audio
CDs) of my
books which
are
available in
the UK or
USA.
I have two
different
shops, one
for my
vampire
books, one
for my demon
books. The
links for
each are
below:
MESSAGE
BOARD TWEAKS
I've
cleaned
up the
Darren
Shan
Message
Board,
merging
the
forums
for
The
Demonata
to make
it
easier
for fans
to chat
about
the
books.
Since
Blood
Beast
is now
available
in all
English
language
countries,
I've
grouped
the
first
five
books of
the
series
together,
so you
will
need to
read
Blood
Beast
in order
to
access
the
forum. I
know
this
might be
a bit of
a
nuisance
for
those of
you who
have not
yet read
the
fifth
book --
but,
looking
on the
bright
side, I
think it
gives
you an
extra
little
incentive
to crack
on and
read it
as soon
as
possible!!
You can
visit
the
Message
Board by
clicking
here:
MESSAGE
BOARD
JANUARY
EVENT
Although
I won't
be
touring
properly
until
April
and May
(when I
travel
to
Hungary
for a
few
days,
then
launch
into my
UK tour
for
Death's
Shadow),
I'm
doing a
one-off
event at
a London
school
in
January.
I'll be
at St
Michaels
School
in
Bermondsey,
London
on
Thursday
January
17th.
This was
supposed
to be
part of
my
October
2007
tour,
but had
to be
cancelled
at the
last
minute,
so I'm
delighted
to be
able to
go there
now --
better
late
than
never!!
SHANTA
CLAUS
You
better
be good
... you
better
not cry
... or
Shanta
Claus
will rip
you open
and feed
your
guts to
his
reindeer!!!!!
Yes,
folks,
it's
that
time of
year
again,
when
Shanta
rises
reluctantly
and
heads
off for
his
meeting
with
some of
the
characters
from the
world of
Darren
Shan!
This is
my
personal
favourite
out of
all the
short
stories
that
I've
written
over the
years --
but
since
it's a
Christmas
tale, I
only put
it up on
my site
at
Christmas
time!! I
usually
edit it
a bit
from
year to
year, to
keep it
fresh. I
haven't
decided
for
certain
how I'll
tweak it
this
time
round,
but I
wouldn't
be
surprised
if we
see a
cameo
from one
or two
charcters
from
The
Demonata
...
I'll be
putting
the
story
online a
week or
so
before
Christmas
at
THIS
LINK,
but
there's
nothing
much
there at
the
moment!!
You can
check
back
closer
to
Christmas,
but I'll
also be
sending
out a
link to
everyone
who is
on my
Secret
Shanville
list --
so if
you
haven't
joined
the
Shanster
club
yet,
this is
the
ideal
time to
do
so!!!!
CLICK
HERE TO
BECOME A
SHANSTER
then sit
back and
wait for
Shanta
to drop
down
your
computer's
virtual
chimney
later in
the
month
.....
COMPETITION
Let's
end the
year on
a nice
competitive
high!!
I'm
running
probably
the
biggest
competition
I've
ever run
on
Shanville,
with
more
prizes
up for
grabs
than
ever
before!!!
I
recently
noticed
that I
had
extra
copies
of
certain
books
from
certain
countries,
and
rather
than
shove
them
away in
a
cupboard
somewhere,
I
decided
to
sign
them all
and
offer
them up
as
prizes.
The
competition
will
only be
open to
people
in the
countries
which I
have
books
for, but
there
are
thirteen
countries
in total
(and
Hong
Kong!),
so that
covers
most of
the
globe!!!!
Fans in
the
following
countries
will be
eligible
for
entry:
Canada,
China,
Czech
Republic,
Finland,
Germany,
Korea,
Netherlands,
Sweden,
Taiwan
and Hong
Kong,
Thailand,
UK and
Ireland,
U.S.A.
You need
to click
on the
following
link for
Secret
Shanville
(and
become a
Shanster
if you
haven't
joined
already)
to enter
the
competition.
You can
also
find out
the full
list of
prizes
and the
rules
and
guidelines
there.
CLICK
HERE TO
ENTER
COMPETITION
IT'S A WRAP
And
that's it for
December -- and,
indeed, 2007 -- not
a bad little year!!! I'll
be sending out an
email to all my
registered Shansters
a week or so before
Christmas with a
link to the
Shanta Claus
story. I'll also
take that
opportunity to wish
you all a merry
Christmas and give
you any film updates
that might crop up
over the coming
weeks. I'll be back
in the New Year with
the first 2008 issue
of the Shanville
Monthly. In the
meantime, be extra
good this month,
enjoy your Christmas
break, and try not
to OD on turkey!!!!! All
my
bloody best,
Darren Shan x x x
