Verbal Magazine

Hell’s Hero

Verbal: Hell’s Heroes, the last Demonata book (tenth in the series) is due for release this month, how does it feel?

DS: It’s nice to have reached the end alive and in one piece! When you start a long series like The Demonata, it’s impossible to know for sure whether or not you’ll be around long enough to round it off! I’m very pleased with how it’s turned out, and excited to be able to share the big finale with fans at last. But now that it’s over, I’m fully focused on what comes next. I don’t believe in standing still and reflecting on the past – I’m always looking forward to the next challenge.

Verbal: What have Demonata fans got to look forward to next from you?

DS: First up, in May 2010, is a one-off fantasy book called The Thin Executioner. It’s a warm, uplifting, life-affirming story…about a boy who wants to chop off people’s heads when he grows up! After that, starting in October 2010, I’m writing a four-book series about Mr Crepsley, the main vampire character in my previous series, The Saga of Darren Shan. The books will cover a span of 200 years, from when he was a child up until when he first met Darren.

Verbal: Some of your books can be really gory, have you ever had any complaints from parents?

DS: I’m very careful not to exceed my own carefully laid boundaries – I think very carefully about how I deal with violence – so even though my books are incredibly gory, I have had virtually no complaints over the years, because everyone can see that the violence is there for a purpose, and that the books aren’t about the glorification of violence, but rather a way of exploring how it impacts on our lives.

Verbal: You can be really hard on your characters. Do you ever worry (when you’re killing a major character off in some bloody way, for example) about the reactions of fans?

DS: Nope! I think that’s one of the things readers like so much in my books — you never know who’s going to survive from one book to the next! It all goes back to something I said in the very first chapter of Cirque Du Freak — real life is cruel, and evil sometimes triumphs. I always try to apply the rules of the real world to my books, and since I write about battles and times of great danger, that means logically there are going to be casualties. I think many writers cheat with books like this, and either don’t kill off anyone, or only kill off minor characters who nobody really cares about. Above all else, my books are honest.

Verbal: I’ve read that you’re a huge film buff (with over 2,000 films in your collection), how did you feel when you realised that The Saga of Darren Shan was actually going to be made into a movie? (The movie adaptation, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant opens on October 23rd.)

DS: I’ve actually got over 4,000 films! I was delighted when the film went ahead. I have the same view of movie adaptations as Stephen King, my favourite author. I think they’re a great way of bringing in new readers. It’s always a struggle to convince reluctant readers to give books a try, and a movie can help poke them in the direction of the book it was based on. You can’t underestimate the impact of a movie on driving up the number of readers, and I think it’s foolish for any writer to turn their back on that possibility. In fact I’d go so far as to say it’s arrogant — “I only care about people who read books purely out of a love of reading. To hell with everyone else!” I’m not like that. I look upon non-readers as black sheep, and welcome them into the fold when they give reading a chance.

As for the movie, yes I’ve seen it, and I do like it. The writer-director Paul Weitz had his own vision of what it should be, and he made dramatic changes to both the structure and cast of the books, but it has the same dark, freaky atmosphere of the books, and deals with the same main themes. It’s fast-paced and action-packed, and the sets and effects are mind-boggling.

Verbal: You’re incredibly prolific, is writing a compulsion with you? Do you never think, ‘right, that’s the next few years sorted – I’m taking a break!’

DS: At the moment I’m releasing three new books every year, two for children, one for adults (I also write for older readers, and have published two novels so far, Procession of the Dead and Hell’s Horizon. I work in plenty of relaxing time too — I don’t believe in working too hard and having no fun! But I don’t want to take a few years off. I’d get bored if I did, but also that would mean having to start again from scratch when I came back. I have a nice rhythm going which I’d like to continue as long as I can.

Verbal: You’re a hugely successful children’s author, but you originally started writing (and still write) for adults. Do you feel that the huge success of the kids’ books has overshadowed your adult novels to an extent?

DS: Definitely. But it’s not something I feel bitter about in any way. The way I see it, I’ve been extremely lucky in one area of my working life, so it would be petty in the extreme to moan because I haven’t been equally successful in the other area. Having said that, my adult books have started to attract a growing audience over the last couple of years, so maybe their day is coming…

Verbal: You took part in Anthony Gormley’s One & Other installation on the Fourth Plinth in August, how did that come about and what was it like?

DS: Every participant is chosen at random from the tens of thousands of people who volunteered. Being a fan of Gormley’s work, I put my name in months ago, and luckily my name came out of the hat. Given that I write horror books, I particularly liked nabbing the midnight slot! But that was pure chance…or maybe the working of destiny…

Verbal: This interview is for the Halloween issue of our magazine, what will you be doing for Halloween this year?

DS: I don’t feel like I need to dress up — I wear my horror suit on the inside every day! I’ll be celebrating Halloween in Orlando this year. I’m going there on a holiday, but there’s a Cirque Du Freak show on at the Halloween Horror Nights in Universal Studios, so I’ll be casting a professional eye about as well.

Verbal: And finally, when was the last time you were properly scared and why?

DS: I actually find that as I get older, I’m easier to scare, because I’m more aware of death and the possibility of popping my clogs at any given moment! I always get a fright on a plane when we hit turbulence or the engines start making funny noises. I know it’s the safest form of travel, but that doesn’t help much when a plane is bucking around at 30,000 feet like a bronco horse!

Hell’s Heroes is published by Harper Collins and is in all good bookshops now.

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