Children’s author discusses The Birth of a Killer

WORLD-renowned children’s author, Darren Shan, was in Ennis this week speaking to schoolchildren about his latest book, The Birth of a Killer and busy signing and encouraging children to keep writing for fun.
He met with schoolchildren from across the country in Glór on Friday and treated them to a unique reading of excerpts of his new book aSwell as answering their questions on his book and on being an author.
Darren Shan’s real name is Darren O’Shaughnessy and although he is a Limerick man, he was born 38 years ago in London. At the age of six, he moved to Pallaskenry, County Limerick, with his parents and younger brother, and has lived there ever since.
He went to primary school in Askeaton, where his mother was a teacher, then on to secondary school in Copsewood College in Pallaskenry. Later, he went back to London to study Sociology and English at Roehampton University. He then worked for a cable television company in Limerick for a couple of years, before setting up as a full-time writer at the age of 23.
Although Shan always wanted to be a writer, it was only in his teenage years that he began writing in his spare time for fun. He bought his first typewriter when he was 14 and never looked back, knocking out loads of short stories and comic scripts and making false starts on several books, which he never completed. He enjoyed his first taste of literary success at age 15, as a runner-up in a television script-writing competition for RTÉ, with a dark comedy script titled A Day in the Morgue.
Shan was 17 when he finished his first novel. Although it was never published, he relished the writing experience and found himself focusing more on novels in the coming years.
For the next several years, sandwiched between university and work, he wrote an average of one book a year, experimenting with different ideas, genres, lengths and styles. When he started writing full-time, his output shot up to five to six books every year.
His early books were adult-oriented. Although he quite liked the idea of writing a children’s book one day, he considered himself an adult writer first and foremost.
In January 2000, his first children’s book, Cirque du Freak, which he’d written as a fun side-project, was published. The first book in a series titled The Saga of Darren Shan, it attracted great reviews and an ever-growing army of fans hungry to learn more about vampires. He enjoyed writing for children so much that for the next several years he focused almost exclusively on his books for younger readers.
Shan has recently returned to writing for adults as well. He has had two adult books published in the UK, Procession of the Dead and Hell’s Horizon. They have been released in a number of other countries too and hit the USA earlier this year.
By now, Shan’s books are on sale in every continent, in 40 countries, in 31 languages and have been children’s bestsellers in America, Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands and Norway among others. The books have topped adult bestseller charts in Hungary, Japan and Taiwan. In total, Shan’s books have sold close to 15 million copies worldwide.
The movie rights to Cirque Du Freak were bought by Universal, and the first movie Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant (which combines elements from the first three books in the series) was released last October 2009.
His latest book, Birth of a Killer, is the first book in a four-part series, and the author explained that it is geared and young readers, from about 10 years up to older teenagers.
“The book is quite dark and is definitely thought-provoking. I spoke to the children here in Glór about the book and they had great questions, which showed how much they’d read my books and were keen to read more. For me, that’s what it’s all about, getting positive feedback from my readers and seeing firsthand that they’re enjoying my stories, as much as I enjoyed writing them. The children were so enthusiastic and a number of them were genuinely interested in writing,” the author said.
He added that many of the children wanted to know had he always wanted to be a writer.
“The honest answer to that is that I always loved writing and knew I’d always write stories but not that I’d manage to have it as a career. I’m lucky that I’m doing something that I love. But like all little boys, I had great plans for what I’d be when I grew up – a vet, an astronaut and for a phase that went on too long the Bionic Man, which I haven’t quite grown out of yet,” he commented.
Shan also said that some of the children wanted to know what they should do be become a writer. “That’s a question that I’m often asked. I always tell people that the more you write, the better you become. There’s no quick route to success, just keep at it, never let your head drop, and don’t give up. People think that they don’t know how they’ll come up with ideas but the truth is that everyone has ideas. I get my ideas from the same place as everyone else.
I get ideas from things I see in real life, movies, TV shows, books and comics that I read, from dreams, while travelling, while lying in the bath or sitting at my desk. Writers are no different to anyone else when it comes to having ideas. We simply train ourselves to make more use of those ideas, to turn them into stories. You do that by working hard, asking questions of ideas when you have then, bouncing them off of other ideas and by writing, writing and writing. The more you write, the more you’ll find yourself able to deal with ideas when you have them,” he remarked.
He does believe in the importance of children reading but doesn’t agree with them being made to read. “In general, all children like to read but it becomes a chore for them if they’re made read. Left alone, children will read but they have to read because they enjoy it, because it’s simply fun for them. Let them read whatever they want to read, even if it seems like rubbish to an adult, because the main thing is that they are reading, seeing how words can be used creatively and seeing how ideas translate into stories. Everyone has an imagination, it’s about cultivating that imagination and letting it go wherever it wants.”
Children at the event in Glór were full of praise for Shan’s books and for him.
Stephen Howard, 12, from O’Briensbridge, a sixth-class pupil in Bridgetown National School said that he is Darren’s biggest fan and has read all of his books.
“He is an extraordinary writer. He is definitely a role model to a lot of us, including me. He said to us here today that we shouldn’t give up if our writing is turned down and to keep trying until we get it right. I love writing. Every year in our school, we take part in the Write a Book competition and it’s great encouragement for us to write and to try it. Reading is wonderful. A good book can change your mood completely. Once I get into a good book, it’s nearly impossible to put it down. I read every night for at least an hour. Darren Shan, in my opinion, is the best writer,” he said.
His friend, David O’Shea, also from Bridgetown National School, is another big fan of the author. “His books are the best ones I’ve read. They are very exciting and are really well written and use language in a very clever way. I haven’t read his latest book yet but I’ve read the others and they’re all very good. There isn’t one I didn’t like. The stories are very imaginative in the way he makes up all the names and develops a plot right through – they’re seriously brilliant. I love writing too and I try really hard at it. I read every night too,” David commented.
Gearóid Reddy, another sixth-class pupil from Bridgetown National School, said they were all really lucky to meet Darren.
“It was unbelievable to get to meet him today and hear him talk about his books and being a writer. We’ve all read his books and it was brilliant to hear him explain some of the things about writing to us so well. His stories really grab your attention, because they are written so well and are so imaginative.
I find reading them is so enjoyable. Before I go to sleep every night, I read for a good while and it’s very relaxing. I’ve been doing that for years. I can’t wait to read his other books because I’ve read all of the rest and they were brilliant. I’m going to read this one very quickly and then read it again and again. I know it will be great,” Gearóid said.