Hollywood goes bats for Irish author’s vampire tales

HIS 14 books have sold more than 10 million copies across the world and Hollywood now beckons.

Around the village of Pallaskenry in west Limerick, he’s known as Darren O’Shaughnessy, son of a local school teacher.

But in the publishing world he is ‘Darren Shan’, the blockbuster author of children’s horror books so successful he has begun to collect works by Picasso and Van Gogh.

O’Shaughnessy ventured into children’s books about vampires in 1997. The first series of 12 books was published in 22 languages and sold in 30 countries.

The 33-year-old writer is now into his second series, of which the third book will be published in June.

O’Shaughnessy said: “Both my parents are from Pallaskenry, and they emigrated to London where they got married, and the family moved back to Pallaskenry when I was six. I started writing when I was 14 in my spare time and got myself a typewriter.”

Over the years his books have brought international acclaim. He has used the money to invest in art, buying drawings by Picasso and Van Gogh at Sotheby’s.

He said: “Rather than invest money in stocks and shares I decided to buy nice art which I can look at.”

He and his girlfriend, Helen Basini, share a home near Pallaskenry.

“I spend a lot of time away promoting my books in different parts of to world. But Pallaskenry is home and it’s a lovely place to live,” says O’Shaughnessy.

His mother, Breda, teaches at Askeaton primary school and his dad, Liam, is a school caretaker.

Hollywood now beckons as Universal Studios has bought the film rights of the first series of vampire books. The story revolves around a boy who meets a vampire at a circus and decides to become a vampire.

“The film rights involve a seven-figure sum, but the payment is complicated as you get a small amount up front and only get the bulk if the movie is made,” says O’Shaughnessy.

The author had two adult novels published before embarking on children’s books.

He said: “I decided on the pen name, ‘Darren Shan’ so that people would not confuse my vampire books with the two early adult novels.”