I’m sorry I didn’t manage a January blog but things have got even busier than ever. I’ve finished the ‘Spook’s Bestiary’ but the artist, Julek Heller needs a year to complete his drawings. I’ve just received a few of his first line drawings of witches - the lamias are brilliant so it will all be well worth waiting for. Hopefully the book is going to be something really special.

That unexpected delay has caused me problems though. ‘The Spook’s Bestiary’ won’t be published until 2010; that means I have to come up with an extra book to fill the autumn 2009 publishing slot! So in addition to writing Spook’s Seven, which will partly be set in the Isle of Man, I am also writing a collection of short stories about the Wardstone Witches. I’m enjoying the writing but I’ve only until the end of March to complete all five of them!

So far there is no more film news but I’ll let you know when I hear anything. Thanks for all of your replies to my last blog. I’m sorry that I can’t reply individually but I do note what you say. Firstly thanks for all your suggestions regarding actors who could play the Spook. Some of you agree with me; others have come up with lots of good alternatives. I’ve made a list of the names suggested and I’ll email them off to the producer.

Most comments I receive about the series are favourable but I don’t mind criticisms which find fault if it helps me to write a better book next time. One of you suggested that it’s a mistake to carry on a series for too long because it can become repetitive and that I should quit whilst I‘m ahead. I agree and I‘m keeping a close eye on that because I‘m aware of that danger. At the moment when I write one book I start to get ideas for the next. If the ideas start to dry up I’ll bring the series to an end. I do want to end it properly with a final struggle between Tom, the Spook, Alice and the Fiend.

World Book Day is almost here and I’ll be doing events during the first two weeks in March. One event is at Crosby Civic Hall with Mark Walden (both of us are doing morning and afternoon sessions). He is the writer I’m sharing the flip-book with and has come up with another story from the Hive Series. My half is called ‘The Spook’s Tale’ and is about Tom Ward’s master John Gregory and his early encounters with the dark. So to answer the question included in one of your replies, ‘The Spook’s Tale’ is a prequel to the series.

The group of young actors from the Paul Nicholas School will also be reading extracts from ‘The Spook’s Apprentice’. So it’s a chance to see excerpts from the first ever dramatisation of the book

Most of the events are in schools and just one is open to the public: Friday March 6th at Borders in Preston. I’ll be giving a talk then signing afterwards.

Thanks and best wishes to you all

Joseph Delaney