As I type this, there are just over 48 hours left of my Terrified Troll fundraising campaign, in which YOU can help support the creation of the first ever Darren Shan picture book!! You have until the end of Wednesday (Irish time) to pre-order a copy of the signed, numbered, limited edition hardback of the book. There are also incredible PERKS up for grabs -- limited edition art prints, the chance to have a Zoom chat with me, or even meet me in the flesh and hang out for a couple of hours!!

To whet your appetite, here's a world exclusive look at some of the images from the book's storyboard, which the artist Eva Byrne has produced to act as a template for the finished book. To be clear, these are not finished pages -- they're roughs, in which Eva has sketched out the story visually.

In the first pic, our titular troll cuddles ROCKY, its favourite toy. But what creatures could be casting those ominous shadows at the bottom of the panel?!?

The second features some of the troll's classmates (and a teacher) at the James Whale Night School For The Universally Gifted.

The third focuses on the Banshee, a mischievous central character who sets the story in motion -- but how?!?

Finally, we have one of my favourite panels from the storyboard. When we were working out this page of the storyboard, all I did was ask Eva for a drawing of some mountains -- I wasn't looking for anything special. But she came back with WAY more than I'd asked -- it's almost as if she's chanelled Vancha Marcha and drawn Vampire Mountain from HIS perspective!!!

Anyway, as I said, you have until the close of play on Wednesday to place your pre-order or purchase a perk. To do that -- or if you just want to learn a bit more about the book -- click here: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-bring-our-troll-to-life#/