***Some letters from fans take a while to compose, but are worth waiting for! This one from XAVIER is a case in point, and made my heart throb with joy when I read it...***

Dear Mr. Shan,

My name is Xavier. I've been trying to figure out how to write this correspondence for about 14 years now. It began as a letter I first tried to write at 10 years old, back in 2010. I never could put together the right words to say. Now, as a young adult in his mid 20's, I've decided to take another shot expressing my gratitude.

I guess I'll start at the beginning and I promise not to take too much of your time. I was 10 years old in a new school district with new people and no friends. Our teacher took us to the massive school library. Well it wasn't massive, I was just small. I wandered around not finding anything and feeling discouraged until I stumbled upon Demon Thief. It was the only book of yours on the shelf at that time. I was so excited! I finished that book in 2 days. I can't even explain my excitement when I found out there were NINE MORE books! I ended up finishing that series withing a few months.

I saw myself in Grubbs, and, in fact, I found pieces of myself in many of your characters. From Dervish, to Bec, to Bill-E all the way to Bran/Beranabus (holy plot twist by the way!!). Each character showed me bits in pieces of myself and helped me grow as a person.

But after finishing the series, now what? The Saga of Darren Shan, that's what! Unfortunately, my school library didn't carry those. That didn't stop me though, I had them special order every single one of those books until I finished that series! That series showed me what it really meant to be courageous, selfless, and how to face my fears. From there, I moved onto my favorite novel of all time, The Thin Executioner. What a piece of literature! It was so amazing, that I bought the novel for my girlfriend to read recently!

Now you may be asking, why am I telling you all of this? There are so many people out there with my story, what's so different about mine? As an adult, I was diagnosed with ADHD and High Functioning Autism. Through therapy, I've been learning a lot about myself, especially my childhood. My mom was dealing with substance abuse and wasn't that present, my dad wasn't a big factor in my life, and my step-dad didn't want to overstep so he never really contributed to my personal development. And if you recall from earlier in the email, I had just moved to the district and I had a lot of trouble making friends. My point is, your books helped me develop my imagination, sense of self, and so much more. I imagine that’s exactly what you hope to achieve as an author, crafting characters that resonate with readers in such personal and profound ways.

I'm proud to say that I am the Vice President of one of the largest school districts in my state, and I also work in the State Assembly leading the charge on productive change. Keeping everything in perspective, I wouldn't be where I am today without you. So thank you for helping me become me.

Recently, I’ve started reading Archibald Lox, and I’m already captivated by the world you’ve created. It’s incredible how, after all these years, your stories still have the power to draw me in and spark my imagination. I’m excited to dive deeper into this new series and see where it takes me.

Best regards,

Xavier