A Co Wexford schoolteacher has just won the largest advance paid to an unknown writer in Britain and looks set to knock Harry Potter off the top of the best-sellers' list.
Mr Eoin Colfer (35), a teacher at Coolcotts National School in Wexford, was in London yesterday signing a publishing contract for Artemis Fowl - the tale of a 12-year-old "criminal mastermind" and his adventures with fairies, leprechauns and the world of magic.
Penguin has secured rights to the book in a contract said to be worth £500,000 sterling, and a £350,000 sterling film option was secured by a production company in which Robert de Niro has an interest.
The advance compares with that paid to the then unknown J.K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter, of just £2,800.
Mr Colfer was not contactable yesterday, but his mother, Ms Noreen Colfer, said everyone was "very excited" by the success.
Mr Colfer's first children's book, Benny and Omar, was published by O'Brien Press in 1998 and was an immediate success. The sequel, Benny and Babe, was published in January 1999 and knocked Harry Potter off the top of the Irish best-sellers' list last Christmas.
Mr Colfer sent the book to Penguin about two months ago. Then followed a "publishing and film frenzy" at the Frankfurt Books Fair. His agent, Ms Sophie Hicks, said Artemis Fowl was very different to Harry Potter, "but just as appealing".
Rowling's wealth has been estimated at £56,000 a day.
Mr Colfer lives in Wexford with his wife Jackie and young son, Finn.
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