Best-selling author Eoin Colfer to write new Iron Man novel

Best-selling Irish author Eoin Colfer, internationally recognised for his Artemis Fowl series, is set to team up with Marvel to write the next Iron Man novel.

American publisher Marvel announced that the Irish Laureate for Children’s Books “will present an electrifying new take on the Marvel universe’s most famous billionaire super hero, Tony Stark, in a towering tale of armor and adventure”.

The new Iron Man novel is due to be published in autumn 2016.

Colfer will join authors Margaret Stohl, Tom Angleberger, Shannon Hale and Dean Hale in writing five new young adult novels for Marvel to be published next year.

In a statement, the publisher said readers should prepare to “strap-in and enjoy these new adventures from some of the most critically-acclaimed authors working today”.

A former schoolteacher, Eoin Colfer lives in Wexford with his wife and two sons. The author's first novel, Benny and Omar, was published in 1998 and became an immediate bestseller.

In an interview with The Telegraph this week, Colfer announced that the Artemis Fowl series would be hitting the big screen after Disney confirmed the first two books would be made into a film. Colfer has previously described the series as "Die Hard" with fairies.

Northern-Irish actor and director Kenneth Brannagh will direct the film adaptation which tells the story of a boy genius who lives in a futuristic world of fantasy and fairies.

Colfer told The Telegraph he had noticed a comeback for print books despite the rise of the eBook. He added that the picture book industry is booming.

“There’s a real new breed of picture book artists that are coming through. The illustrators are the rock stars now.”