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Pan Macmillan creative director Geoff Duffield, formerly the publisher's group sales and marketing director, remembers a long association with horror novelist James Herbert, who died yesterday (20th March).
"Jim (nobody called him James) was a classic case of contradictions. He could be the toughest individual imaginable one moment, and then the sweetest the next. He reserved his toughest approach for business, and kept his kindest for personal matters.
"I worked with Jim for 17 years, starting with the publication of '48 in 1996, and in that time his ambition never dimmed. If he was demanding of others, it didn't compare with what he expected of himself, but when it came to talking about Eileen and his daughters, or asking me about my own family (which he did, with genuine care, and without fail) he was an utter softy.
"A lovely development over the last six months was his connection with his fans via Facebook. He had been resolutely against using social media, but I told him last summer that I couldn't promise him a number one bestseller (for Ash) unless he agreed to establishing a Facebook platform. He changed his mind immediately, and as a result revelled in re-connecting with his fans.
"I will miss everything about him, and feel extremely lucky to have known him."