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I sometimes get the impression that people expect my life to be more organised than it really is. Some people seem to imagine that in my profession there must be a scheming agent working out a series of five-year plans on my behalf. Or behind my back. The truth is that - like burglary - it's all much more opportunistic than that.

With live work I have a degree of control. With everything else it depends on someone else giving me an opportunity. Offers come and go. You try to apply judgement as to what is and what isn't a good idea. And so on and so on.

My new book comes out in September. The new series starts in September too. And the tour kicks off at the start of October. That looks like some kind of masterplan is in place, where all the pieces slot together in some kind of perfect storm of mutually beneficial publicity. But it's not. It's a coincidence.

I'd agreed to write the book before the first series was commissioned. I just couldn't start work on it until the series was done and dusted. And the tour was planned before the series had been recommissioned. It's force of circumstances that means they're all coming in to land at the same time, not masterful puppetry on the part of my controllers.

In some ways it adds complications to things. The publishing company, the broadcaster and the promoter are all different entities. They all work on their project and it means things are hitting my diary in haphazard ways.

I really like doing book-readings and normally, when I have a new book out, I try to do as many as possible. I'd normally do a dozen or more in the first couple of weeks. Because they're fun. But this time round, because the tour is imminent there simply aren't that many free dates to play with.

I'm going to be doing a pre-publication event at the Edinburgh Book Festival on August 22nd (although I think that one's sold out already).

The official publication day is September 4th and I'll be doing a launch event that night at Battersea Arts Centre. (Tickets are £20, which includes a copy of the book).

On September 10th I'll be heading to Newcastle for an event at Waterstones and on the 11th I'll be doing a lunchtime signing in York before an evening event in Leeds. The details for all three of those should be here.

And in non-book related news, I have another couple of tour warm-up shows to announce. On September 16th and 17th I'll be doing work-in-progress shows at New Greenham Arts near Newbury. (Expect it to be a bit rough and ready. And, y'know, fun.)

There'll be a few more tour warm-ups to announce soon.

They'd all be announced at the same time if things were a bit more planned.