Book Week Launch Events

We have two exciting events coming up for next week's publication of The Mask of Mirrors. First, Mysterious Galaxy is hosting a virtual book launch on Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 7pm PT. It's a joint event with Christopher Paolini, author of To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, where we'll chat about our books and…

The Clothes Make the Con Artist

The Mask of Mirrors is a book shot through with textile metaphors, from slang terms like ‘knots’ for the gangs and ‘cuffs’ for the nobility; to the pattern deck and its suits of the spinning, woven, and cut threads; to the interweaving of multiple PoVs to create a dense cloak of intrigue. We didn’t consciously…

Fabr-ARC Giveaway for The Mask of Mirrors

We're one month out on the drop date for THE MASK OF MIRRORS, so I decided it would be a good time to do a giveaway of my last few ARCs. The protagonist of our book is Ren, aka Arenza Lenskaya, aka Alta Renata Viraudax, a half-Vraszenian con artist who uses her wits and her…

May Updates and Cover Girls

Two years ago in May, Marie and I said 'let's do this' and launched a whirlwind four months of writing. Most weeks, we put down 10k words or more, and by the time October rolled around, we had a 225k word book draft for what would eventually become The Mask of Mirrors. Last year in…

Level Unlock – Big Damn Trilogy Sale!!

Last summer, I started working on a collaborative project with Marie Brennan that ended up being more or less NaNoWriMo for four months straight. We finished the 220k word behemoth in October, tossed it back and forth between beta readers, our agents, and each other, and sent it out to editors this past spring. This…

What I’m Doing This Summer

I've recently made passing mention to a super secret collaborative project I'm working on. I've been hesitant to say more because so often projects like this die before they ever get momentum. However, after six-ish months of planning, plotting, and worldbuilding, and three weeks of intense writing that have already pushed us past the 25k…

The Conclave of Shadow

Preorders and reviews are an author's best friends! The Conclave of Shadow, by Alyc Helms Published: July 2016 Publisher: Angry Robot ISBN: 9780857665188 The line between enemy and ally is thinner than a shadow’s edge. Ever since she saved the spirit guardians of China by selling out to her worst enemy, Missy Masters — a.k.a.…

Belated Cover Reveal – The Conclave of Shadow

Back in mid-August 2015, Angry Robot sent me a gorgeous final cover for the second book in the Missy Masters series (in my head it will always be ‘The Adventures of Mr. Mystic’ but Missy Masters is easier for sales databases and stuff). The Qwillery did a lovely cover-reveal post. I put up the cover…

Fuzzy Critters Love Dragons!

Today's the second half of my book birthday, with the US/CAN print version of The Dragons of Heaven hitting the shelves. I'm traveling on business, so celebrations have been postponed until I can celebrate with family and loved ones. I was feeling a little down about this, but then Brenta Blevins--my CW littermate, Cory Skerry's…

Happy Birthday to Me!

Book Birthday, that is. It's official. I'm a published novelist: http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Heaven-Alyc-Helms-ebook/dp/B00LKIBYQA/ This is how I plan to celebrate today: 1. Tea, Toast, Incense, and Faeries (my usual morning ritual) 2. Unplug to input my handwritten revisions on Chiaroscuro 3. Chew my fingers off to keep from obsessively checking the internet 4. Shower. Nap. Drive to…