Helen Smith

Being Light - on the list of best books of 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:56:00 +0000

I was delighted to see that my book, BEING LIGHT, has made the Best of 2011 list over at the New Podler Review of Books. Their longer review is here.

Roy Travers is swept away by a freak gust of wind while trying to install a bouncy castle in Brockwell Park, south London. Sheila, his wife, can’t understand why he hasn’t found his way back home. She begins to suspect that Roy has been abducted by aliens and enlists the help of Mrs Fitzgerald’s Bureau of Investigation to find him. Sheila travels to Kent with Alison, a private detective. Together they build a missing persons advertisement out of pebbles on a beach, hoping it will be seen by the aliens who have taken Roy. But Roy was not taken by aliens. The truth is far stranger.

"Smith has a keen eye for material details, but her prose is lucid and uncluttered by heavy description. Imagine a satire on Cool Britannia made by the Coen Brothers… very funny." Times Literary Supplement

Being Light is available to buy online here:
Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes & Noble | Waterstones | W H Smith | The Book Depository |
The paperback is currently on sale at Amazon.com for $4.03!

You can also find copies in store at Clapham Books and Herne Hill Books in London.

Finding good luck in a bookshop

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 13:46:00 +0000

On Wednesday night, as you know, I went to The Bookseller Crow in Crystal Palace to sign some books and meet up with Jonathan Main (who co-owns the shop) and Karen McLeod (who is writer-in-residence there).

I mentioned to Karen that the coin I had put under my doormat to bring good luck - on her advice - had been sucked up by a powerful hoover wielded by a diligent plumber (whose number I would be willing to supply if anyone in south London who is not superstitious wants a new bathroom installed and needs a good job doing).

I explained that it seemed greedy to put another coin under the mat to replace it, but I have been waiting for good news connected to my writing (I never wait for bad news, obviously) and had started to worry that, now the coin was gone, it would never come. If this sounds irrational, I ought perhaps to explain that by this time we had drunk three bottles of white wine with nothing to ward off drunkenness except a dish of garlicky olives and some chips with mayonnaise. And some prawns. Even though I had eaten almost all of the food, we were both equally drunk, and every so often I had to navigate back to an important point I was trying to make about the process of writing by shouting Giacometti! which would get me back on track. Still, at least I now know that combination of carbohydrates, fruit and protein doesn't seem to be particularly effective at restoring sobriety. Next time round I will try asking for a cup of coffee or a punch in the face.

But, drunk or not, if at any given time someone hasn't published one of my books in, say, the last two weeks, I start to panic that I will never be published again. You can imagine how difficult life became for all of us in the long period between my last book being published in the UK and Alison Wonderland being published for the first time in the US a few months ago.

Fortunately, while I was at The Bookseller Crow on Wednesday, I found a penny on the floor by the till and picked it up. I asked if I could keep it for good luck (let's face it, it might not help author relations to go into independent bookstores and remove cash from the premises without asking) and they said yes. I had brought along a home-made cake (gingerbread) as a thank you for stocking my book, so it all seemed fair and square.

The next day I received an email that contained very good news from my publisher. I can't really say much more, which is why I have given you seven paragraphs of nonsense instead. But I hope it will be another good year. I have some new work on in the theatre in February through Agent 160, and I will be writer-in-residence at Black's private members' club in June. And... I have this good news, which I will share when I can.

I always pick up pennies for good luck when I see them, and I always forget to put them in a separate compartment of my purse or in a pocket, so I never know which are the lucky ones and end up spending them. That's a good thing, isn't it? It means I pass them on, and that doubles the luck for the recipient. I hope the penny from the Bookseller Crow brings good fortune to whoever ends up with it.

Alison Wonderland at The Bookseller Crow

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:16:00 +0000

Last night I went to The Bookseller Crow to sign some copies of Alison Wonderland.

The Bookseller Crow is a busy, well-stocked independent bookshop in Crystal Palace, London. It has fans around the world as well as support from the bohemian community where it is located. Award-winning novelist Karen McLeod is currently writer-in-residence at the shop.

The Bookseller Crow hosts a monthly book club as well as regular events at the shop to celebrate the book launches. It is one of the few bookshops in London to stock American editions of books and will order them for you.

If you'd like a signed copy of my book, please pop in or, if you live too far away, you can call and enquire about having a copy posted to you. They sell books online as well as in the shop, so it's easy for them to do.

Jonathan Main of The Bookseller Crow has an informative blog here and he's an amusing presence on Twitter here where, among other things, he posts pithy updates on some of the sometimes absurd conversations he has with people browsing in the shop.

Alison Wonderland - Winner Chosen

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 10:58:00 +0000

Congratulations to Meghan G who has won a copy of Alison Wonderland in the Dreaming of Books giveaway.

The winner has been contacted by email. Thanks to everyone who participated. I'm sorry if you didn't win but please check back regularly or sign up to my Facebook page as I'll have other giveaways of books and gift cards during the course of the year.

You can watch me reading an excerpt from the book below:

Dreaming of Books Giveaway, 13-18 January

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 22:30:00 +0000

I'm giving away one signed paperback copy of the new edition of Alison Wonderland, published by Mariner Books (an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt).

The winner has been chosen and the giveaway is now closed.

After her husband leaves her for another woman, twentysomething Londoner Alison Temple impulsively applies for a job at the very P.I. firm she hired to trap her philandering ex. She hopes it will be the change of scene she so desperately needs to move on with her shattered life. At the all-female Fitzgerald’s Bureau of Investigation, she spends her days tracking lost objects and her nights shadowing unfaithful husbands. But no matter what the case, none of her clients can compare to the fascinating characters in her personal life. There’s her boss, the estimable and tidy Mrs. Fitzgerald; Taron, Alison’s eccentric best friend, who claims her mother is a witch; Jeff, her love-struck, poetry-writing neighbour; and—last but not least—her psychic postman. Her relationships with them all become entangled when she joins Taron for a road trip to the seaside and stumbles into a misadventure of epic proportions! Clever, quirky, and infused with just a hint of magic, this humorous literary novel introduces a memorable heroine struggling with the everyday complexities of modern life.

"Only occasionally does a piece of fiction leap out and demand immediate cult status. Alison Wonderland is one… Smith is at the very least a minor phenomenon." The Times

"Smith is gin-and-tonic funny." The Booklist

"A fantastical Thelma and Louise meets Agatha Christie adventure story. The dialogue is smart and the deadpan humour is perfectly judged." The List

Alison Wonderland is available at Barnes & Noble, the Book Depository and at Amazon. If you have an ereader you can find it in the Kindle stores in the UK and the US and in paperback in the UK or the US.

The giveaway hop was hosted by I Am A Reader Not A Writer and Martha's Bookshelf. I'm sorry if you didn't win but please check back as I'll have other giveaways during the year.

The Miracle Inspector: one of the best books of 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:31:00 +0000

I was delighted to see that The Miracle Inspector was chosen as one of the best books of 2011 by Robert Duperre at the Journal of Always.

"A fantastic literary exploration of dystopian Britain. Darkly comedic and unsettling."

You can read a longer review from Robert Duperre here (excerpt below).

"Helen Smith crafts a story like she’s the British lovechild of Kurt Vonnegut and Philip K. Dick, only with a feminist slant. And The Miracle Inspector is a powerful, insightful, darkly funny, and principled conception. It’s short on page length yet long in ideas, and each and every one of them will spit you out with your head spinning as you keep asking, “Why?” while making you come up with your own answer. Trust me, that’s not a bad thing.

"You can buy The Miracle Inspector from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.

Man in the Middle - Theatre 503

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 09:50:00 +0000

I'm looking forward to seeing Man in the Middle by Ron Elisha tonight, about Julian Assange (whose unauthorised autobiography was published last year by Canongate).

Man in the Middle is billed as a Wikiplay: "sourced from the public domain, refracted and redacted by playwright, Ron Elisha." It was first performed in Sydney under the title Julian Assange: Stainless Steel Rat.

It's directed by Lucy Skilbeck. Design by Agnes Treplin (assisted by my daughter, Lauren Smith). Lighting Design by Jo Town. Sound Design by Fergus O’Hare.

The cast are Olivia Carruthers, Jonathan Coote, Andrew Leung, Amy Marston, Paul McEwan, Ben Onwukwe, Jonathan Tafler, and Darren Weller who plays Julian Assange.

It's on at Theatre 503 in London until 4th February. More details here. Updates on Facebook here.

Write-up in The Independent here. Channel Four blog post by Matthew Cain here and video below:

Agent 160 Presents

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:25:00 +0000

I'm a member of Agent 160 Theatre Company, a new writer-led theatre company.

Our first show, Agent 160 presents Agent 160, will feature two different nights of short plays at the following venues:

CARDIFF: Chapter Arts Centre, February 17 and 18 at 8.00 pm.

LONDON: Theatre503, February 19 and 20 at 7.45pm.

GLASGOW: The Arches, February 22 and 23 at 7.30pm.

My new short play, PRICEY, will be part of the second show (February 18th in Cardiff, February 20th in London and February 23rd in Glasgow), along with new work by Ioanna Anderson, Branwen Davies, Sarah Grochala, Lisa Parry, Morna Pearson, Lindsay Rodden. The first show at each venue will feature new work by Sam Burns, Vittoria Cafolla, Poppy Corbett, Clare Duffy, Angharad Devonald, Samantha Ellis and Marged Parry.

You can join us on Facebook here and follow us on Twitter here. The company website is here. Agent 160's blog is here.

Forkbeard Fantasy, Theatre of Animation

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 11:06:00 +0000

Yesterday I went to Forkbeard Fantasy's Theatre of Animation exhibition at the South Bank centre. Forkbeard Fantasy are an innovative theatre company based in Devon. Their members are a collective of artists who use film projections, animated objects and actors on stage to create surreal, absurd theatre shows that have influenced many other theatre companies and been praised by Aardman Animation and Terry Gilliam.

Exhibition photos from the BBC here.

More information about Forkbeard Fantasy here.

Alison Wonderland - new edition

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:37:00 +0000

A new paperback edition of Alison Wonderland has been published by Mariner today in the US. It's available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble and in independent bookstores.

This edition is also available in the UK as an import on Amazon.co.uk and The Book Depository and in independent bookshops like The Bookseller Crow in Crystal Palace, and in Hong Kong from Paddyfield.

It has already been spotted in a bookstore in Seattle (see right). Thanks to Kristi for the photo.

VAT on ebooks reduced to 3% on Amazon.co.uk

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 13:41:00 +0000

You don't have to pay VAT on paperback or hardback books but you do have to pay it on ebooks. This has now been reduced to 3% on ebooks bought via Amazon.co.uk.

Three Sisters - Favourite Book of 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 10:15:00 +0000

Three Sisters has been named as one of her favourite books of 2011 by Elizabeth at the Frugal ereader.

It's bonfire night in London. Emily has been invited to a party in the big house at the end of her street by the new owners, whom she has never met. Emily's dog Jessie has recently died so Emily is feeling a little raw and emotional. How could she know, as she left her house that evening, that she was making an appointment with death?

“It’s fast-paced, funny, and mysterious all at the same time.” Socrates’ Book Reviews

Three Sisters is the first story in the popular Emily Castles mystery series and you can buy the book for your Kindle in the US and the UK. The follow-up is Showstoppers which is also available from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

Lovely Things, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 00:10:00 +0000

This year has been a good one for me. My book, Alison Wonderland, was published for the first time in America and got to no. 1 in the Kindle chart. I'm really delighted with the way things have gone and I'm looking forward to a new paperback edition being published by Mariner books on 3rd January. That's the new cover on the left. Do you like it? It's available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble and in independent bookstores.

The new edition is also available in the UK on Amazon.co.uk and The Book Depository and in independent bookshops like The Bookseller Crow in Crystal Palace, and in Hong Kong from Paddyfield.

The AmazonEncore edition of Alison Wonderland is still available for the Kindle in the UK, the US and all Amazon online stores.

In May I went to New York to a party organised by Amazon Publishing for all their authors. In September I had a launch party in London for the book. Thanks to everyone who has bought a copy, and thanks to Amazon Publishing for taking a chance on the book and getting it to number one.

In 2011 I was one of the founding members of Agent 160, a new writer-led theatre company.

You can follow us on Facebook here and on Twitter here. The company website is here. Agent 160's blog is here. We'll be launching in February 2012 with shows in Cardiff, Glasgow and London.

I have read and performed my work in London, Oxford and New York City this year. In June I won Literary Death Match with a reading from Alison Wonderland. In October I hosted the Literary Cabaret at the St Pancras Hotel in London. I was delighted to be part of the Stoke Newington Festival, the YARN Festival, the Oxford Literary Festival and the Bloomsbury Festival and to read at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Thanks to everyone who programmed me for one of their events, particularly Gemma Mitchell at YARN, Dan Holloway of Eight Cuts/The New Libertines, Paul Burston of Polari, Lucy Popescu of the Sugar Lounge Literary Events and Marco Rafala at Guerilla Lit.

Thanks to everyone who has read this blog, bought one of my books or come along to an event I have been involved in. Here's to a wonderful 2012 for all of us.

If you haven't had much luck lately, I promise you it will change. I keep saying I will write an update about the money I put under the mat in 2010 to bring good fortune into the house. It worked extremely well, and in fact I started to think that I could never move home for fear of having to dislodge the coin and disturb the magic. But recently I had a lot of work done on the house (thank you, Amazon Publishing, for your prompt and generous royalty cheque) and for six weeks the place was full of decorators, plumbers, plasterers, carpenters, electricians - and scaffolders. I had never seen scaffolders at work before but they are extraordinarily graceful and very strong and agile; it's like having Cirque de Soleil in your house for the price of three cups of sweet tea and some muffins. If you're thinking of trying something new next year and you're tired of the theatre and bored of ballet, you should definitely consider staying at home and having some scaffolding put up and taken down again.

Anyway, the workmen were very good and tidied up assiduously at the end of every day. But one day I noticed that the coin had disappeared, sucked up into a very powerful hoover, lost forever. I'm grateful to be delivered from dependence on it and, after all, the coin had served its purpose. But if my luck should falter, I'll be ready to try something new and will let you know how it goes. Of course, I could always try writing more. The presentation of a completed manuscript to an agent or publisher generally brings good things, I find. The trick is to finish it. And the way to do that is to keep away from the internet. So...

Being Light - free in the US for Amazon Prime Members

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 12:37:00 +0000

Are you looking for free ebooks? If you're a member of Amazon Prime in the US, Being Light is free to borrow for your Kindle.

If you'd like to buy it, it's only $4.99 in the US at Amazon.com and £3.69 in the UK at Amazon.co.uk.

Roy Travers is swept away by a freak gust of wind while trying to install a bouncy castle in Brockwell Park, south London. Sheila, his wife, can’t understand why he hasn’t found his way back home. She begins to suspect that Roy has been abducted by aliens and enlists the help of Mrs Fitzgerald’s Bureau of Investigation to find him. Sheila travels to Kent with Alison, a private detective. Together they build a missing persons advertisement out of pebbles on a beach, hoping it will be seen by the aliens who have taken Roy. But Roy was not taken by aliens. The truth is far stranger.

"Smith has a keen eye for material details, but her prose is lucid and uncluttered by heavy description. Imagine a satire on Cool Britannia made by the Coen Brothers… very funny." Times Literary Supplement

Cheap ebooks for your Kindle

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 10:06:00 +0000

Are you looking for cheap ebooks for your Kindle? ALISON WONDERLAND is currently on offer at 99p in the UK Kindle store as part of the Twelve Days of Kindle promotion. It's discounted to $3.99 in the US Kindle store.

If you have just got a Kindle for Christmas and you want some hints about how to find cheap ebooks, here are some sites I use:

Daily Cheap Reads UK finds and posts about cheap, super-cheap and free ebooks in the UK kindle store:

Daily Cheap Reads US features bargain ebooks available in the US.

The Frugal Ereader has regular posts about free and cheap ebooks in the US, as well as news, features and giveaways.

Ereadernewstoday has news about free and cheap ebooks in the US, as well as Kindle accessories.

I use EreaderIQ to notify me about price drops of Kindle books I'd like to buy. It has both a US and a UK site.

The Kindle Daily Deal in the UK and the US feature a different book each day that has been discounted by up to 80%.

Each month there's a list of 100 recommended Kindle books at $3.99 or less in the US. There are regular seasonal romotions in the UK. In this month's Twelve Days of Kindle promotion, there are around 100 books for £1.99 or less.

Alison Wonderland - review

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 19:04:00 +0000

There's a nice review for Alison Wonderland over at David Hebblethwaite's site:

"Helen Smith juxtaposes the bizarre and the mundane: however strange events become, the emotional issues that Alison deals with remain grounded in everyday reality; and some of the best-written passages deal with the more ordinary subjects.

Alison Wonderland might also be seen as an unusual take on the conspiracy story, in that the main conspiracies which the characters imagine to exist actually don’t; whilst the real secrets go unsuspected. Smith’s novel brought to mind the work of Sarah Salway and Aliya Whiteley in its sideways approach to everyday life – but it’s not quite like anything else I’ve ever read."

I love reviews that say my book is unlike anything else the reviewer has ever read. Thanks, David.

Alison Wonderland is available at Barnes & Noble, the Book Depository and at Amazon. If you have an ereader you can find it in the Kindle stores in the UK and the US and it's currently on offer in paperback in the UK for only £4.19 or $5 in the US.

World Book Night - Have You Signed Up?

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 17:27:00 +0000

I have signed up to be a "giver" on World Book Night, 23rd April 2012. One million books will be distributed free in the UK by the givers, who will each have 24 copies of one of 25 titles (see left or here) to give away.

Go to the World Book Night site for more details or to sign up to be a "giver" in the UK. If you'd like to sign up for WBN in the United States, go here.

Amazon Gift Card - winner chosen

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 09:11:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone who signed up to win an Amazon gift card in the recent giveaway on my blog. The winner, "Library Lady" was chosen using random.org and has been contacted by email.

I'm sorry if you didn't win but I'll have some more giveaways to thank you for following my blog. Please check back or sign up to my Facebook page to keep up to date.

Order Alison Wonderland from Amazon UK by 18th December for free delivery in time for Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 08:30:00 +0000

Alison Wonderland is only £2.45 in paperback on Amazon.co.uk until Sunday 18th December. If you order a copy by Sunday 18th you'll get it in time for Christmas with free delivery, too.

Alison Wonderland is $5.00 in paperback on Amazon.com. Order by 15th December for free super saver shipping. More details about shipping and delivery here.

FREE BOOK: The Miracle Inspector

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 08:46:00 +0000

The Miracle Inspector is free today, Saturday 10th December, for one day only in the Kindle store in the UK and the US.

A dystopian thriller set in the near future. England has been partitioned and London is an oppressive place where poetry has been forced underground, theatres and schools are shut, and women are not allowed to work outside the home. A young couple, Lucas and Angela, try to escape from London - with disastrous consequences.

"The Miracle Inspector is one of the few novels that everyone should read, it's a powerful novel that's masterfully written and subtly complex." SciFi and Fantasy Books

"Helen Smith's The Miracle Inspector represents British humor at its best." Kindle Books Reviewed

"...a beautifully written, and almost unbearably sad, depiction of a society's downfall." All-Consuming Books

"If Patricia Highsmith wrote dystopian fiction but had more of a sense of humor, it might be something like The Miracle Inspector... Smith deftly works in the dark urges and fears of Lucas, Angela and others in a way that only psychological mystery and espionage writers like Highsmith and Graham Greene do well." Steve Anderson, Amazon.com

"Helen Smith crafts a story like she's the British lovechild of Kurt Vonnegut and Philip K. Dick, only with a feminist slant." Journal of Always Reviews

Video: World Book Night Launch

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 19:04:00 +0000

There's a lovely short film of the launch of World Book Night in Trafalgar Square earlier this year. I'm on stage on the sofa in a white coat.

FREE BOOK: Showstoppers

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 09:08:00 +0000

Showstoppers (the second Emily Castles mystery) is free today (9th December) for one day only in the Kindle Store in the UK and the US.
When Emily helps out at Showstoppers Stage School’s end-of-term show, she’s soon mixed up in murder. But can she prevent a massacre happening live on stage?

REVIEWS for THREE SISTERS (The first Emily Castles story):
“It’s fast-paced, funny, and mysterious all at the same time.” Socrates’ Book Reviews

“The book was very enjoyable and I did not put the short story down at all. It grips you from the very beginning.” Babs Books Bistro

“Right from the first page, Helen Smith's story glows like a roman candle: bright, colourful and full of surprises.” Peter Salisbury, Amazon Vine Reviewer

“The characters are creative and multi-dimensional and I loved the unique personalities and talents of all the party guests.” Her Book Self

“If you are looking for something fast-paced and unusual, I highly recommend this one.” Eva’s Sanctuary

Showstoppers is approximately 17,800 words, equivalent to around 75 printed pages.

Gift Card Giveaway 9-13 December

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 18:23:00 +0000

I'm giving away one Amazon gift card worth $15 or £10

The winner will be chosen at random after midnight on 13th December. This giveaway is open internationally - you just have to be able to shop at Amazon.

The Gift Card Giveaway was hosted by I am a Reader, Not a Writer and Attack of the Book. It is now closed and the winner has been notified by email. Thanks to everyone who participated.

Showstoppers - review

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 15:21:00 +0000

There's a lovely review for Showstoppers over at Big Al's Books and Pals. Big Al is world-famous after one of his reviews was retweeted by Stephen Fry and Neil Gaiman, among others, and widely discussed on the internet. He was kind enough to review the first Emily Castles mystery, Three Sisters,when it was published earlier this year, and has followed it up with a review of the second:

"Having read several of Helen Smith’s books, it struck me how well the cozy mystery sub-genre plays to her strengths as a writer. Her prose is comfortable (dare I say cozy?) while still feeling more literary than a typical genre book. Her books are full of humor, but it is subtle."

You can buy Showstoppers in the Kindle Store in the UK and the US.
It's a standalone story but if you'd like to start with Three Sisters you can also buy that in the Kindle store in the US and the UK.

Alison Wonderland - Winner Chosen

noreply@blogger.com (Helen Smith) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 09:11:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone who signed up for a copy of Alison Wonderland in the Book Lovers Holiday giveaway. A winner has been chosen by random.org and contacted by email. Congratulations to Elizabeth L in Cyprus.

If you didn't win but you'd like a copy of the book, you can still take advantage of an amazing deal at Amazon until 18th December. Alison Wonderland is currently on special offer at £2.45 in paperback on Amazon.co.uk and $5.00 in paperback on Amazon.com.

If you have a Kindle it's only £3.99 in the UK and $3.99 in the US.