Travis interviews authors Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms about their latest book from Orbit Books, The Mask of Mirrors. Marie and Alyc are writing the Rook & Rose trilogy under the joint name M.A. Carrick, and their masterful worldbuilding shines through in this story of con artists, nobles, and vigilantes.

The discussion takes a deep dive into worldbuilding, touches on tabletop games that spiral out of control, and just might feature some truly terrible accents.

Things Mentioned:

• A Beginner’s Guide to Constructing the Universe: The Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Scienceby Michael S. Schneider
• The Mask of Mirrors soundtrack
• The Scarlet Pimpernel (aka Book 2’s theme song)
• “As Tight as Any Knot” by M.A. Carrick
• Cockney Past and Present: A Short History of the Dialect of London by William Matthews
• The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk
• Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg
• Dice Tales by Marie Brennan
• New Worlds, Year One: A Writer’s Guide to the Art of Worldbuilding by Marie Brennan
• Marie Brennan’s Patreon

About M.A. Carrick:

M.A. Carrick is the joint pen name of Marie Brennan (author of the Memoirs of Lady Trent) and Alyc Helms (author of the Adventures of Mr. Mystic). The two met in 2000 on an archaeological dig in Wales and Ireland — including a stint in the town of Carrickmacross — and have built their friendship through two decades of anthropology, writing, and gaming. They live in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Find M.A. Carrick on Twitter, Facebook, or at their website www.macarrick.com.

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Music:

• Intro: “The Legend of Iya” courtesy of https://philter.no
• Outro: “A Quest Unfolds” courtesy of https://philter.no

This episode of The Fantasy Inn podcast was recorded in the unceded territory of the S’atsoyaha (Yuchi) and ᏣᎳᎫᏪᏘᏱ Tsalaguwetiyi (Eastern Cherokee Band) peoples.

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.