Helen McCarthy
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glider.bsky.social
Helen McCarthy
@glider.bsky.social
Glider in the night, dancer in the dark, lover of lost rivers and paths in the woods and libraries and half-open doors. Moonlights as a writer.

All images and poems mine unless credited elsewise. AI is only acceptable if it's consensual.
Please share the now complete link for tickets to my book launch and livestream on 3 March. I really appreciate your support, sorry to chop off a vital bit of the link! tinyurl.com/2u9pcjfr
February 3, 2026 at 4:39 PM
Thanks to everyone who's sharing the news of my book launch! Spreading the word about new books is one of the best things you can do for an author. Buying the book is great, and talking about it is great, and social media shares can add many extra sales!
January 20, 2026 at 12:18 PM
In London on 3 March? Why not book a ticket for my book launch? Hear about how - and why - the book came into being, some of the stories it contains, be among the first to get a copy, and if you like I'll sign it!

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-manga-...
January 20, 2026 at 10:27 AM
Thrilled to receive an advance copy of La Bibbia dei Manga - Gribaudo's Italian edition of The Manga Bible. Many thanks to translator Paolo Silvio Poli for making my work accessible in Italian. #TranslatorsRock
January 8, 2026 at 2:12 PM
Triffic Steve Kyte cover for the UK paperback.
December 29, 2025 at 10:54 PM
Since it is now Christmastide, we broke out the Fortnum
& Mason biscuits with our morning coffee today. We only have Toffolossus in the house at Christmas, because otherwise we'd be skint and the size of two substantial 1930s semi-detached suburban villas. Sin and depravity in biscuit form.
December 22, 2025 at 1:00 PM
#SomethingBeautiful snow edition: this programme is now off BBC iPlayer but you can revel in some of its stunning stills of wild things in the snow.
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/a...
December 22, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Not the most constructive way to approach who might win SPOTY, is it? The i Paper's very own front-page own goal nominates a man to "break female dominance" when women and girls have less opportunity and get paid less than men in every field of sport.
December 18, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Oh dear. Found by chance on Amazon: a dozen heavily illustrated books on very varied topics self-published by one guy in about a year. Sounds suspiciously like #AI - of course I could be wrong. Still, anyone who's published on yokai, horror, science of history for 8-12 year olds, check this out.
December 11, 2025 at 2:40 PM
Our tribute to the ancient pagan gods is now lighting up our halls. Every dinosaur and robot and angel and animal, every bit of laser cut plastic carved wood and fragile blown glass bauble, holds a memory of people and places we love. Wishing you all a joyous Yuletide.
December 8, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Still no justice. But if this photomontage of the unjustly killed, and the names and pictures of all 12 officers who leveraged the glacial
Enquiry to retire before justice found them, went up outside both Anfield and Hillsborough, and stayed there, that would be something.
December 3, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Somewhere people are arguing over whether you put the jam or the cream on the scone first; here it's a case of how highly spiced you want your scone and whether you prefer mango chutney or lime pickle.
November 11, 2025 at 5:18 PM
I love that @irishali13.bsky.social reposted this glorious Chagall sketch. But with my costumer's hat on it takes me back to all the times designers would come into the workroom with one of these and expect us to make it into fully functioning dance costumes that wouldn't slip or reveal all onstage.
October 26, 2025 at 12:38 PM
I remember when The Sun was a real campaigning newspaper - but it still has away with a nudge, a wink and a killer headline.
October 18, 2025 at 1:09 PM
The sheer magic overload of Ryde's #ChristmasImaginarium made me six years old again. Located near the pier and the epic comic shop #FantasticStore - so convenient for carting your shopping back to the ferry!
October 12, 2025 at 9:03 AM
I just can't get over how beautiful the Bangor coast and countryside are. Or how lovely the people are. Or how good the food is.
October 2, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Hello my darling butterflies - I hope your weekend is as beautiful as it can be and leaves you feeling as contented as these adorable pigs, living the life of Riley at the Ulster Folk Museum.
September 27, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Jonathan Freedland's brilliant Guardian opinion piece has this photo and the reminder that #NigelFarage thinks #VladimirPutin is fab and that #LizTruss 's economy wrecker was a great Budget.
September 20, 2025 at 9:54 PM
This is a good day to watch a film that says don't give in to fascism. Maybe stream it on a big background, like the walls of Windsor Castle?
September 17, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Back in the day when ICE stood for something better: Iron Crown Enterprises' Tolkien game books in the Oxfam bookshop, Greenwich.
August 30, 2025 at 2:27 PM
#SomethingBeautiful August is a great month for spotting harvest mice. These endearing rodents, less than 5cm long (though the tail more than doubles that) and weighing just a few grams, survive despite loss of habitat to humans and mechanised farming.

www.rosshoddinott.co.uk/images/uploa...
August 20, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Hello my lovely butterflies, just a reminder that you were all born as lovable and adventurous and fascinated by life as this kitten, and on the inside you still are. Love you all.
PHOTO: Beata Miro – www.bemiro.com
August 19, 2025 at 9:48 AM
What a greeting this morning! The garden has drunk in the rain of the last few days and made a rosy rainbow. This inspired today's #haiku over at helenmccarthy51.bsky.social
July 25, 2025 at 10:50 AM
After three nights and early mornings of rain, these gorgeous navy blue petunias in pots on the front doorstep are holding up well.
July 21, 2025 at 10:18 AM
My wish for all you beautiful butterflies this Friday: an abundance of Peace
July 18, 2025 at 7:20 AM