The Artifex and the Muse has landed

Discover the conclusion to Dom and Ava’s epic journey.

Dear reader,

I’m thrilled to announce that my four-book fantasy series, The Artifex and the Muse, is at last complete and available on Amazon. Thank you for supporting me every step of the way—from the debut of Realms Unreel in 2011 to the release of The Voice in All in 2022, through The Path of Mysteries last year and now to the epic conclusion of The Many Worlds.

For those who have followed Dom and Ava’s transformative journey over the years, you know this series isn’t just about adventure—it explores fate versus free will, the role memory plays in identity, and the bittersweet interplay of love and loss. Whether you’re a longtime supporter or just discovering this story, I hope you’ll find the experience of reading The Artifex and the Muse captivating and unforgettable.

How to read the series

Here’s a quick guide to the reading order for the series:

• Book One: The Voice in All

• Book Two: The Path of Mysteries

• Book Three: The Many Worlds

• Midquel / Book Four: Realms Unreel (revised and expanded 2024 edition)

While I recommend reading Books One, Two, and Three in order for the best narrative experience, Realms Unreel offers flexibility. As a series midquel—that is, a story that takes place within the timeframe of another story—it can be read prior to, intermixed with, or following Books 1-3 without spoilers. For additional thoughts on the reading order, check out my Realms Unreel overview page.

What’s next?

Now that the series is complete, I’m excited to spread the word. Here’s how you can help:

• Enthusiastic readers: Consider joining my reader review team, to receive a free ebook in exchange for your honest public review of any or all books in the series.

• Social media mavens: Follow and tag me on social media, or join an upcoming social media book tour.

• Book clubs: Check out the book club reader guides for Books One, Two, Three, and Four, and consider inviting me to your book club for author Q&A.

I’m also beginning to query literary agents, so if you know someone who might be interested in my pitch for the series, I’d appreciate the introduction.

A personal reflection

Yours truly wearing the Realms Unreel Kickstarter backer tee shirt and the first edition paperbacks, way back when

Fifteen years ago, when I started work on the earliest draft of what would become The Artifex and the Muse, I had no idea how its characters, settings, and dilemmas would come to inhabit my mind and heart. As I flip back through these pages, I find the experiences of my own life woven into this story world—youth and aging, love and loss, achievement and exhaustion, idealism and wisdom. There’s a reason life mirrors art: each gives rise to the other.

Dom, Ava, and Serapen beneath the tree at the heart of Eden. Illustration by Ian Steplowski from the first hardcover edition of Realms Unreel.

Promo shot of The Voice in All, winner of the 2024 Indie Reader Discovery Award for New Adult Fiction

Spring in the orchard at (the pseudonymous) Eden Hill Farm, to which the complete series boxed set is dedicated

The barn at sunset, as seen from my writing desk while I wrote the final chapters of the series this winter

Autumn view from the Ledges lookout at the farm, where I can always find a fresh perspective

My owl friend, who often oversees my writing through the window. Since antiquity, humans have seen owls as messengers from the underworld of our subconscious.

Writing this series has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Nurturing Dom and Ava along their paths has been a way of nurturing myself along mine. If you’ve ever been called to write something—big or small, personal or commercial, fiction or non-fiction—I highly recommend answering the call. Writing is its own reward, even if the only person who ever reads the words is you yourself.

Writing can be solitary, but no one is ever truly alone on this journey. Thank you for all your support along the way.

AA

Emmie Bridges applying finishing touches to her work in the alternet. Artwork by Ian Steplowski, from the 2012 Kickstarter project that produced the first illustrated edition of Realms Unreel.