🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where magic is born from rage and resilience, power is written in blood and choice, and stories dare you to feel everything at once.

This week, host Bethany Amanda sits down with rising romantasy author Jaclyn Rodriguez to celebrate her breakout debut, A Vow in Vengeance, which delivers deadly bargains, tarot magic, forced proximity, and one of the most addictive enemies-to-lovers dynamics we’ve read this year.

Jaclyn brings the perfect blend of warmth, humor, and honesty to this conversation as she shares her journey from relentless querying and 100+ rejections to landing her debut in a whirlwind auction. She opens up about the delusion, determination, and deep love of story that carried her through the hardest parts of publishing, and why perseverance is the single most important trait an author can have.

We dive deep into the world of A Vow in Vengeance: a brutal selection process that sends mortals into an immortal realm, a heroine fueled by grief and fury, and a prince who is just as dangerous as he is compelling. Jaclyn unpacks the tarot-based magic system, the layered power hierarchies, and the central thematic tension between vengeance and justice that defines Rune’s emotional arc.

Along the way, we explore the kind of main character we don’t see enough of—a furious, unyielding FMC who is willing to burn everything down to get what she deserves—and the MMC who meets her fire with strategy, sarcasm, and just enough vulnerability to make it hurt.

🔥 What does it mean to want vengeance instead of justice?
🗡️ How do power, trauma, and rage shape the choices we make?
🃏 And what happens when two people bound by necessity become each other’s greatest weapon—and greatest risk?

This is a must-listen for romantasy readers, aspiring authors navigating the querying trenches, and anyone who loves morally complex characters, magical systems with bite, and stories that refuse to play it safe.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ Jaclyn’s path to publication, including writing 10 books and facing 100+ rejections before her debut.
✨ How perseverance, “delusion,” and support systems helped her push through imposter syndrome.
✨ he premise of A Vow in Vengeance: a deadly selection, an immortal realm, and a heroine who will burn the world down for her family.
✨ The enemies-to-lovers dynamic between Rue and Prince Draven—and why forced proximity makes it even more explosive.
✨ The tarot-based magic system, power hierarchies, and symbolism behind “The World” card.
✨ The thematic core of vengeance vs. justice and how Rune’s perspective evolves across the story.
✨ Writing an unapologetically angry female main character—and why spite queens are unforgettable.
✨ How Draven unexpectedly took over the book and reshaped the story during drafting.
✨ Why Jaclyn wants her books to be readers’ comfort worlds—even when they’re dark, violent, and emotionally intense.
✨ What we can expect from Book 2, including higher stakes, bigger twists, and a completed duology arc.

CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📚 Jaclyn Rodriguez – @JaclynRodriguezAuthor

✨ If this episode inspired you, please rate and review — it helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where art becomes story, imagination becomes world, and creativity is as much about community as it is about craft.

This week, host Sara Santillan sits down with artist-turned-author Riley S. Quinn to talk about her stunning self-published romantasy Gold & Gossamer. This is a conversation about visual storytelling, creative obsession, and what happens when a single animation accidentally blooms into an entire epic fantasy world.

Riley pulls back the curtain on how her background in film, animation, and storyboarding shaped her prose, her pacing, and the cinematic feel of her writing. We explore the beautiful, porous boundary between art and story, including how some scenes had to be drawn before they could be written, and how switching between mediums kept her creative energy alive over two years of drafting.

We dive into the heart of Gold & Gossamer: a mage king trying desperately to appear infallible, a terrifyingly powerful fairy queen who refuses to conform, and a star-crossed dynamic built on yearning, vulnerability, and self-discovery. Riley unpacks the symbolism behind her title — why gold and gossamer perfectly mirror her leads — and how the book is as much about self-love as it is about romance.

We also get refreshingly honest about self-publishing: why Riley chose it, how she designs her own covers, why affordability matters to her, and what it’s really like building a story in public with a deeply engaged community watching every step.

🌿 What happens when a fairy queen and a human king are forced into an impossible alliance?
✨ How can art literally shape a story into existence?
💛 And what does it mean to be loved most deeply when you are your truest self?

This episode is a must-listen for romantasy readers, aspiring authors, artists who dream in story, and anyone obsessed with beautiful worlds born from pure imagination.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ How art came first for Riley and how her story followed.
✨ The accidental birth of Gold & Gossamer from two TikTok animations.
✨ Why Riley loves self-publishing, including creative control, pricing, and design.
✨ The symbolism of gold (strong, but secretly soft) and gossamer (delicate, but unbreakable) and how that fits into her book.
✨ Why the book is ultimately about self-love more than romance.
✨ Why endings should be hopeful, not cruel.
✨ Building a story alongside her online community.
✨ Marketing by worldbuilding, not sales tactics.
✨ Plans for a sequel and possibly special editions and art prints.

CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📚 Riley S. Quinn – @RileyQuinnArt

✨ If you were inspired by this episode, please rate and review — it helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where grief meets magic, winter holds its breath, and love asks you to be brave even when it will break you.

This week, host Bethany Amanda sits down with New York Times Bestselling author Rachel Griffin to talk about her deeply moving novel, The Sun and the Starmaker. Equal parts luminous and devastating, this conversation weaves together craft, personal resilience, and the kind of love that lingers long after the last page.

Rachel takes us from her winding path into writing — from a career in diagnostic ultrasound to rediscovering her voice late at night on an old laptop — to the realities of querying, submission, rejection, and eventual success with The Nature of Witches. She offers honest insight into what persistence really looks like, why “no” is rarely forever, and how working on the next book saved her during long seasons of uncertainty.

We also dive into one of the most powerful parts of Rachel’s story: surviving a traumatic brain injury, navigating an often-dismissive medical system, and ultimately finding life-changing treatment. Rachel shares how her recovery reshaped her relationship with storytelling, how The Sun and the Starmaker quite literally helped her relearn how to write, and why she’s now a passionate advocate for concussion research — including donating $1 from every preorder to the Concussion Research Laboratory.

And of course, we sink into the icy, whimsical world of The Sun and the Starmaker: a land beyond the reach of sunlight, a weary immortal sorcerer who pulls the sun across the sky, and a love story that asks whether loving someone is worth the inevitable heartbreak.

🌙 What does it mean to love fully when you know loss is inevitable?
❄️ How can winter be both cruel and strangely tender?
✨ And what happens when a book becomes not just a story but a lifeline?

This episode is a must-listen for readers who love wintry fairy tales, aspiring authors chasing their own publishing dreams, and anyone who believes stories can heal.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨Rachel’s journey from healthcare to writing and why she returned to storytelling.
✨ Querying for over a year and why slow success can still be the right success.
✨ Why your first book doesn’t have to be “the one”.
✨ Surviving a traumatic brain injury and Rachel's advocacy for concussion awareness and better treatment.
✨ How The Sun and the Starmaker became part of Rachel's recovery.
✨ Aurora, the stubborn mortal beyond the sunlight, and her enchanted icebound world.
✨ Why loving someone — knowing you may lose them — is the ultimate act of bravery.
✨ What Rachel is working on next and why it’s a big departure from her prior works.

CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📚 Rachel Griffin – @timesnewRachel

✨ Loved this episode? Leave us a rating and review — it helps more fantasy and romantasy readers find The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where epic quests begin childhood notebooks, gods get their love stories, and indie fantasy builds worlds without limits.

This week, hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan are joined by indie fantasy author Beck Michaels, creator of the sprawling Guardians of the Maiden series and the god-centered romantasy prequels King’s Bride and King’s Kiss. From writing toucan reunion stories in elementary school to building multi-series fantasy lore inspired by forests, rain, and classic epic fantasy, Beck shares the deeply personal creative roots behind her worlds.

We dive into her journey from teenage notebook drafts to indie publishing success, why she chose creative control over the traditional path, and how her stories expanded from a quest-driven found-family epic into darker, adult fairy-tale romances centered on gods, monsters, and mythic love. Beck also takes us behind the scenes of indie special editions, painted edges, and character covers, and explains how experimentation helped her stand out early in the indie space.

We also talk about writing outside your comfort zone, discovering themes after the story is written, and why some of her most powerful character moments come straight from real-life lines spoken by her husband.

🗺️ What happens when a teenage fantasy draft refuses to stay unfinished?
🦢 How do epic quests and godly romances grow from the same world?
🖤 And why do dark gods deserve their happy endings too?

This episode is a must-listen for epic fantasy readers, romantasy lovers, and indie authors building worlds of their own.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ Beck’s early writing roots from elementary school storybooks to high school epic fantasy drafts.
✨ How Lord of the Rings, fairy lore, and nature shaped the Guardians world.
✨ Pausing writing to raise a family and returning years later to finish the story.
✨ Choosing indie publishing to keep creative control over story, covers, and direction.
✨ The massive learning curve behind indie publishing success.
✨ The Guardians of the Maiden series — epic quest fantasy, found family, magical relics, and shadow demons.
✨ Expanding the same world into adult god-centered romantasy with King’s Bride and King’s Kiss.
✨ Rune, the god of shadows, and why villains need love stories too.
✨ Building special editions as an indie author, including painted edges, boxes, merch, and production challenges.
✨ Real-life inspiration — how her husband’s words become romantic dialogue
✨ Writing themes that appear subconsciously, including forgiveness, self-acceptance, loving the “monstrous” parts.
✨ Advice for aspiring writers.

🐦 CONNECT WITH US
🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📦 Guest: Beck Michaels – @Beck_Michaels

✨ Enjoyed this episode? Leave a rating & review — it helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors discover The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where beauty and brutality coexist, trauma is treated with reverence, and fantasy becomes a language for healing.

This week, hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan sit down with Louve-CH, author of the hauntingly lyrical romantasy Awakening of the Starborne. This conversation explores what it means to write through pain, to build worlds that can hold broken things, and to trust your voice even when it scares you.

Louve takes us inside the emotional origin of Awakening of the Starborn, including how big, unmanageable feelings and a season of personal upheaval became the catalyst for a story steeped in trauma, resilience, and transformation. We talk heroines shaped differently by the same wounds, the power of lyrical prose to hold contradiction, and why she intentionally refused non-linear flashbacks in favor of a grounded, linear journey.

We dive deep into Savae’s arc: a feral, stubborn, trauma-forged heroine navigating deadly trials, an elite war university, dragons, and a world that is at once breathtakingly beautiful and relentlessly dangerous. Louve unpacks how healing shows up on the page — not as instant transformation, but as repetition, backsliding, and slow, hard-won growth.

We also get candid about the realities of indie publishing: seven months of editing, rewriting an entire 196,000-word book into present-tense lyrical prose, the sting of negative reviews for experimental writing styles, and the joy of a street team that feels like found family. This is a conversation about craft, courage, and the radical act of writing the book only you could write.

🐺 What happens when a “wolf-raised” inner child finds her way into epic fantasy?
✨ How can lyrical prose carry both beauty and devastation at once?
🔥 And what does real, messy healing look like when dragons are involved?

This episode is a must-listen for readers who love emotionally rich fantasy, aspiring authors wrestling with doubt, and anyone who believes stories can be both ferocious and tender.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ Writing through grief, overwhelm, and “big emotions” — and why channeling them into art saved Louve.
✨ The idea of women being shaped differently by the same trauma.
✨ Choosing lyrical prose to hold contradiction, emotion, and atmosphere.
✨ Switching an entire debut novel from first-person past to present tense for immediacy.
✨ Savae as a feral, stubborn, deeply wounded heroine — and why that matters.
✨ Deadly trials, an elite war university, dragons, and the cutthroat worldbuilding of Awakening of the Starborne.
✨ First-person POV as a tool for intentional confusion, immersion, and emotional impact.
✨ Facing criticism of lyrical styles (à la When the Moon Hatched) and choosing her audience anyway.
✨ Writing for her inner child — and for readers who have lived through trauma.
✨ Letting characters (especially Savae) derail the plot — and writing around them.
✨ The secret subplots that will span the trilogy and a future prequel series.
✨ Why debut authors should take their time: “You only publish your debut once.”
✨ Comparison, bad reviews, and why you must know who you’re writing for.

CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📚 Louve-CH – @uniqueradiance

✨ Loved this episode? Leave us a rating and review — it helps more fantasy and romantasy readers find The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where great books deserve great reach, author dreams meet real-world marketing, and bookish community is built on purpose.

This week, hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan sit down with Rachel Skye, founder of The Nerd Fam — a reader-first book marketing and outreach company connecting authors with the audiences who are most excited to discover them. If you’ve ever wondered how ARC campaigns, reader lists, influencer boxes, and PR outreach actually work behind the scenes, this episode pulls back the curtain.

Rachel shares how Nerd Fam grew from BookTok roots into a values-driven author marketing hub, why she focuses on community fit over vanity metrics, and how thoughtful reader matching creates stronger long-term results than flashy one-day buzz. We talk about realistic expectations for review rates, the truth about reach vs. virality, and why gorgeous PR boxes are not always the right first step for a debut author.

We also dig into ethical marketing practices, reader privacy, AI concerns in author promotion, and what success really looks like beyond bestseller lists and social media hype.

📦 Are PR boxes the best move — or the last move — in an author marketing plan?
📊 Why are review expectations so often misunderstood?
🎯 And what actually gives authors the highest return on their marketing investment?

This episode is essential listening for indie authors, debut writers, and anyone trying to understand how modern book marketing really works.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ How The Nerd Fam started and the gap Rachel saw between indie and traditionally published author support.
✨ What Nerd Fam actually does (and doesn’t do) in the book marketing space.
✨ “Bookish Santa” vs bookish matchmaker — connecting the right books with the right readers.
✨ Building a values-aligned reader community and why cultural fit matters.
✨ AI use in promotion and why Nerd Fam screens for it.
✨ Reader signups, campaigns, and how authors and readers get matched.
✨ What expectations Nerd Fam has for readers and why honesty matters more than hype.
✨ ARC campaigns vs influencer mailings vs PR boxes and when each makes sense.
✨ Why debut authors should focus on review foundations before luxury campaigns.
✨ Vanity metrics vs real success and what actually sustains an author career.
✨ Setting realistic marketing expectations and playing the long game.

🐦 CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📦 Guest: The Nerd Fam – @thenerdfam

✨ Love these behind-the-scenes publishing conversations? Leave a rating & review — it helps more authors and readers find The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where power is forged in fire, gods are never what they seem, and love can burn as brightly as it saves.

This week, host Sara Santillan is joined by our returning Quicksilver influencer, Jan from @JanBookShelf for a full-spoiler deep dive into Brimstone, the explosive second installment in Callie Hart’s Quicksilver series. If you’ve read Brimstone, buckle in — and if you haven’t, proceed with caution, because we go all the way into the rot, the gods, the fire sprites, and that jaw-dropping ending.

Together, Sara and her guest unpack Saeris's transformation from street survivor to Queen of the Blood Court, the evolution of her bond with Kingfisher, and what it truly means to wield power in a world that is literally unraveling. They explore how Saeris's identity as half-fey, half-vampire reshapes not only her sense of self but the political landscape around her, and how her choices are already rippling toward an inevitable war.

We dive deep into the nature of the rot, the devastating truth behind brimstone, and the ethical nightmare of what it may cost to stop the decay consuming the realm. They debate whether the rot is divine, magical, or something even more sinister, and what that means for book three.

You’ll also hear a heartfelt exploration of Saeris's relationships — her fierce devotion to family, her found family, and her unforgettable bond with Kingfisher. From dream-walking to desperate rescues, Sara and Jan reflect on how their love for the series has deepened, grown, and been tested in ways that feel both epic and intimate.

Of course, no Brimstone deep dive would be complete without celebrating Carrion and Onyx — the chaos duo we didn’t know we needed. The pair break down why Carrion’s role feels less like a love triangle and more like a vital, platonic alliance, and why his future could be pivotal to the war ahead.

Finally, they wrestle with the gods and the haunting question of who is really pulling the strings in this world. Is anyone truly trustworthy? And what will Saeris have to become to survive what’s coming?

🩸 What does it truly mean to rule a kingdom built on blood and fire?
🔥 How far is too far when the world itself is rotting?
👑 And what will Saeris sacrifice to become the queen she is destined to be?

This is a must-listen for Quicksilver fans, dark romantasy lovers, and anyone obsessed with morally complex heroines and world-shaking stakes.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ Saeris's evolution from Quicksilver to Brimstone.
✨ Power, identity, and the cost of leadership.
✨ The nature of the rot and the truth of brimstone.
✨ The fire sprites and the moral stakes of magic.
✨ Saeris's and Kingfisher’s bond, and what that means for fate, love, and sacrifice.
✨ Carrion, Onyx, and the power of platonic loyalty.
✨ Predictions and theories for Book 3.

CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📚 Jan – @janbookshelf

✨ Loved this deep dive? Leave us a rating and review — it helps more fantasy and romantasy readers find The Mythic Mic.

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where ambition becomes art, illusions blur morality, and a failed acting career might just be the best writing origin story.

This week, hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan sit down with debut romantasy author Madeline Taylor, whose book Heir of Illusion is already taking the genre by storm. Equal parts hilarious, unfiltered and deeply insightful, Madeline walks us through her winding path from unsuccessful actress, to English degree, to self-publishing, to a whirlwind traditional publishing deal in a matter of months.

We talk about what it really looks like to write a book during grief, burnout, and mental health struggles, and how spite, therapy, and sheer determination helped her push through anyway. Madeline is refreshingly candid about money stress, timing, and the emotional whiplash of being courted by agents and editors while still trying to pay for wisdom teeth surgery.

Then we dive into the deliciously dark world of Heir of Illusion: a female assassin bound to a ruthless king, a mysterious Shadow Reaper, and illusion magic that is as morally tricky as it is powerful. Madeline unpacks Ivy’s journey from self-punishment to self-worth, the seductive danger of invisibility, and why she loves writing razor-sharp banter more than anything.

🗡️ What happens when spite becomes your greatest creative fuel?
🖤 How do illusions blur the line between survival and morality?
🔥 And what does it really take to go from indie debut to trad deal in record time?

This is a must-listen for romantasy readers, aspiring authors, and anyone who loves messy heroines, shadow daddies, and brutally good cliffhangers.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ Madeline’s unlikely journey from failed acting to published author.
✨ How spite — and someone underestimating her — became a powerful motivator.
✨ The reality of self-publishing on a shoestring budget.
✨ Auctions, foreign rights, and the surreal speed of her trad deal.
✨ Why writing is a business — and how she treated it like one.
✨ Illusion magic, invisibility, and moral grayness in Heir of Illusion.
✨ Banter as Madeline’s favorite thing to write and why scripts helped her master dialogue.
✨ Her favorite and hardest chapters to write.
✨ That evil cliffhanger and why Madeline stands by it.

CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill
📚 Madeline Taylor – @madelinetaylorauthor

✨ Loved this episode? Leave us a rating and review — it helps more fantasy and romantasy readers find The Mythic Mic.