The Mythic Mic Podcast

Bethany Amanda
  • 5.0 (46)
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Welcome to The Mythic Mic Podcast - a home for readers who dream in magic! Dive into the world of fantasy and romantasy with hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan, writers, storytellers, and book collectors obsessed with epic tales, swoon-worthy tropes, and magical worlds. Join us for deep dives into fantasy books, exclusive author interviews, monthly giveaways, and bookish discussions that will add endless reads to your TBR. Plus, don't miss our "Author's Version" episodes, where we share insider tips and advice to help aspiring authors write their first books! Whether you're a seasoned fantasy reader, a writer dreaming of publishing your own novel, or just discovering the magic, you belong here. Subscribe now and step into the adventure!  Follow us on Instagram @MythicMic, @BethanyInFantasyland, and @the_magical_quill. Learn more about the podcast and sign up for our exclusive newsletter at https://mythicmic.com 

  1. 10h ago

    S.2 Ep. 134: Stolen Lifetimes, Demonic Deals, and Gothic Desire: Charlotte B. Plumb on Reap and Sow

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where desperate wishes cost years of your life, mirrors become gateways for demons, and the creature everyone fears may be far less monstrous than the holy man hunting him. This week, host Bethany Amanda and Mythic Mic Team Member Britt sit down with fantasy author Charlotte B. Plumb to discuss her highly anticipated gothic romantasy debut, Reap and Sow.  Charlotte shares how reading His Dark Materials at thirteen sparked her desire to make complete strangers cry through fiction, why her first queried manuscript received little interest, and how she found the perseverance to write another book instead of giving up. She also opens up about being laid off only days before receiving offers from Penguin Random House UK and Berkley XO and the surreal mix of joy, terror, and imposter syndrome that followed her breakout publishing deal. We also dive into Reap and Sow, set in the gothic city of Blackbridge, where anyone desperate enough can trade years of their life to a demon in exchange for their deepest desire. Eda Shaw and her brothers are indentured to one such demon and forced to recruit new people willing to make bargains. But when her brothers are arrested and a deal goes disastrously wrong, Eda must form a pact with Kit, another demon who may claim her heart along with her remaining years. Charlotte discusses Faustian bargains, reluctant allies, forced proximity, deceptive appearances, grim humor, and writing a demon who loves humanity opposite a human woman who has lost faith in it. 🪞 How many years would you surrender to receive the one thing you desire most? 🖤 Can Eda trust a demon who seems more human than the people surrounding her? ⏳ And what happens when the bargain meant to save her family begins costing her far more than time? This is a must-listen for gothic romantasy readers, fans of dangerous bargains and morally gray demons, lovers of forced proximity and reluctant allies, and anyone who prefers their book boyfriends snarky, sinister, and slightly reminiscent of a wet angry cat. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ Charlotte’s lifelong love of fantasy, role-playing games, and story-driven adventures. ✨ Baldur’s Gate 3, Dragon Age, The Witcher, The Sims, and her predictable Astarion romance. ✨ How His Dark Materials inspired her to pursue the “black art” of making readers cry. ✨ Querying a manuscript that received almost no agent interest, and why market timing can matter as much as the quality of a manuscript. ✨ Writing the next book instead of allowing rejection to end her career. ✨ Becoming part of Berkley XO’s inaugural launch list. ✨ The joy, terror, and imposter syndrome surrounding a major debut deal. ✨ Creating memes, unboxing ARCs, and learning to appear on camera as an introverted author. ✨ The Peaky Blinders question that sparked the idea for a criminal fantasy family. ✨ Drawing visual inspiration from Edinburgh, Prague, Elizabethan England, and gothic architecture. ✨ The creation of Blackbridge, where demons grant desires in exchange for years of human life. ✨ Eda and her brothers’ indentured service recruiting people into dangerous pacts, and the deal that forces Eda into an alliance with the demon Kit. ✨ Writing Eda as a jaded human who resents humanity. ✨ Creating Kit as a demon who loves humanity and longs to imitate it. ✨ A romantic dynamic built around two characters who unknowingly have something to teach each other. ✨ Kit’s Howl, Spike, and Astarion DNA—and his wet-angry-cat appeal. ✨ Why the demon is not the true monster of the story. ✨ Balancing grim subject matter with snark, wit, and emotionally revealing humor. ✨ Why humor can act as “cerebral foreplay” between romantic leads. ✨ Tripp, Kit’s rude imp familiar and Charlotte’s scene-stealing favorite character. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 Charlotte B. Plumb – @CharlotteBPlumb ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 134: Stolen Lifetimes, Demonic Deals, and Gothic Desire: Charlotte B. Plumb on Reap and Sow

  2. 2d ago

    S.2 Ep. 133: The Villains Are Back for One Final Superpowered Showdown: V.E. Schwab on Victorious

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where sometimes the best fantasy stories don't need heroes at all. This week, hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan sit down with V.E. Schwab to discuss Victorious, the long-awaited conclusion to the Villains trilogy, a series Victoria describes as Magneto and Professor X meets The Secret History and a toxic college bromance where superpowers definitely don't make you a superhero. From the book that helped save her writing career to the finale she waited eight years to be ready to write, Victoria takes us behind the scenes of Villains, her intensely precise creative process, and nearly two decades of building a career by refusing to stay in one lane. ⚡ What if superpowers didn't make you a superhero? 🖤 How do you end a series readers have spent more than a decade fighting for? ✍️ And what happens when you realize you aren't the right version of yourself to write a story yet? If you love morally gray characters, superpowers, toxic friendships, villain stories, dark academia, complicated rivalries, obsessive characters, and fantasy that makes you question exactly who you're supposed to root for, this episode is for you. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ Victoria's journey from poetry to novels and why she believes you don't need to be published to take yourself seriously as a writer. ✨ How a poetry background shaped her obsession with rhythm, precision, metaphor, and making every sentence earn its place. ✨ Why Victoria spends months outlining before drafting and how she preserves the beauty of a first draft without relying on the dreaded “garbage draft.” ✨ The realities of publishing even after nearly two decades in the industry, and why Victoria says no one ever truly figures the business out. ✨ Why writers are the one truly original ingredient in their stories and the importance of writing for yourself instead of chasing trends. ✨ The origin of Vicious, the canceled series and career uncertainty that pushed Victoria to stop writing what publishing wanted and create the story she wanted to read. ✨ Victor, Eli, near-death experiences, manufactured superpowers, and Victoria's original experiment: could she write a book without heroes and still make readers root for someone? ✨ Why Vicious was never an overnight success and how years of reader word-of-mouth transformed a small first print run into a fiercely loved trilogy. ✨ Why Victoria waited eight years to write Victorious and how she knew she needed to become the right version of herself before she could finish the story. ✨ Saying goodbye to Villains, writing the ending backward, and why Victorious feels like both the end of an era and a love letter to the readers who kept the series alive. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 VE Schwab – @VESchwab ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 133: The Villains Are Back for One Final Superpowered Showdown: V.E. Schwab on Victorious

  3. Sep 30

    S.2 Ep. 132: Cursed Heirs, Forbidden Witches, and Four Sons of Salem: Lucy Smoke on Hallowed Bones

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where cursed bloodlines hide beneath ordinary society, ghosts haunt college corridors, and one forbidden witch is about to become entangled with four dangerously broken heirs. This week, host Sara Santillan sits down with bestselling indie and traditionally published author Lucy Smoke to discuss Hallowed Bones, the first installment in her Sons of Salem series.  Lucy shares her nine-year journey from publishing a debut she later removed from circulation to building a full-time author career across multiple pen names, genres, and publishing paths. She opens up about stubbornness, rejection, one-star reviews, surviving unpredictable indie income, finding the right agent, and why fear should never be the deciding factor when choosing whether to pursue a creative dream. We also dive into Hallowed Bones, where Haven enters Ipswich College despite warnings to stay away from Ezra Bishop, Cameron Good, Lyle Corey, and Reyes Scott, the four cursed Sons of Salem. Lucy discusses combining The Covenant with Wednesday Addams energy, researching the Salem witch trials, interviewing practicing witches, Wiccans, and neo-pagans, and creating a hidden paranormal society filled with inherited magic, demons, blood contracts, ghosts, and other planes of existence. She also explains the immense challenge of crafting four distinct romances and character arcs while refusing to let why-choose storytelling be dismissed as “just spice.” 🕯️ What happens when the witch everyone fears is more powerful than the four cursed heirs meant to contain her? 🩸 Can Haven survive Ipswich College when ghosts, gods, and hidden bloodlines are closing in? 🔥 And how do you fall for four different people without any of those romances or the men themselves feeling interchangeable? This is a must-listen for gothic paranormal readers, why-choose romance fans, lovers of Salem-inspired witch stories, and anyone who wants layered relationships, dangerous magic, and broken characters fighting toward a realistically messy happy ending. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ Lucy’s real-life found family, friend-family vacations, and hunt for the perfect milkshake. ✨ Pursuing writing despite being repeatedly encouraged to choose a more “practical” career. ✨ Studying English literature, professional writing, and education before leaving the classroom path. ✨ Why finishing and releasing an imperfect first book was essential to her growth. ✨ Learning through failure, removing early books, and continuing without regret. ✨ Why rejection letters and one-star reviews prove that a story made someone feel something. ✨ Building a full-time indie career through experimentation, research, and stubborn persistence. ✨ The financial highs and lows of treating authorship as a real business. ✨ Finding her third agent after previous representation ended or became unhealthy. ✨ Challenging academic attitudes that dismiss indie publishing and commercial fiction. ✨ Why affordable books, Kindle Unlimited, libraries, and format accessibility matter to Lucy. ✨ The origins of her Lucy Smoke and Lucinda Dark pen names. ✨ Her introduction to why-choose romance through anime, manga, and reverse-harem stories. ✨ Why writing four love interests means constructing four complete romantic arcs. ✨ Exploring what makes someone fall in love with multiple people for entirely different reasons. ✨ Helping bring why-choose romance from a niche category into mainstream traditional publishing. ✨ Haven Wardwell and the four cursed heirs of the Sons of Salem. ✨ Researching the political and economic motives behind accusations of witchcraft. ✨ Interviewing witches, Wiccans, and neo-pagans while distinguishing their belief systems. ✨ Deconstructing a rigid good-versus-evil worldview while creating the book’s magic. ✨ A hidden paranormal society populated by witches, demons, werewolf-like beings, and ghosts. ✨ Bloodline-based magic that manifests according to the individual rather than copying a parent’s ability. ✨ The beloved aunt, the brutal cliffhanger, and why book two may reveal something even more shocking. ✨ Reader Mafia, accidental branding, chaotic honesty, and Lucy’s infamous eyeliner. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 Lucy Smoke – @AuthorLucySmoke ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 132: Cursed Heirs, Forbidden Witches, and Four Sons of Salem: Lucy Smoke on Hallowed Bones

  4. Sep 28

    S.2 Ep. 131: Hot Nerds, Vampire Queens, and 20 Years of the Black Dagger Brotherhood: J.R. Ward on Lover Enthroned

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where morally gray vampires, fated mates, touch-her-and-die heroes, and a little leather never go out of style. This week, host Bethany Amanda sits down with legendary paranormal romance author J.R. Ward to discuss Lover Enthroned, the newest installment in the iconic Black Dagger Brotherhood series. Her irresistible pitch? Hot nerd meets a queen. A literal queen. J.R. takes us behind the scenes of more than two decades of the Brotherhood, from getting fired by her first publisher to building a series that has spanned more than 20 books, bringing the vampires to the screen with Passionflix, and why showing up for the story remains at the heart of her writing process. 🖤 What happens when the Black Dagger Brotherhood trades its usual alpha hero for a hot nerd? 👑 What secrets are waiting when that hot nerd falls for a Shadow princess? 🧛 And after more than two decades of vampires, fated mates, and morally gray heroes, how does J.R. Ward keep surprising us? If you love vampires, paranormal romance, fated mates, morally gray heroes, touch-her-and-die devotion, dark fantasy, powerful heroines, found family, and romances where love conquers all, this episode is for you. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ J.R.'s journey from writer to lawyer and back to writer, and the unexpected encouragement that helped turn the stories in her head into a publishing career. ✨ Why she describes herself as a “secretary” for her characters and how scenes arrive in her head out of order before becoming a finished book. ✨ The perseverance behind her career, including getting fired by her first publisher and giving herself one more chance with the series that became Black Dagger Brotherhood. ✨ Why readers have stayed obsessed with the Brotherhood for more than two decades: morally gray alpha males, fated mates, touch-her-and-die devotion, tattoos, fangs, leather, and plenty of darkness. ✨ Lover Enthroned, J.R.'s “hot nerd meets a queen” romance between Alan and Shadow princess Denny, and why new readers can jump into the Brotherhood right here. ✨ Bringing Black Dagger Brotherhood to the screen with Passionflix and why J.R. waited decades for an adaptation partner willing to stay true to the books. ✨ Watching a story she never expected to find an audience become a decades-long series with an intensely loyal fandom and more stories still unfolding. ✨ Denny's deliciously satisfying moment of vengeance, new insight into the Shadows, and J.R.'s love for the unexpected final pieces that reveal themselves while she's writing. ✨ Why romance remains at the heart of everything J.R. writes and the enduring belief behind the Brotherhood: in the end, love conquers all. ✨ Plus: J.R.'s favorite Brother, Vicious unexpectedly discovering fatherhood, ancient Dell laptops, terrible roommate options, and why the safest Black Dagger Brotherhood roommate might actually be a golden retriever. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 J.R. Ward – @Jrwardauthor ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 131: Hot Nerds, Vampire Queens, and 20 Years of the Black Dagger Brotherhood: J.R. Ward on Lover Enthroned

  5. Sep 26

    Banter & Books Ep. 3: Why Choose, When You Can Have Them All? The Why Choose Books Worth Adding to Your TBR

    Welcome to another episode of Banter & Books, the monthly Mythic Mic segment where host Amara and a special guest share spoiler-free reviews of the books they can't stop thinking about! In this episode, Amara is joined by bookstagrammer Kris West to talk fairy-tale villains, dystopian video-game worlds, fated mates, magical academies, hidden identities, devastating cliffhangers, and the wonderfully chaotic world of why choose fantasy. They dive into Blood of the Fairest by Morgan B. Lee, Codebound by Kendra Moreno, A Crown of Crimson and Crows by Tessa Hale, and Clash of Claws and Edge of Steel by Elizabeth Dear. They also revisit two indie favorites they cannot stop recommending: Veil of Ash by Fallon Hendrix and Rook of Ruin by Elle Youngish. Along the way, Amara and Kris make the case for giving why choose romance a chance, celebrate golden-retriever heroes, enemies-to-lovers tension, fated mates, groveling, powerful FMCs, and the beauty of having an entire “boy buffet” of love interests. They also discuss evil-queen fairy-tale retellings, LitRPG worlds with deadly levels and praying-mantis companions, sparkly purple snakes, brutal twists, tampered memories, and books that leave you staring at the wall wondering what just happened. Whether you already love why choose, have been curious but hesitant to try it, or simply want some wildly original indie fantasy recommendations to destroy your TBR, this spoiler-free episode is for you. BOOKS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE Blood of the Fairest by Morgan B. Lee (Check out our Mythic Mic interview with Morgan B. Lee here) Codebound by Kendra MorenoA Crown of Crimson and Crows by Tessa HaleClash of Claws by Elizabeth Dear (Check out our Mythic Mic interview with Elizabeth Dear here)Veil of Ash by Fallon HendrixRook of Ruin by Elle YoungishCONNECT WITH THE MYTHIC MIC TEAM 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 👤 Amara – @Bored_Military_Wife ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

  6. Sep 25

    S.2 Ep. 130: Venom, Feminine Rage, and Becoming the Villain: J.E. Caroline on The Venom in Her Veins

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where sometimes the heroine doesn't defeat the villain. Sometimes she becomes one. This week, hosts Sara Santillan and Amara sit down with J.E. Caroline to discuss The Venom in Her Veins, a dark romantasy about a cursed fae woman fated to destroy the world and the dragon prince destined to kill her before she can. 🐍 What if your favorite romantasy heroine became the villain and loved it? 🐉 What happens when the man destined to kill you falls in love with you first? 🖤 And just how far can grief, rage, and darkness push a heroine before there's no going back? If you love villain arcs, cursed heroines, dragon shifters, feminine rage, touch-her-and-die romance, slow burn, dark fantasy, deadly magic, morally gray characters, and heroes willing to burn the world for their girl, this episode is for you. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ Going from full-time motherhood and rediscovering reading to writing and independently publishing her debut novel. ✨ The chaotic reality of indie publishing for the first time and what Jessica wishes she'd known before jumping in. ✨ Why Jessica abandoned the traditional hero's journey and asked: what if the heroine became the villain instead? ✨ Creating Verena, a cursed fae woman fated to destroy the world she's desperately trying to save. ✨ Ronan, the dragon prince destined to kill Verena who makes the very inconvenient mistake of falling in love with her first. ✨ Villain arcs, feminine rage, grief, trauma, and what happens when a character's moral balance is pushed too far. ✨ Building a dark and beautiful world of fractured kingdoms, cursed forests, deadly monsters, hidden secrets, and inevitable betrayals. ✨ The slow-burn romance, touch-her-and-die devotion, and a hero willing to burn the world for Verena or right alongside her. ✨ The inspiration behind Verena's venomous curse and why viper imagery became central to her transformation. ✨ What's coming next, including more trauma in Book Two, a dystopian romance, and a future prequel exploring the gods behind Verena's world. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 J.E. Caroline – @J.E.Caroline.Author ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 130: Venom, Feminine Rage, and Becoming the Villain: J.E. Caroline on The Venom in Her Veins

  7. Sep 24

    S.2 Ep. 129: The Divergent-Era Fantasy Obsession Is Back: Geneva Lee on Harbinger

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where forbidden magic, ominous prophecies, and ruthless silver-haired warriors are exactly our kind of problem. This week, host Bethany Amanda sits down with Geneva Lee to discuss Harbinger, a dark, romantic slow-burn fantasy filled with star-powered magic, dangerous omens, political intrigue, forbidden attraction, and enough twists that almost everything is a spoiler. Geneva takes us behind the scenes of the fantasy world she's been dreaming about for fifteen years, including the astrology-inspired magic system, ancient beliefs about birds and omens, and the influences that helped shape a story she describes as a female-gaze Game of Thrones meets Divergent, Ladyhawke, and The Thorn Birds. 🌙 What happens when an act of mercy awakens a magic that should never have been hers? 🐦‍⬛ What if one woman is believed to be the omen that 500 years of peace is about to end? 🔥 And how are we supposed to resist a ruthless, silver-haired warrior who has sworn his life to duty? If you love forbidden magic, celestial fantasy, ominous prophecies, ruthless and competent heroes, slow-burn romance, political intrigue, tortured MMCs, dangerous secrets, powerful heroines, and fantasy worlds where nothing is quite what it seems, this episode is for you. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ Geneva's fifteen-year publishing career, and how she got the push to finally write a novel while caring for a newborn and toddler. ✨ The business side of being an author, from contracts and marketing to social media. ✨ Geneva's biggest advice for aspiring and neurodivergent writers. ✨ Why editing has become Geneva's favorite part of the writing process and how even after fifteen years of publishing, she still relies on the editorial process to make each story hit harder. ✨ Creating Harbinger, a dark, ominous, romantic slow burn where almost every revelation is a spoiler, every answer seems to uncover another secret, and readers may want to question everything they think they know. ✨ Building an astrology-inspired magic system where the stars themselves provide power and each noble bloodline draws its magic from a different constellation. ✨ The ancient history behind the book's birds and omens, Geneva's fascination with augury, and why one seemingly small choice involving a raven-like bird may be far more important than readers initially realize. ✨ Why Geneva loves tortured heroes who occasionally reveal the person they might have been before terrible things happened to them. ✨ The deeper themes beneath Harbinger, including grief, fate, powerlessness, the choices we make versus the choices taken from us, and what it means to keep choosing to rise when hope feels impossible. ✨ Expanding Harbinger from a planned trilogy into a series of at least five books, Geneva's refusal to rush the next installment, and why the infamous “Queen of Cliffhangers” has absolutely no intention of giving up her devastating endings. ✨ Plus: sword fighting, sword yoga, future dagger-throwing ambitions, whether Geneva could survive her own fantasy world, the bloodline she'd choose for herself, why readers may need multiple boxes of tissues, and the Filthy Rich Vampires crossover that could cause absolute chaos. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 Geneva Lee – @Genevaleebooks ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 129: The Divergent-Era Fantasy Obsession Is Back: Geneva Lee on Harbinger

  8. Sep 21

    S.2 Ep. 128: Wolf Shifters, Valkyries, and Forbidden Love: Olivia Wildenstein on The Ice Beyond

    🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where mythological worlds collide, romance blooms in the most dangerous places, and every monster has a story. This week, hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara sit down with bestselling fantasy author Olivia Wildenstein to celebrate The Ice Beyond, the first book in her breathtaking new Empress of Thorns series. Olivia shares her fascinating journey from self-publishing to hybrid publishing, the realities of navigating both indie and traditional publishing, and why perseverance—not overnight success—is the true secret to a writing career. We also dive into writing routines, perfectionism, character art, worldbuilding, and why some stories refuse to let go until they're told. Then we explore The Ice Beyond, an epic Norse-inspired fantasy filled with wolf shifters, vampires, Valkyries, dragons, forbidden romance, devastating secrets, morally gray characters, and a heroine whose entire identity is shattered when she discovers everything she's believed about herself is a lie. 🐺 What happens when the family who raised you has been hiding the biggest secret of your life? ❄️ Can love survive when it was forbidden from the very beginning? ⚔️ And who are the real monsters in a world filled with gods, shifters, and ancient legends? If you love Viking-inspired fantasy, morally gray heroes, mythology, dangerous monsters, sweeping romance, love triangles, and immersive fantasy worlds, this is an episode you won't want to miss. 🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: ✨ Olivia's publishing journey from selling ten self-published copies to becoming a bestselling hybrid author. ✨ The biggest differences between indie, traditional, and hybrid publishing, and why she now loves working in both worlds. ✨ Why perseverance matters far more than chasing trends or overnight success. ✨ Her writing process, perfectionism, self-editing habits, and why deadlines are both terrifying and essential. ✨ Character art, visual storytelling, and how seeing a world helps bring fantasy to life. ✨ Building The Ice Beyond from a simple vampire story into an expansive Norse-inspired fantasy universe. ✨ Reimagining Norse mythology with wolf shifters, Valkyries, vampires, dragons, and unforgettable monsters. ✨ Writing morally gray characters whose motivations remain a mystery until the very end. ✨ Why Olivia loves heroines who grow, stumble, and make mistakes instead of having all the answers. ✨ Forbidden romance, love triangles, and why readers secretly love emotional chaos. ✨ Advice for aspiring fantasy authors on finding your audience while staying true to your creative vision. CONNECT WITH US 🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic 👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland 👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill 📚 Olivia Wildenstein – @Olives21 ✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.

    S.2 Ep. 128: Wolf Shifters, Valkyries, and Forbidden Love: Olivia Wildenstein on The Ice Beyond
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About

Welcome to The Mythic Mic Podcast - a home for readers who dream in magic! Dive into the world of fantasy and romantasy with hosts Bethany Amanda and Sara Santillan, writers, storytellers, and book collectors obsessed with epic tales, swoon-worthy tropes, and magical worlds. Join us for deep dives into fantasy books, exclusive author interviews, monthly giveaways, and bookish discussions that will add endless reads to your TBR. Plus, don't miss our "Author's Version" episodes, where we share insider tips and advice to help aspiring authors write their first books! Whether you're a seasoned fantasy reader, a writer dreaming of publishing your own novel, or just discovering the magic, you belong here. Subscribe now and step into the adventure!  Follow us on Instagram @MythicMic, @BethanyInFantasyland, and @the_magical_quill. Learn more about the podcast and sign up for our exclusive newsletter at https://mythicmic.com 

Information

  • Creator
    Bethany Amanda
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    154
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Mythic Mic Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Mythic Mic Podcast

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