SPOTLIGHT; Mylee J. Miller in an Interview with the Author

I had the absolute pleasure of reading an ARC of Mylee J. Miller’s debut novel Of Cold, Silver Storms last year. The full review – which you can read after the interview with the author – has been sitting in my GDocs for a while because I wanted to post it closer to the release date. Suffice to say though, I thoroughly enjoyed it and am impatiently waiting for the sequel. Mylee sat through my screaming at her over Discord and I regret nothing.

Title: Of Cold, Silver Storms
Series: The Raincycle Trilogy
Author: Mylee J. Miller
Genre: Young Adult, fantasy
Type: E-book
Publisher: Mylee J. Miller

KING. KILLER.

COWARD.

In Realm Promise, Zachiah Welstzyre has always been an outcast despite his role as the people’s king. Haunted by the plague that killed his mother and vanquished his father within the rainy seclusion of his palace, he’s cornered by the rampant sickness, the people trying to flee it, and an ultimatum presented by the other realms and their if he eliminates the plagues and rebellions brewing amid all seven kingdoms, they’ll keep his identity as a First Heir a secret.

Harboring the First Heir power of empathy-telepathy, abilities as capable of raising a kingdom as they are of ruining it, Zachiah seeks a loophole by locating his missing father and trying to reinstate him to the throne.

Covert killer Ballad Chimesong wants to protect her family more than anything. When she’s petitioned to kill the king under the threat to eliminate her family should she refuse, she sets out with a team to end his life. Failure threatens to expose her guild and endanger her career, but as she toes the line of success, she risks releasing something on Realm Promise that is far more dangerous than losing her career or defending her the king’s secret, bastard brother.

Tell us a bit about yourself.

Where to start? I’m a multi-genre writer who has aspirations to become a hybrid author (aka indie and traditionally published). I’m also a freelance illustrator and editor, am attending school for my BA in English Literature, and I absolutely love reading, cooking, and hiking. I also was just recently shortlisted for the WriteHive mentorship program, which was probably the highlight of my start to 2025!

Describe your book in a sentence.

The pitch I use is this: Zachiah, the outcast king of Realm Promise, and Ballad, a hitwoman who will do anything to preserve her family, are set at odds when she’s asked to kill him–and when he’s blackmailed into destroying the guilds that she’s a part of.

Where do you write from?

I write from a rural town in Oregon, in the United States Of America! But I also like to write in the woods.

What has your writing journey been like?

My writing journey has been one of constant improvement and wild epiphanies. Sometimes, as a Neurodivergent person, it can feel like I’m falling behind other writers when I get a grand realization about something in writing, but I’ve come to accept that I’d rather be constantly improving and learning than remaining stagnant and content in my skills. Since I began writing at four years old, I think it suffices to say that if I hadn’t struggled during my writing path, I wouldn’t be where I am now.

What has been your favourite part of writing the book?

My favorite part of writing OF COLD, SILVER STORMS has definitely been twofold: one, in writing the blind main character’s POV (which was both incredibly difficult and incredibly eye-opening, ironically, as I dove into the community of blind friends I have). Two, I loved writing the setting of the story – the city where it never stops raining. It’s genuinely one of my favorite settings I’ve ever come up with.

How did you come up with the idea for this book, and what has been the most challenging thing to figure out story-wise?

The idea from this book, to be honest, came out of nowhere. I don’t think anything in particular inspired it, except a rainy day and the question of “what if it never stopped raining?” My stories tend to generate from all sorts of places, but this one definitely started with the primary setting. I think the most challenging thing to figure out, story-wise, was actually Zachiah’s relationship to his horses. I know that sounds weird, but it’s true! I had to research a lot (and talk to my dad, a certified horse-lover) to get the scenes with his horses to sound realistic and authentic.

Tell us a bit about how you edit.

My editing process is very in-depth, and slightly chaotic. I used to have a step-by-step editing guide, but now I’ve converted fully to making “revision guides” while editing, and referencing the revision guide I make while writing draft one. So, in essence: if I’m writing draft three, I’m referencing the draft 3 revision plan while writing the draft 4 revision plan. It helps to avoid lingering on mistakes or tunneling in to errors. I usually do around 9 edits, but I think that number will decrease, as I’ve finally figured out how to edit for content in more efficient ways with the last couple of books I’ve worked on.

What has the publishing process been like for you?

The publishing process has been a whirlwind of asking questions, designing my own covers, and connecting with people in the indie publishing community. That means a lot of talking to friends like Alexandra Roma, author of The Wounds Of Wisdom, Taylor Hubbard, author of The Flowered Blade, M. A. Vice, author of The Impavidus Cycle, and others. I’m just glad they didn’t get tired of my questions! Other than that, I had to do quite a bit of research on which paths of self-publication would work best for me.

What’s a piece of advice that has helped you, and what advice would you give other writers?

A piece of advice that has helped me in my writing journey is to “write for yourself”. Initially, it sounded really selfish. How can I write for myself, if I want to write to help others? But I’ve found that by writing for myself, and writing what I love/want to write, I’ve been able to help and touch more people than if I’d focused my books on pleasing others’ tastes. As for advice I’d give to other writes, it’s much the same – but with the added tip of “don’t try to fill everyone’s basket.” As a writer, you’ll get a lot of feedback, most of it being contradictory. You have to learn to sort out which feedback is purely opinion-based, and which feedback overlaps. Don’t try to please everyone, or you’ll never finish!

What’s the biggest lesson you feel you’ve learned through this entire journey?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned through the journey of publishing OF COLD, SILVER STORMS is that effort bears results. If you’d told me that I was going to publish this book, which had sat untouched on my Drive for 2 years before I went back to it, six months ago? I wouldn’t have believed you. But while expectations are fluid, effort bears results.

Of Cold, Silver Storms releases 18 January 2025, and you can pre-order now.

You can also find Mylee on:-
Bluesky: @myleejmiller
Twitter: @myleejmiller
Website: https://myleejmiller.com/

I had a chance to read this in advance and oh, boy, did I fly through it. Intense, well written, with twists I did not see coming – the crumbs were there, I just followed a different path! – and characters that intrigue, this is one hell of a debut.

If you followed me down my cozy fantasy path last November, you know I was ready to read nothing but that for a bit. But this book? Is not cozy, my friends. It is political, it is fast, it is immersive, and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I spent most of my time reading it sending messages to the author (who was so kind as to offer me an ARC and who must be regretting how much I yelled at her about this LOL) just freaking out about how much I loved it.

We have two main characters – Zachiah, the new King of a continent where it’s always raining (which, as a worldbuilding idea, is so fascinating and new?), who has secrets up his sleeves and who is also blind; and Ballad, a hitwoman who has her own secrets and aims, who loves her family but is keeping this part of her life from them and who has just been given the task of killing the King. Surrounding them are their own problems and the ills of the world they are in, the class system they have been living in and a bigger plot that both seem to be pawns of.

When I saw I thought I knew what to expect but got none of it, I’m not kidding. In most of these sorts of stories you expect them to meet somewhere in the middle or first half the book and fall in lust if not love, right? Not here! No spoilers, but the build up of the novel is the larger plot they’re learning about on their own ends, the politics of the rich and the politics of the poor and how they might be intersecting.

I’m trying so hard not to spoil things here, but I loved this book so much. The supporting cast is as different as our main characters, both supportive and secretive and cunning and everything in between. Trust is forged and broken, magic is found and lost, the world is not as it seems – and by the time I reached the end of the book, I realised I would have to wait some time for book 2 and I’ll be asking the author for some hints in the meantime.

You are not ready for this book, world, but it is so worth picking up.

Thank you so much, Mylee, for the chance to read this book in advance and for answering my questions!

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