S.2 Ep. 20: Of Swans, Shadows, and Stolen Princesses: Inside Lyra Selene’s Fair Folk Trilogy

🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast — where old stories are reborn, fairy tales grow teeth, and fantasy dares to ask harder questions about love, identity, and choice.

This week, host Bethany Amanda is joined by bestselling author Lyra Selene, the mind behind The Fair Folk Trilogy — A Feather So Black, A Crown So Silver, and the just-released finale, A Heart So Green. If you love Celtic folklore, mythic romance, morally complex characters, and fairy tales that refuse to stay simple, this conversation is for you.

Lyra takes us deep into the origins of The Fair Folk Trilogy, from living in rural Ireland as a child to falling in love with Irish mythology, wild landscapes, and the question of why we keep returning to the same stories over and over again. We talk about her lifelong relationship with storytelling, the winding road to publication, and why perseverance — not talent — is often the deciding factor in an author’s career.

We also dive into what makes this trilogy so emotionally resonant: a changeling heroine caught between worlds, a Swan Princess story turned inside out, and relationships built on tension between what a character wants and what they truly need. Lyra opens up about writing complicated heroines, controversial love triangles, and villains who genuinely believe they’re doing the right thing — even when they’re not.

🦢 What happens when the Swan Princess isn’t the hero?
🌿 How do myth, landscape, and folklore shape a fantasy world from the inside out?
💔 And why are the most devastating endings often the most honest?

This episode is a love letter to mythic fantasy, character-driven storytelling, and the beauty of bittersweet endings that linger long after the final page.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT…

✨ Lyra’s childhood spent moving between countries, including a formative year in Ireland, and how that shaped her imagination.
✨ The Fair Folk Trilogy as a Celtic-inspired reimagining of Swan Lake and The Swan Princess.
✨ Writing fantasy that feels mythic, lyrical, deeply romantic, and grounded.
✨ Why Lyra considers herself a character-first writer and how internal vs. external wants drive story tension.
✨ Love triangles, banter, and relationships that force characters to confront who they really are.
✨ Turning the Swan Princess into the villain, and why Lyra believes great villains never think they’re the villain.
✨ The theme of self-acceptance and choosing yourself over romance.
✨ The realities of publishing: multiple books that didn’t sell, switching agents, and learning to keep your eyes on your own paper.
✨ What to expect from A Heart So Green, including new POVs, higher stakes, and an ending that is earned, bittersweet, and unforgettable. 
✨ What Lyra is working on next, including a Roaring Twenties–inspired adult fantasy standalone. 

🐦 CONNECT WITH US

🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic
👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland
👤 Guest Author: Lyra Selene – @lyraselene

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