Rowenna Miller writes Torn
A seamstress who stitches magic into clothing finds herself torn between loyalty to her brother and her secret love for a nobleman in this debut fantasy inspired by the French Revolution.
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“There is no real way to be neutral when the world is fracturing around you. Eventually it affects you.”
What do you do when you are trying to keep a business going, take care of your customers and revolution arrives at your door? This is the story Rowena Miller writes putting the heroin, Sophie, in a series of difficult circumstances where she must choose between her brother and love, between what she knows and what could change.
Miller wanted to explore how the average person responded in the upheaval of revolution. Most history books and stories focus on the heroes of a revolution. Miller explores how average people respond during upheaval. People who need to survive and may not be invested in change.
“I think in America we have a pretty rosy view of revolution. Ours’ turned out pretty well. In the midst of revolution there is a lot of death and destruction. There is a great deal of risk to people who are just trying to stay alive. I think that is what Sophie is afraid of in her world. When you look at history, revolution does not always turn out well.”
Enter the world of the Unraveled Kingdom through Miller’s first novel Torn. Miller’s writing is delightfully detailed. Her characters are written as people you will love, and others you will find extraordinarily unlikeable. Miller’s unique and subtle use of magic creates a story where Sophie must rely on more than her magic to save the day. Miller says she likes the idea of folk tradition, and how her powers are housed in a domestic setting. “I wanted her to have a skill that she is leveraging in the same way anyone might use a skill to influence the world around them. Woman throughout history have been influencers and creators to help their families and themselves.”
“I want to tell the story of ordinary people who have a stake in the events, but don’t have an overwhelming ability to save the day. That is where most of us are most of the time.” Miller explains she wanted to uncover the idea How else can you save the world if you don’t have a chosen warrior? How does a community or individual choice lead to changing the situation of the narrative?
Miller states she is influenced by C.S. Lewis. “One of the things I love about C.S. Lewis,” says Miller, “when you read his non-fiction writing, you can see the things he is chewing on percolating into his fiction.” Miller says things she is trying to work out in her mind get worked out in her fiction.
Miller wrote the first draft of Torn before 2016. “I was starting to notice the product of polarization, and how two sides of a story informs an outcome.” She also wanted to work with motivations moving a story to its climax. She says those motivations help us to better understand the tapestry of politics and break past the surface of an event. “Everyone has something they are afraid of, something to protect and a life they don’t want to lose.”