By: Kloe Adams

Editorial Editor

Author Millie Abecassis released her first novel, Daughters of the Blue Moon, on Feb. 25. Abecaccis participated in her first book signing, reading, and Q&A at local bookstore Beyond Text, where she detailed her life up to and while writing Daughters of the Blue Moon. Born and raised in France, Abecassis began learning English at the age of five and immediately fell in love with the language. Since she discovered the fantasy genre in middle school, Abecassis recognized her passion for literature and dedicated her education to furthering her writing career. When she entered high school, Abecassis pursued a high school degree in literature while developing her writing skills outside of school. After high school, Abecassis attended Panthéon-Sorbonne University where she earned degrees in law and philosophy. Upon graduating, Abecassic moved to the United States where she has been living ever since with her family and two cats. 

Although Abecassis put writing to the side for numerous years, she commenced work on her first novel-length stories in 2020. When beginning on Daughters of the Blue Moon, Abecassic knew she wanted to write a retelling: “I have a framework, an original story to work with, but then I can pretty much do whatever I want with it.” Abecassic drew inspiration for her novella from the original Little Red Riding Hood, Le Petit Chaperon Rouge by Charles Perrault. While studying literature in high school, Abecassis explored the deeper meanings of Perrault’s tales, learning: “They all have a moral at the end, trying to teach a lesson to kids. But, some of them are quite dark, which caused them to have a bigger impact on me.” While Abecassis believes Little Red Riding Hood teaches kids to caution interactions with strangers, she also believes the story tells girls and women that sexuality is a bad thing. Abecassis explained, “I wanted to write a story where Little Red Riding Hood, instead of being a victim, gets her life back.” 

While writing in high school, Abecassis wrote in French until making the switch to English in 2020. Eventually, she read in English as well. She stated, “I wanted to get into more books that were not available in French. Although it [English] was difficult to comprehend, I picked it up quickly.” As Abecassis pursued her writing career with greater dedication, she took the pantser approach,  embracing spontaneity over meticulous planning, to writing. However, she soon found a greater love for the plotter approach, outlining the whole story beforehand. Abecassis shifted to the plotter approach because she got tired of having to rewrite the story when she thought of new, plot-altering details. 

Outside of writing new stories, Abecassis promotes independent and small authors. In February 2024, Abecassis launched SmallPitch, a small press-centered pitch event, that focused on small and indie presses, ultimately helping authors find a home for their work. More recently, in October 2024, Abecassis co-launched the Small Spec Book Awards alongside L.N. Holmes to recognize and promote authors writing speculative fiction. 

On the horizon, Abecassis has four books lined up to release in 2025 and 2026, exploring genres such as science fiction and mystery, so be sure to keep an eye out as she continues to release powerful and fascinating stories.