Samantha Mills (author)

Short stories

In 2018, Mills published her first science fiction short story: "The Gestational Cycle of Flies in a Cupboard" in Lamplight Magazine.^[4] She has since published science fiction and fantasy short stories in various magazines and podcasts.^[3] By 2020, she had one work longlisted for the BSFA Best Shorter Fiction Award, and had two stories placed on Locus's Recommended Reading list.^[5][6][7]

"Rabbit Test" was published online in 2022 via Uncanny Magazine, Issue #49. It tells the story of Grace, and later her daughter Olivia, living in a near-future society where women's rights are limited and pregnancies are heavily monitored, with abortions made illegal. Reviewer Lis Carey described the story as powerful but dark, providing readers with a useful history of pregnancy tests and abortion.^[8] Reviewer Niall Harrison described it as an "incandescent" response to Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.^[9]

The Wings Upon Her Back

Mills published her first novel, The Wings Upon Her Back, in 2024. The science fiction tale focuses on the war-torn city of Radezhda, where five different sects serve five gods with varying occupations.^[12] The narrative alternates between two points in Winged Zemolai's life: as a youth, training to be a warrior under the powerful Winged Vodaya, and as an adult, disgraced and indecisive. The relationship between Zemolai and Vodaya is a key tension throughout the book.^[13] One critic praised the book's consideration of the impacts of abuse and its focus on female and non-binary protagonists.^[14]

Mills began writing the novel in 2017. She initially planned it as an action fantasy but added themes of fascism and strongmen politics, inspired by the themes she saw in U.S. politics at the time. Mills revised the book repeatedly to strengthen these themes.^[3] The novel was published by Tachyon Publications.^[12] Upon release, critics received the book with universal acclaim.^[15] Critics praised the examination of the consequences of Zemolai's choices and the complex impacts of fascism and religious zealotry.^{[16][17][18][19][20]}

Upcoming projects

In a May 8, 2024 interview, Mills stated that she was working on a new fantasy novel, nicknamed The Secret Sea Monster WIP.^[21]

Novels

• The Wings Upon Her Back (2024)^[12]

Short stories

• "The Gestational Cycle of Flies in a Cupboard" – LampLight, Volume 6 Issue 3 (March 2018)^[4]
• "Strange Waters" – Strange Horizons (April 2, 2018)
• "Adrianna in Pomegranate" – Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Issue #271 (February 14, 2019)
• "One Part Per Billion" – Diabolical Plots, Issue #50 (April 15, 2019)
• "Laugh Lines" – Daily Science Fiction (June 10, 2019)^[22]
• "Four of Seven" – Escape Pod, Episode #687 (July 4, 2019)
• "Kiki Hernández Beats the Devil" – Translunar Travelers Lounge, Issue 2 (February 15, 2020)
• "Mama Cascade" – Deep Magic (Spring 2020)^[23]
• "The Limits of Magic" – Apparition Literary Magazine, Issue 11: Redemption (July 15, 2020)
• "Anchorage" – Uncanny Magazine, Issue 36 (Fall 2020)
• "Spindles" – Kaleidotrope (Spring 2021)
• "Rabbit Test" – Uncanny Magazine, Issue 49 (2022)^[24]
• "10 Visions of the Future; or, Self-Care for the End of Days" – Uncanny Magazine, Issue 63 (2025)^[25]