Interview with Greg Miller, Author of Cocaine Cola
29 Jan 2025
What’s the story behind the story? What inspired you to write Cocaine Cola?
The first time I picked up a composition notebook in rehab, it felt like arming myself for a battle I wasn’t sure I could win. Recovery—from alcoholism and from myself—was no heroic odyssey, but a grueling crawl through shame and self-discovery. Amid the chaos, writing became my lifeline. The seed for Cocaine Cola was planted in that fluorescent-lit sanctuary, where my pen wrestled with inner demons like Denial, Guilt, and Fear. Laphamville, the grotesque setting of my book, mirrored my mind: infected by greed, decay, and the unrelenting hunger of addiction. By the time I left rehab, I had handwritten two novels. Cocaine Cola emerged as my battle cry, a reflection of survival and transformation. Writing wasn’t just therapeutic—it was defiant, a reclamation of the self I thought I’d lost. Today, holding the finished book in my hands feels surreal. It’s more than ink on paper; it’s proof that from the darkest places, something beautiful can grow. Recovery is a journey, not a destination, and every day I pick up my pen, ready to fight again. A more detailed story can be found in this blog post! — https://millpwrites.blogspot.com/2025/01/cocaine-cola-and-recovery.html
If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of Cocaine Cola, what would they be?
For Moses Rock it would have to be something like Johnny Cash’s rendition of “Hurt”.
What’s your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?
Horror, as a reader, is a plunge into the abyss—a shadowed realm where the air is thick with dread and every creak or whisper hints at unseen terrors. I savor the primal thrill of it, the way it quickens my pulse and leaves my imagination pacing the edges of dark possibilities. Horror isn’t just stories about monsters; it’s an immersion into the unknown, a genre that dares to peel back the skin of normalcy to reveal the writhing chaos beneath. Reading horror is like standing at the edge of a storm, feeling its electric charge in the air, yet knowing it cannot touch me. Writing, though, is a different beast entirely. Psychological thrillers demand not just the unraveling of a mystery but the peeling back of a mind. It’s an excavation, slow and deliberate, into the layers of human psyche. To write in this genre is to craft shadows that linger not in the dark corners of a room but in the unlit recesses of a character’s soul. While horror feeds my appetite for the visceral, psychological thrillers give me the tools to manipulate tension like a puppeteer, to weave webs where every strand connects to a secret, a lie, or a fractured truth. In horror, I lose myself. In psychological thrillers, I find myself—deep within the intricate maze of motive, fear, and consequence. One satisfies the instinct to be terrified; the other fulfills the desire to terrify and provoke thought, leaving readers questioning their own minds long after the final page.
What books are on your TBR pile right now?
The Fisherman by John Langan, The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones, and Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
What scene in your book was your favorite to write?
The battle sequence in the Fresh Market Bistro.
Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)
Every morning at 5 a.m. sharp, I settle into my writing sanctuary with a massive cup of coffee steaming beside me, its rich aroma coaxing me awake. The world is still, cloaked in the kind of quiet that feels sacred, and in this solitude, I find my rhythm. My headphones hum with the sweeping scores of films—Hans Zimmer, John Williams, and Max Richter breathing life into my imagination. Their crescendos fuel my creativity, each note propelling my words onto the page. It’s my ritual, my anchor—a perfect alchemy of caffeine, music, and discipline that transforms early mornings into storytelling magic.
Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?
“The only way out is through.”
If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?
After reading Cocaine Cola, I’d want my readers to remember this: even in the darkest moments, when the world feels irreparably broken and humanity seems consumed by its worst impulses, there’s a glimmer of hope in the fight to reclaim oneself. The story may delve into chaos and corruption, but at its heart, it’s a testament to resilience—the belief that even amidst destruction, we can confront our demons, find clarity, and choose a path toward redemption.
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