Author Interview: Amber De Torfino

Amber holding a mug that humorously invites others to inquire about her book.

Sarah: I 'met' Amber in an author chat group, and she started supporting me by sharing my posts to her stories and being...just the kindest person. I couldn't help but check out her writing and get to know her a little more. I mean, come on, don't we all crave being closer to a big-hearted individual?

Anyway, I read her book, Decoding Jessica, and was blown away. Amber's immersive writing style, strong plot, and intriguiging characters sucked me in.

So, my wonderful readers, I am pleased to introduce my friend and fellow author, Amber De Torfino.

I hope you love her and her writing as much as I do.

Interview

Tell us a little about your books.

Decoding Jessica’s entire purpose, in my mind, is to bring awareness to the darkness that we all carry inside of us. That darkness that threatens to swallow us whole. When it scratches, we listen. I am a huge supporter of mental health awareness and when I wrote Jessica, I wanted to highlight that, through her. I wanted to show what it would be like for someone coming into their own emotions for the first time, whether that be from dissociating from childhood trauma or from mental illness or any other reason, honestly. Her character arc is meant to show what it would be like for someone to conquer their inner darkness and not only be able to gain control of it, but to learn how to use it, to wield it like a weapon.

What themes do you include in your stories?

Mental health awareness is the biggest one, but also that you’re not alone, even if you are a serial killer detective. <3

Sarah: The mental health aspect, especially the insight into how Jessica experiences life and emotions as a recovering psychopath was fascinating.

Who should read your books? (What are your readers like?)

Anyone and everyone. I tried to make my book interesting for all walks of life, as long as they are over the age of 18.

Are any characters based on real people? If so, who?

Both of my main characters are based on real life people, and the side characters are based on a mix of many supportive people that have been in my life over the years.

What inspired you to write?

The idea for Decoding Jessica came to me while I was on a 3-week work vacation. I woke up one morning, sat down with my trusty coffee mug, and just started writing. By the end of the vacation, I had logged 40k words.

Sarah: Holy moly! You wrote 40k words in about three weeks? That's incredible!

I went back to my normal job after that and found that I just couldn’t focus on much else, I knew I had to finish the book. Over the next few months my amazingly supportive, wonderful husband and I, discussed what it would look like if I quit my job to focus on writing full time.

Sarah: This is absolutley amazing! I love that you two figured out how to make such a drastic change.

Unravel the mystery of "Decoding Jessica," a gripping tale of gruesome murders, feminine rage, and moral ambiguity, featuring an anti-heroine navigating a dark secret, workplace romance, and an insatiable love for coffee.

We made a plan. I made an outline. Outlining my first book was a challenge, with zero formal experience in writing, I was floating around lost. Thankfully, I connected with some amazing writers who were kind enough to point me in the direction of Scrivener and I never looked back.

Over the following eight months, we sold our house in S Florida, moved into an RV, and took off for lands unknown. Funnily enough, we got as far as North Carolina, then bought a house and settled in. With the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains for a backdrop, I set out to finish my book.

One more year later, I got to write “The End”...err...well I guess it was more like “To be continued”.

I then set out on the daunting journey of editing. Ten rounds of my own––and my lovely beta readers––edits later, I found a professional editor who aligned with my needs and handed my book baby over to her. She was/is amazing and had it back to me in no time, and even made it better with some love of her own.

And then I had a whole book, a real book, that I was finally ready to share with the world. One of my absolutely amazing friends in the art world, selflessly offered his time to me to help create the absolute masterpiece that is the Decoding Jessica cover, while I copyrighted the story and voila, Jessica was ready!

What is one thing you’d like readers to know about you?

I will always support mental health awareness and I love when other authors weave that into their stories.

When you aren’t writing, what do you do?

I love to read, all genres. When I’m not writing, or reading, I am supporting other authors in their journey whether that be with editing or marketing.

Sarah: That is actually how I met you. We happened to be in an author group and you started supporting my marketing efforts consistently, completely without me asking. This lead to getting to know you and really appreciating both your kindness and willingness to support others, and discovering your truly incredible book, Decoding Jessica.

Do you have a newsletter we can sign up for?

I sure do. You can sign up here, www.amberdetorfino.com/newsletter

You can follow Amber on Instagram here

If you would like to follow Amber on Facebook, Goodreads, or her author profile on Amazon, hop over to her newsletter link and click on whichever profile you'd like to follow. She's most active on Instagram.

Do you have a website or shopping spot where readers can purchase books or merch straight from you? 

On my website would be amazing, www.amberdetorfino.com/shop !!!

I also can be found on Etsy, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Detective Jessica Fairling unravels her toughest case yet amidst the crime-laden streets of New York City, facing emotions she never thought possible. Partnered with a forensic psychology professor, she must navigate her newfound humanity while solving a chilling series of murders.