Title: Torn
Author: Stephanie Guerra
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Release Date: May 15, 2012
Pages: 263
Buy Here: Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Book Depository
Stella Chavez is your classic good girl: straight As, clean-cut boyfriends, and soccer trophies . You’d never guess that Stella’s dad was a drug addict who walked out when she was a kid. Or that inside, Stella wishes for something more.
New girl Ruby Caroline seems like Stella’s polar opposite: cursing, smoking, and teetering in sky-high heels . But with Ruby, Stella gets a taste of another world—a world in which parents act like roommates, college men are way more interesting than high school boys, and there is nothing that shouldn’t be tried once.
It’s not long before Stella finds herself torn: between the best friend she’s ever had and the friends she’s known forever, between her family and her own independence, between who she was and who she wants to be.
But Ruby has a darker side, a side she doesn’t show anyone—not even Stella. As Stella watches her friend slowly unravel, she will have to search deep inside herself for the strength to be a true friend, even if it means committing the ultimate betrayal.
Kayla: How excited are you about your debut release "Torn"?
Stephanie: I’m thrilled! This is the culmination of a lifelong dream, and I’m trying to slow down, enjoy it, and be grateful to God that this was allowed to happen. It’s very satisfying to hold the book in my hand; the designers at Marshall Cavendish did a wonderful job, and I love everything from the cover to the end papers.
Kayla: Did your release day go how you thought it would?
Stephanie: I didn’t have any preconceived notions about release day. My actual launch party isn’t until the 20th, so the 15th was a day like any other, with the addition of some phone calls and emails from friends and well wishers. Mostly, I just carried around a peaceful and delighted feeling all day.
Kayla: When did you know you were are writer?
Stephanie: Very early! I was in third grade when I attempted my first “novel,” which was thirty hand-written pages about an Aztec princess in love with a slave who was being sacrificed to the gods. Bloody stuff for an eight-year-old, but my instincts for action were good.
Kayla: Who is your favorite Author?
Stephanie: It’s awfully hard to choose just one, but I’m going to have to pick Leo Tolstoy. Anna Karenina made an impact on me that few books have done before or since. Tolstoy writes with such intricacy, balancing his stormy thundering themes with delicate, precise words and an incredible gift with dialogue.
Kayla: Were you a reader before you started writing?
Stephanie: Of course! I don’t know any writers who weren’t readers first. My childhood favorites included Peter Pan, the Emil books by Astrid Lindgren, Ronia the Robber’s Daughter also by Lindgren, and the Chronicles of Narnia.
Kayla: How has your life changed since your book has been published?
Stephanie: I’ve been pulled into the machine that is book promotions, and of course I’m working hard to establish myself as a professional author. That means that writing now occupies about sixty percent of my available time, and the other forty percent is taken up with promotions and networking.
Kayla: What is your favorite part of being a writer?
Stephanie: I love the planning stage, when I am working by hand instead of on a computer, usually at a cafe. There’s a real freedom to this stage, a sense that anything is possible. I do a lot of sketching to open up my imagination and find a character, and that’s a lot of fun.
Kayla: What advice would you give to an aspiring writer?
Stephanie: I would suggest enjoying the process! Writers typically go through an apprentice period of many years (often ten or more) and it’s a lovely time for playing, experimenting, and refining your craft. Don’t think of publication as the only measure of success. Improving as a writer is the true success.
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