An Interview with Ottavio Lepore: Author of The Fractured Mind

Born in Mola di Bari, Italy, Ottavio moved to America with his family in 1996 and now resides in New York. Ottavio has had a passion for writing from a young age which he developed from his love of reading books. Ottavio published his first novel The Fractured Mind in 2019.

Why did you want to write a book?

I began writing as a child, I fell in love with the construction of stories and different worlds which could be anything I wanted. Once I had my plot in mind i wrote and passed it to some friends who gave me great feedback and they had influenced my decision to publish it.

Why did you choose to self-publish?

I decided to self publish as I wanted to see every part of the publishing process and make my own decisions every step of the way. I enjoy being able to do everything on my own terms.

Would you self-publish again?

I may, I am definitely curious to see the differences between traditional and self-publishing.

What tips can you give other authors looking to self-publish?

I would say authors should definitely know the risks and benefits of self-publishing as well as building a platform before publishing. Everyone is always eager to publish and get it over with but the work done before publishing is much more important

As a writer, what is your schedule? How do you get the job done?

I don`t have a set schedule, I try to write whenever I have time or an idea. I spent many of my lunch breaks writing and revising.

How do you deal with writer’s block?

I step away for a moment, and try to take a walk to a coffee shop or a bookstore to clear my head and straighten my ideas out.

Who are your biggest writing inspirations and why?

Gillian Flynn was a huge inspiration to me, her books are wonderfully suspenseful and have very delicate twists that the reader does not see coming. The natural building of suspense and character depth which truly makes her books a great piece of literature.

How do your friends and family get involved with your writing? What do they think of your book?

My friends and family are my beta readers, the ones who read the story before it gets refined and cleaned up. I give them a lot of credit for being able to read through it and provide me with helpful feedback. My friends enjoyed the novel and actually inspired me to push it to publication, if it wasn’t for them, the book would just be sitting on my hard drive.

What did you learn on your journey as an author?

I learned a lot about writing styles and structuring, as well as character development and layering of emotion. I believe my writing has improved from when i started but there is still more to learn.

What’s next for you as an author?

I hope to continue my journey as an author, I currently have a new novel in the works which I hope to publish as well.