PHOTO: Author Amy Christine Parker, creator of suspenseful and haunting YA thrillers, pictured in her Florida home where she writes surrounded by her family and two mischievous cats.
Chilling Stories With Heartfelt Truths And Imaginative Depth
Amy Christine Parker shares insights on her writing journey, blending horror with humanity, navigating fear, social media, and imagination in stories that captivate young readers and haunt the heart.
Amy Christine Parker writes the sort of stories that linger. Long after the final page has turned, her worlds—with their eerie stillness, crackling suspense, and haunted heroines—settle into the corners of your imagination like shadows that shift when you’re not looking. A master of psychological unease, Parker blends horror, mystery, and the supernatural with themes that speak to the anxieties of modern life: the pressure of perfection, the power of belief, and the price of secrets left too long in the dark.
Her latest novel, You’re Dead to Me, explores the dangers of the digital age with an unflinching gaze. Inspired by ghost stories and the unsettling pull of social media, it’s a tale that pulses with tension and emotional truth. As in Gated, Smash & Grab, and The Silo, Parker uses suspense not only to thrill, but to ask unsettling questions—about identity, fear, and what it means to trust the world around you.
Though her novels often edge into the terrifying, there’s a tender curiosity behind Parker’s stories, a sense of play rooted in a childhood rich with imagination. Whether she’s crafting a middle-grade fantasy like The Thief of Time or penning a YA thriller meant to be read with the lights on, Parker writes with purpose—and with heart.
In a literary landscape increasingly drawn to surface over substance, Parker’s work stands out for its courage to explore what frightens us most: ourselves.
What inspired the idea behind You’re Dead to Me, particularly the combination of horror and social media?
The initial concept was inspired by a combination of things. One was a ghost in the TV series A Haunting of Hill House—the Bent Neck Lady. The idea of being haunted by your dead self before you die gave me chills. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and how I could create my own take. The second inspirational piece was observing how social media had affected both my daughters. It’s this powerful medium that can be used for good or ill and navigating it as a teen/young adult can be tricky and for some, deadly. Blend that with my perspective of the changing landscape that is my home state of Florida—from gentrification to over-development and the hook for my story came quickly.
How did your childhood imagination—like pretending your dolls had magical powers—influence the kinds of stories you write today?
I approach writing my rough drafts as playing pretend. It takes the pressure off. My brain wanders where it needs to go without being hampered by perfectionism. I am simply moving dolls (characters) through different scenarios to see what they do. I try to shut out deadlines and expectations and just have fun. I think it’s crucial, to keep early writing in this place because that sense of wonder translates to the page. Readers can sense it.
What was the biggest challenge in shifting from teaching to becoming a full-time writer, and how did you overcome it?
Isolation. As a teacher, I was surrounded by students. There was constant interaction. Writing on the other hand is extremely solitary work. I spend an inordinate amount of time in my office with my stories and my thoughts. Even as an introvert it was hard at first. I had to schedule time outside the house to work so I wouldn’t get depressed.
The Thief of Time is a middle-grade fantasy while your other books are largely YA thrillers—how do you adjust your writing style for different age groups?
I loved the challenge of writing for a new age group in a genre I wouldn’t normally tackle! It’s been the best thing for bettering my craft. Building a fantasy world from the ground up—one fanciful enough to engage young readers was difficult. I’m used to contemporary settings and the rules of this world. But allowing myself to stretch helped me get better at making all my settings more unique. Perspective was another thing I worked on. My character was younger than my usual protagonists and that meant figuring out what conflicts worked for their age. Their fears and hopes are much less complicated. They believe in magic. Maybe the hardest aspect was keeping the creepy elements less intense. My natural inclination is to add in darkness. This book was much more about adding in light.
How do you approach building suspense and maintaining tension across your novels, especially those with supernatural or psychological twists?
The key to maintaining tension is constantly cultivating a sense of unease. My characters move from one conflict to another, each one increasingly difficult. I also love to give the readers an undercurrent of suspense. If they can sense the outcome of my characters’ decisions before they can, but not exactly how the consequences will play out—I think it makes them want to keep turning those pages.
Which character from any of your books do you relate to the most, and why?
The most “me” character is probably Lyla from Gated. She is this quiet observer, questioning the world around her, searching for what’s morally right.
How does your love for horror and fear of the dark coexist in your writing process?
Fear has been a constant in my life. Growing up in an evangelical household, I was constantly worried about my salvation and being left behind if the Rapture happened, so I was drawn to horror early on. Watching a scary movie or reading a scary book is the perfect place to deal with your fears because you’re never in any real danger. You can hypothesise what you might do in a worst-case scenario which helps decrease your real-life fears. Because fear and horror have been with me most of my life, it definitely bleeds into my work. It’s just another way to explore my secret terrors so I can find a way to survive them.
In a more literal sense, fear is part of every writer’s process. Facing the blank page and putting down words is a daily exercise in conquering fear.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors trying to balance creativity with the pressures of getting published?
First, make peace with the fact that the only thing you have control over is the work. Whether you traditionally publish or self-publish there is no way to guarantee you’ll become a best-selling author. The best thing you can do is make the writing fun because then no matter what happens, the time you spent wasn’t wasted. Second, put yourself in your writing—be as vulnerable as you can. Reveal your soft underbelly in all its glory: your weird likes/fears/humour. The more of your soul that finds its way into your work, the more likely it is to connect with readers.
