Hi SBG,

For the moment, let's assume there is a real "Amy" who has told the writer "Taryn" a true story.

but the impression I get from the answers is not that of an happy person.

You definitely should get that impression because "Amy" says so herself:

we don't have much of a sex life at all. It's devastating,

She is devastated by her situation. She has a loving supportive relationship with someone, but they don't click sexually. She says she doesn't want to break up with him but she doesn't want to neglect her sexuality either. She has found another way to live in the world for now.

Note her reply to this question:

Can you tell me about a bad one night stand that you've had in your life?

It's sad to say because I've had so many one-night stands.

That also does not sound particularly happy. So she's not overly thrilled with her life and she's not trying to sell it to anyone else. I doubt that it is even her first choice for a life. But she seems to accept her choices for now and is trying to make the best of them.

the answers seem like a character-archetype and feel like a paper cut-out of a person to me.

The person is supposed to be an archetype. She's part of a series on archetypes of women who sleep with men (who read Maxim) for various reasons other than relationship reasons.

As for whether the story is real or made up...it could be either. The things that seem untruthy to me are

1. The title: "unapologetic cheater" -- Cheater is a judgemental and loaded word; yet the interviewer did not talk about the "cheating" aspect of the so-called cheater. That seems weird. Obvious questions are "Do you lie outright?" "Are you worried about being caught?" "Do you have a monogamy deal?"

2. The phrase "side piece" is so dehumanizing -- but, hey, it's in urban dictionary so I guess that's the term people use to express their gratefulness to a lover.

Secret lives are difficult and not particularly sustainable. Anyway, as people explore their personalities, sexualities, needs, and interests one might well come across someone like "Amy." There is much variety among the humans.

As for your last sentence, "I don't know, I might be projecting." Are you suggesting that you are unhappy with multiple partners, so you might be projecting unhappiness?

Anyway, you're not projecting. The "Amy" is devastated by her situation.