Fascinating #Interview with Katherine Mezzacappa, author of The Maiden of Florence

I'm very pleased to welcome Kathering Mezzacappa here today,
To share with you what she had to say
About her writing and her books,
And more at which you can take some looks!

I'll share my questions and her answers at the start,
There's also a giveaway in which you're invited to take part.
I hope you find her answers as fascinating as me
Read on and you'll soon see!

Where did you get the inspiration for the book/series?

It’s a pretty strange story. My son was having issues at high school and was going to a counsellor. One evening we were running late so I forgot to take a book or Kindle with me. I was faced with sitting in a waiting room for an hour with nothing to do but fiddle with my phone. There were some gossip magazines (this was before Covid) but there was also one medical journal, an issue dedicated to erectile dysfunction of all things. I thought I might learn something about the psychological issues involved; what I found was a little historical column which talked about how the marriage of the heir to the dukedom of Mantua was annulled for non-consummation – this was in 1584. The problem lay with the bride, but when the young man looked for a new wife from the Medici family in Florence, her father and stepmother insisted on a proof of virility to make sure it wasn’t him that was at fault. A Medici minister then hunted for a suitable virgin amongst the orphanages of Florence, to be used for this test. She would be rewarded with a dowry and a husband (chosen for her). It’s her story I tell.

What is your writing process?

I seldom have just one book on the go at one time. This means that if I get stuck at some point in a story I can switch to the other one, on the principle that a change is as good as a rest. So, at the moment I am finishing the first draft of a substantial historical novel, set in nineteenth-century London. Alongside that I have two part-written novels. One is a Renaissance crime novel, set at the papal court of the Borgias (intended as the first of a series of five) and the other is a contemporary rom-com set in Manchester and Umbria. It is quite typical for me to be revising one book whilst creating the first draft of a new one.

I do a lot of research, not just reading history books but also reading diaries or newspaper accounts of the time I am writing about (these really help to get the ‘voice’ right). I work with images a lot. For The Maiden of Florence there are no portraits of Giulia Albizzi, my heroine, or of the husband chosen for her, because in the grand scheme of history she was never seen as important, but there are plenty of Vincenzo Gonzaga and his bride Eleonora de’ Medici. They need to be looked at with a degree of care if not scepticism, as these portraits depict what their sitters want them to depict: wealth and power. In some respects they are portraits of fine clothes.

Do you write using pen and paper or on a computer?

I used to handwrite everything but I don’t now. I type faster than I write. As a result my handwriting is nowhere as neat as it used to be.

Who is your favourite character out of your stories and why?

Oh dear! Am I allowed more than one? I’ll confess to finding male characters easier to write than female ones; I have this odd habit of falling in love with them (though I have a lovely husband who means the world to me). Sam Loveridge, the Romani hero of The Gypsy Bride (writing as Katie Hutton) still resonates for me. He would do anything for the woman he loves, though both their communities are implacably against them, including literally risking his neck. Ned Stones, the Nottingham factory worker in The Gypsy’s Daughter is admirable for his courage and intelligence. Perhaps my favourite though is Giulia, the protagonist of The Maiden of Florence. She has no agency, powerless in a world in which women’s bodies can be bought and sold for political and dynastic reasons, yet she finds ways to tell her own story, and in her own way to revenge what has been done to her.

If you were a character in your story, which would you like to be?

Probably Camilla, the wife of Belisario Vinta, the Medici minister who is effectively the villain of the piece. Unhappy herself, and well aware of what kind of man she is married to, she is kind to Giulia, the orphan, as far as she is able to be.

How and why did you choose the names for your main characters?

Partly they come with names anyway, as some are real historical figures. History doesn’t record the surname of Giulia’s husband Giuliano, but while I was trying to come up with one I interviewed (through my job) a young man in Rome for a sales position. I took his surname, after checking on a surname website that it was a name found predominantly in the Rome area. The names of Giulia’s children are invented, as we don’t know who they were, but I always use names that come up in historical documents as being in use at that time. There’s nothing worse than using a name that just sounds too modern, as there are fashions in baby names, then as now. In Renaissance Italy, saints’ names predominated.

Wow – it sounds like you enjoy having lots of different writing tasks on the go at once! Thank you so much for answering my questions.

Read on to discover more about The Maiden of Florence, its author and to have a chance to enter the giveaway!

‘My defloration was talked about in all the courts of Europe. The Prince boasted of his prowess, even as preparations were being made for his wedding, as boldly as if he had ridden across that causeway with bloodstained sheet tied to his lance.’

1584, Italy: Twenty-year-old Giulia expects she will live and die incarcerated as a silk weaver within the walls of her Florentine orphanage, where she has never so much as glimpsed her own face. This all changes with the visit of the Medici family’s most trusted advisor, promising her a generous dowry and a husband if she agrees to a small sacrifice that will bring honour and glory to her native city.

Vincenzo Gonzaga, libertine heir to the dukedom of Mantua, wants to marry the Grand-Duke of Tuscany’s eldest daughter, but the rumours around his unconsummated first marriage must be silenced first. Eager for a dynastic alliance that will be a bulwark against the threat of Protestant heresy beyond the Alps, the Pope and his cardinals turn a blind eye to a mortal sin.

A powerful #MeToo story of the Renaissance, based on true events.

Purchase Links

Author Bio –

Katherine Mezzacappa is an Irish writer of mainly historical fiction, currently living in Italy. She has published several novels under pen names with publishers Bonnier Zaffre and eXtasy. She works as a manuscript assessor for The Literary Consultancy. Katherine reviews for Historical Novel Society’s quarterly journal and is one of the organisers of the Society’s 2022 UK conference. In her spare time she volunteers with a used book charity of which she is a founder member.

Social Media Links –

Twitter: https://twitter.com/katmezzacappa

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katherinemezzacappafiction/

https://katherinemezzacappa.ie

Giveaway to Win a vintage postcard, early 1900s, of the babies from the façade of the Innocenti orphanage. (Open INT)

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the link to the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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