Tessa Floreano

I have always been interested in history and specifically Italian history because (a) I am a dual Italian-Canadian citizen who can trace her roots to the same northern Italian town back to 1640 and (b) after my father died 16 years ago, I realized that I had missed out on stories from his side of the family and by exploring the history of our ancestral region, I can bring some of those missed stories to life. All of the above has also inspired the “why” of my writing which is centered around bringing historical Italian culture to life for my readers.

In writing fiction, my main objective is to entertain, to tell a story. Within that story, there will be facts, some of which may be fudged to fit the narrative as long as it doesn’t materially affect the accuracy of the story. In my most recent work, MURDER & MATRIMONY IN THE CASTELLO (launching November 1st), I mention in my Author’s Note what references are anachronistic, for example, “the publication dates of some books and songs, as well as the name of one popular song, were slightly altered to fit the narrative.” In nonfiction, you have to be very diligent in tracking your sources and keeping citations because (a) you might need to refer to the reference again to ensure accuracy, (b) a publisher usually requires it, and (c) for legal reasons. However, there’s still craftwork involved in telling a story with historical accuracy in a nonfiction book versus a dry treatise of facts.

Absolutely. There’s something about walking the landscape to absorb it through the senses—sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touch. Also, my imagination comes alive being surrounded by historical buildings, landmarks, neighborhoods, food, local dialog and customs, plus artwork in all its forms. Books describing a place or showing places just isn’t the same research motivator and I like to think my readers benefit from my boots on the ground, so to speak. I have only written one story about a place where I have never visited (but almost did). It is a short story set in India and won a spot to be included in the 2024 Rockaway Writers Rendezvous Anthology. Because it was one scene only, I was able to immerse myself in the location through videos, images, and articles without having to go there. However, ninety-nine percent of my stories involve Italians in historical periods set in towns and cities in North America and Italy that I have visited or lived in, and I think I can bring the story more to life because of my experiences in those places.

My sister and I agreed to accompany my chef husband out-of-town for a 3-day butchering class with a Tuscan butcher. Before the trip, I started to search online for things my sister and I could do while my husband was in class and I came upon a true story that I found hard to believe no other author had written about. That research led me down some rabbit holes. I built a list of places to visit in the city that might be fodder for the untold story, including some house and ghost tours. What I learned by visiting the places on my list allowed me to create a very interesting protagonist plus a whole host of great characters that became synopses for a nine-book pre-WWII historical mystery series featuring a quirky Italian immigrant family. I won’t share the city or the true story I uncovered because the first two books in the series are not yet published, but suffice to say, ideas for stories are everywhere.

Italians in the Pacific Northwest is my debut nonfiction book. As an immigrant to the United State, I initially held back, unsure whether the community here would welcome me. As they learned where I was from, they became curious about Italian-Canadian customs and traditions, so there has been a wonderful exchange of information during many conversations.

At a historical novel conference I attended at Oxford University, a fellow attendee suggested I query her publisher because she felt there was a market for stories about Italian immigrants because they publisher had already published some books about them. I had never considered a nonfiction book, but she mentioned that it would help build my budding author platform. Even though I was not clear whether there would be any crossover from the fiction audience to the nonfiction and vice versa, I agreed to try. After some research, I learned that among the 57 books about Italian Americans that the publisher had, there were none about the Pacific Northwest. Consequently, they responded to my query within six hours, which is unheard of in the publishing world.

Also, I was sharing with my fellow conference attendee that the Italian American community was quite different from the Italian Canadian one I grew up in because, in part, all Canadians with Italian heritage that I knew traced their ancestry to northern Italy, but almost all of the Italian Americans I met as well as the novels I read from Italian American authors since immigrating here were all about southern Italian culture, which I knew very little about. The nonfiction book was daunting for several reasons. I was covering the tri-state region of Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, which was a lot of travelling on weekends over the course of a year. I did not grow up in this area nor I was not an American citizen. All of which initially made me feel like an imposter, but surprisingly enough, over 80 families opened up to me with their stories and photos. I learned so much as well as realizing many of the southern Italian stories about the early immigrants were not that different from those I heard growing up in Toronto and Vancouver, Canada.

There are several. Historical research can be endless, so you have to learn when to rein it in or you will never finish writing your story. Being careful not to “info dump” and show every piece of research on the page. I have found so many nuggets during my research that it is tempting to try to force each gem into the story rather than selecting a few gems that fit the natural narrative. We already discussed the question of how closely to stick to the facts, but I also think that an Author’s Note may deflect unnecessarily rude or self-righteous reader mail pointing out inaccuracies. The familiar adage, “Show not tell,” gets tricky in historicals because most readers crave the rich historical detail that can often only be told, not shown, so one learns from critique partners, beta readers, manuscript evaluators, and line editors where you’ve crossed the line.

I have more leeway with central characters in my books that are not well-known historical figures. I prefer to include historical figures as characters with bit parts. If they have minor roles, I can play a bit more loosely with the facts of that character or their activities in a certain place or during a specific time. For example, in my pre-WWII series, Italian entertainers of the time flit in and out, which is wholly probable because that’s what entertainers do. They are often on tour and only make cameo appearances in each city in which they perform, and if you can find information about those appearances, that’s pretty much all you get so it is a little easier to imagine activities outside of the reported activities. One group I have been researching for over a decade are the nobility of the region from which my ancestors hail: Friuli-Venezia Giulia. There’s not much nobility or stories about them which make them a perfect topic for my active imagination.

On November 1st, I have two historical stories coming out, both set in northern Italy. One is a short story, SHADOWS OF THE ADRIATIC set in 1890 Burano, that is my contribution to the Historical Writers Forum 2024 Anthology, To Wear A Heart So White. The other is a historical mystery with romantic elements, MURDER & MATRIMONY IN THE CASTELLO set in 1897 near Padua. I am already plotting the next story to turn it into a series. Off and on, I am working on a nine-book series about an Italian immigrant family set in the Pacific Northwest during the interwar period. I am revising the first two books in that series early next year and hope to find a traditional publishing home for them. Lastly, I continue to write real stories on a monthly about Italian Americans and Italian Canadians in my free Substack, ITALIANS IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST.

Curiosity is my middle name and is the fuel for my tales. I figure if I am curious about something and I am excited about turning that information into a story then my readers will be, too. I have more story ideas and notes about potential stories than I know what to do with. If I did not have to sleep and eat and work a day job, you would find me constantly writing to get those story ideas out into the world for others to enjoy. I love scouring my research notes when I am writing a story to find a nugget that I can include without it standing out as, “She’s showing off her research.” Sometimes I am lucky in that I make something up and later find out that there is truth to my imagined event. The main story in the first two books of my interwar series was like that. I cannot tell you what I found out after I wrote those stories that corroborated something I made up, but they are quite juicy, so stay tuned.

SO MANY. I hesitate to share them because I have yet to write about most of them so I want to keep them a surprise for my readers. One that I will allude to has to do with women’s agency and how little they had of it that greatly affected my first interwar story. During my fiction research, I found plenty of examples of non-Italian American women that lacked agency and how they suffered for it, but I really wanted to find one or more stories about Italian-American women, particularly in the Pacific Northwest. Then, when I was presented with a real-life case while researching my nonfiction book, I could not write about it. It blew me away that I had manifested that story landing on my lap, but it was too raw to write. I once again learned the lesson: be careful what you ask for.

Typically, I start with a story idea and sometimes a question, then populate it with characters. To get a sense of things and immerse myself in a period, I read books from the era, watch movies, find original sources such as newspapers and letters from the period and/or written by or about people similar to those that I am writing about. Because I enjoy delving into the historical data about Italian immigrants that came to Canada and the United States, I already know quite a bit about the challenges they faced in society—trying to find work, the prejudices they faced, learning the language, and so on. What I also have to do is give them traits and quirks that bring out their personality and ensure those align with how people thought and behaved during the time in which I write about. Also, I have bought many reference books for my library that I use to understand what people might have worn, vernacular they used, the political leanings of immigrants during the time period I’m writing about, feminist issues, etc.

Read widely, both within your genre and outside it. Read both novels written at the time period in which you are writing and, if possible, those that take place in or close to the location where your book is set. Make sure you have Emma Darwin’s WRITING HISTORICAL FICTION book in your reference collection. Join the Historical Novel Society and try to attend local chapter meetings and the annual conference (held in alternating years between the US and the UK). Find critique partners and beta readers that read and like historical fiction. Check the etymology of words to eliminate anachronisms. Be careful about info dumps to spare your readers all of your research on all the pages.

I think our weather attracts a lot of writers; even literary agents say so. Because it rains so much, and most writers are introverts, we have no issue with staying indoors and writing. The inclemency of the weather helps those of us who write crime-related stories or if we need to regularly write moody scenes. We’re immersed in it whether we write about this area or not so I think it is a bit easier to write in context. Its lends legitimacy and accuracy to scenes that feature troublesome weather. I always wonder how people who live in tropical or sunny places can sit in the house and write though I am sure they are acclimatized much like writers living anywhere. I know plenty of writers here who would not want to waste a rare sunny day writing, but rather go outside and enjoy it.

I have had a long fascination with fountain pens, so I indulge that interest more than I like to admit. They are the poster child for sustainability with respect to writing instruments. Stationery and journals follow right after. These are three items that are always on my to-find list wherever I travel. Typewriters are a distant fourth, only because I do not have the space to house more than two, though I wish I did. I rode a motorcycle for twenty years but have recently given it up however I do miss the wind on my face and the adventures I enjoyed. In the last few years, I have become the writer-in-residence as well as co-chair of the programs committee at my local Italian cultural center. And yes, all of the above have either made it into my stories or eventually will, but no spoilers here.

I am a recent addition as an author, though I have been a long-time supporter. I have used the site to find books to read, search for comps, peruse quotes, check out covers, cast a vote in contests, and read author interviews. I collect writing and marketing tips, so I often find nuggets from the Author’s Tips page as well as Author Interviews. I appreciate that I can submit my book to be a featured book and will soon do so for my Christmas-in-a-castle historical mystery book releasing on November 1st. I’m happy to be part of this community. Thank you for supporting all of us authors!