We are born with the desire to write and tell stories. We had confirmation of this in our interview with writer Laura Feri, who has just published her third novel. I met Laura Feri in the house where she grew up in the hills outside Florence, in the summer heat made pleasant by frequent breezes and the background sound of cicadas chirping.
Feri’s literary career began with Metà di me (Half of Me) and continued with Troppo amore per Eva (Too Much Love for Eva), followed by Mamma non Mamma (Not a Mother), published by Mauro Pagliai Editore, a fictionalized true story where emotions are portrayed authentically through Feri’s beautiful prose. Mamma non mamma is a novel that deals with a striking subject that stays with you once you have read it. Elena and Antonio meet at work in Florence, fall in love, and get married. However, their happiness is interrupted by two miscarriages. The book begins here, with a young couple’s desire to become parents and their journey.
Laura, what does being a writer mean to you?
I think it’s a wonderful experience. It’s stimulating, fun, and enriches me more and more. It enriches me, moves me, so it’s definitely a beautiful experience. Mamma, non mamma (Mom, Not Mom) is an intense story, a story that seems simple but is actually very touching.
How did you come up with the idea for this novel?
Just like I did with Metà di me (Half of Me). I based it on a true story, the story of a couple I know who shared with me their life experience and the adoption that led them to become parents to Milan, a Siberian boy, after many twists and turns. Listening to their story, in a way, I lived that experience too. In the book, it is the adoptive mother, Elena, who tells the story. I identified with Elena a little, so I drew inspiration from this true story and added my own thoughts and feelings. In the end, when you read it, it’s hard to distinguish between reality and fantasy. The novel also includes other true stories that were told to me, as well as some of my own personal experiences. So it starts with a true story and ends up as a novel.
We are here in the middle of the Tuscan countryside, near the city: how much of your world is there in your stories?
There’s a lot. Some of my friends have told me that reading my books is like listening to me, and that’s a great compliment. I was very pleased because obviously there’s more than I want to admit, it comes naturally to me to get inside the stories, at least for me it does. Even in my first novel, there was almost an overlap with the protagonist, but also in Troppo amore per Eva, which is written in the third person and features female characters, it’s like talking about myself. Then there are also concrete elements, such as the Florentine setting, because I’m from Florence and having my characters move around a city I know is definitely easier and even more realistic, so I do it almost out of convenience. Also, because it’s a beautiful city and this helps me set the story in a beautiful setting.
Has becoming a writer always been your dream, even as a child?
Yes, I’ve loved writing since I was little. I wrote stories for children when I was a child and then I also wrote poems.
I studied Communication Sciences because I thought I might want to be a journalist. In fact, I did it for a while, but I kept writing within my own four walls, never sharing my creations with anyone. Until, ten years ago, I made up my mind, like Virginia Woolf: “It is the ability to receive shocks that makes me a writer.” I came across a particular story from which I drew inspiration for Metà di me (Half of Me). That was the perfect opportunity to really write a novel and put myself to the test. In my second novel, I wanted to test my imagination because the plot is my own invention, but with Mamma non mamma (Not a Mother), I returned to true stories and again sought out a truly unique story that deserved to be told.
Would you say that these three novels are completely different, or is there something that links them?
The plots are very different, but I realized afterwards that there are many points in common. First of all, it’s my style, not because I’ve taken creative writing courses or attended particular schools, but because it’s my natural way of writing, focusing on feelings and reflections.
It’s a very intimate, introspective style that characterizes all three novels. Then there are also musical references that I use to convey the protagonist’s state of mind. The setting is Florence, although for Metà di me I had to replace it with Rome because the real protagonist of the story could have been recognized. In short, you can tell they are all written by the same author.
Why should someone read your book?
To be moved, to be swept away by great love. In a broad sense, it runs through the book from beginning to end, but also for a practical reason. In this case, anyone who wants to understand how the world of adoption works in order to embark on this journey. There are also some suggestions.
Like all writers, I’d like to ask you what you think of Italian publishing and Italian readers.
I think it’s a bit of a difficult world. Perhaps there is a lack of guidance. When you walk into a bookstore, you are overwhelmed by a series of titles, and the ones on display are only the most commercial ones, perhaps by a TV presenter or a sports star who is not even a professional writer.So it’s a bit difficult to find a good book, one that leaves a mark, without someone’s recommendation. For me, a good book is one that, when you close it, continues to linger in your mind.
Readers come in all shapes and sizes: some only read essays, others read romance novels, etc. I read novels. In my opinion, those of us who read are a privileged group of people because we have the opportunity to experience many stories beyond our own lives and to identify with the lives of others. And since I know that many people don’t read, I feel sorry for them because I think they’re missing out on a lot.
What do you think of the most important literary awards in our country?
Well, if it helps to increase the number of readers, then I’m all for it. This is a necessary premise because we are still talking about books. However, it’s probably a bit of a showcase that doesn’t really reward the best, and therefore the quality is sometimes not high enough to justify an award.
