Who is Maria Coletta McLean

 Who Is Maria Coletta McLean 

Alla Salute Canadian Magazine presents Maria Coletta McLean

Maria Coletta McLean is a Toronto-born Canadian author of Italian Canadian heritage whose

works explore family, place, and identity. Her memoir My Father Came from Italy (2000) draws

on her father’s immigrant journey. later memoir, Summers in Supino: Becoming Italian (2013),

reflects summers spent in her father’s village of Supino, Italy. She has been awarded the Queen’s

Golden Jubilee Medal for her contribution to the Canadian literary landscape. Step into the world

of Maria about her latest work, her career journey, and what’s next.

How does it feel to win the Alla Salute Canadian Magazine Award of Excellence as a

Canadian Italian author?

I FEEL HONOURED TO WIN THE ALLA SAUTE CANADIAN MAGAZINE AWARD

OF EXCELLENCE. WRITING IS SUCH A SOLITARY EXPERIENCE, AND

SOMETIMES WE WONDER WHY WE’RE WRITING, BUT THEN SOMETHING LIKE

THIS HAPPENS AND WE KNOW OUR WORDS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

What inspired you to write your latest book, and how does it build on your previous works such as My Father Came from Italy and Summers in Supino?

THE FIRST 2 BOOKS WERE MEMOIRS, AND I WONDERED IF I COULD ALSO

WRITE FICTION. STILL WRITING ABOUT WHAT I KNOW, WHICH IS SUPINO AND

It's a residence, BUT MAKING UP STORIES AND CHARACTERS. SUCH FUN!

You have long roots in Italian Canadian culture through your father’s village of Supino in

Italy and your upbringing in Toronto. Do you ever go back to Supino regularly? How has

that heritage shaped your writing voice and the themes you explore?

I GO BACK TO THE VILLAGE EVERY SUMMER AND EVERY SUMMER I MEET

NEW VISITORS AND VILLAGERS AND SUPINO HAS BECOME A SUMMER HOME.

THE VILLAGERS ARE WELCOMING AND ALWAYS MAKE ME FEEL WELCOME

AND OFTEN, JUST IN CONVERSATION, GIVE ME STORY IDEAS. SUMMERS ARE

HOT IN SUPINO SO I USUALLY SPEND THE AFTERNOONS WRITING BEFORE THE

WELCOME BREEZE COMES DOWN FROM THE SANTA SERENA MOUNTAIN

AROUND 4 O’CLOCK AND PEOPLE COME OUT OF THEIR HOUSES TO ENJOY

THE BREEZE AND THE CONVERSATIONS.

In your memoir, Summers in Supino, you describe vivid memories of summers in Supino –

from grapevines to village festivals. How do you balance nostalgia and factual memory when

writing about real places and people?

I WRITE FROM THE HEART. MY UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR TAUGHT US THAT IF

WE WANT TO BE SUCCESSFUL WRITERS WE MUST DIP OUR FOUTAIN PEN IN

OUR HEART AND WRITE WITH OUR HEART’S BLOOD. SO THAT’S WHAT I DO.

SUPINO IS A REAL PLACE AND THE VILLAGERS ARE REAL PEOPLE AND I

BELIEVE THEIR STORIES DESERVE TO BE TOLD.

Many authors face resistance or doubt early on. You began your writing journey as a mature

student and have spoken about “emotion endures” in storytelling. Anubha Mehta What were

some key moments of encouragement or challenge for you in your career?

I THINK IT HELPED THAT I DIDN’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT GETTING A BOOK

PUBLISHED. WHAT WAS THE PROCEDURE? WHAT WERE THE CHANCES OF

HAVING A BOOK PUBLISHED? MAYBE IT WAS BETTER THAT I DIDN’T KNOW. I

WANTED TO WRITE MY FATHER’S STORY – WHY SHOULDN’T A SIMPLE, HARD-

WORKING IMMIGRANT HAVE SOMEONE TELL HIS STORY WITH LOVE AND

ADMIRATION? THE CHALLENGES CAME AFTER I’D WRITTEN MY FATHER’S

STORY AND BEGAN TO RESEARCH HOW TO GET A BOOK PUBLISHED.

You’ve written both memoir and fiction (or hybrid work). What differences in process do you

experience when writing about your own life versus imagining characters or story arcs?

FICTION IS A FUNNY THING BECAUSE I’M STILL WRITING ABOUT SUPINO AND

THE ‘CHARACTERS’ THAT LIVE THERE. I DON’T PLOT OUT THE STORY OR

CREATE A LIST OF CHARACTERS AND THEIR LIKES, DISLIKES,

CHARACTERISTICS – THESE TRAITS JUST APPEAR AS I WRITE THEM. I DON’T

RECOMMEND THIS SYSTEM; IT’S JUST THE WAY I DO IT.

What do you hope Canadian readers, especially those of Italian descent, take away from your

books? And what might non-Italian readers appreciate as well?

CANADIAN READERS OF ITALIAN DESCENT WILL LAUGH AND CRY ALONG

WITH THE STORY BECAUSE SO MANY OF MY EXPERIENCES ARE THEIRS AS

WELL. NON-ITALIAN READERS WILL ALSO LAUGH AND CRY BUT THEY MAY

SHAKE THEIR HEADS AS WELL. COULD THIS VILLAGE BE REAL? DO THE

VILLAGERS ACTUALLY THINK AND ACT THIS WAY? OFTEN READERS TRAVEL

TO SUPINO TO EXPERIENCE THIS LIFESTYLE FOR THEMSELVES.

Looking ahead: what projects can we expect from you in the next few years? Are you

working on a new book, collaboration, or perhaps an adaptation of a previous work?

I’M ALWAYS THINKING ABOUT A NEW BOOK BUT RIGHT NOW, 25 YEARS

AFTER MY FATHER CAME FROM ITALY WAS PUBLISHED, THE BOOK IS BEING

MADE INTO A MOVIE. YES, I’M AS SURPRISED AS YOU ARE! I WAS JUST

SITTING IN MY LIVING ROOM ONE DAY WHEN I RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM A

MOVIE PRODUCER THAT I DIDN’T KNOW AND A SCRIPTWRITER THAT HAD

RECORDED THE AUDIO BOOK FOR MY FATHER CAME FROM ITALY. THEY

WERE INTERESTED IN TURNING THE BOOK INTO A MOVIE AND WHAT DID I

THINK? WE HAD A ZOOM MEETING AND THE 3 OF US WERE SYMPATICO AND

THEY HAD GREAT IDEAS AND A STRONG DESIRE TO KEEP THE MOVIE AS

CLOSE TO THE BOOK AS POSSIBLE. I SAID YES, OF COURSE, I SAID YES.

WE’LL BE FILMING IN TORONTO, SUPINO AND SPAIN EARLY NEXT YEAR AND

YES, I’LL BE THERE FOR EVERY STEP. I FEEL BLESSED (AN OVERUSED

ADJECTIVE, I KNOW). WHAT ELSE TO SAY?

The publishing landscape is changing rapidly (digital, print-on-demand, social media). How

do you navigate the business side of being an author today, and what advice do you have for

emerging Canadian writers?

MY ADVICE TO EMERGING WRITERS IS TO JUST WRITE + KEEP YOUR DAY JOB.

WRITING IS A LABOUR OF LOVE – IT’S LONELY AND FRUSTRATING AND

SOMETIMES HEART BREAKING BUT IF YOU ARE A WRITER, YOU JUST KEEP

WRITING. AN AGENT IS A WONDERFUL ASSET – IF YOU CAN FIND ONE –

THEY’RE A GREAT HELP WITH THE BUSINESS SIDE. A WRITER’S GROUP OF

LIKE-MINDED AUTHORS IS OFTEN HELPFUL. YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE IN

YOURSELF DESPITE THE REJECTIONS AND YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE IN YOUR

BOOK AND YOURSELF AND KEEP WRITING (+ KEEP YOUR DAY JOB )

Could you share one “behind-the-scenes” story of your writing process, a moment when you

discovered the heart of a scene, or when a book took a turn you didn’t expect?

MY CHARACTER BIANCA WAS GOING TO THE NEWSPAPER OFFICE TO PLACE

AN AD FOR HER LITTLE HERB STORE THAT SHE OWNED AND SHE DIDN’T LIKE

THE NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER. HE WAS RATHER RUDE TO HER AND DIDN’T

EVEN OFFER HER A CHAIR OR A CAFFE SO SHE WAS DEBATING WHETHER OR

NOT TO PLACE HER AD WHEN (THE SURPRISE PART) THE PUBLISHER

STARTING TALKING ABOUT A COLUMN HE WAS GOING TO RUN – AN ADVICE

COLUMN – AND HE THOUGHT SHE WAS HERE FOR AN INTERVIEW AND HE

WAS OFFERING HER A JOB AS THE COLUMNIST. A SECRET COLUMNIST. NO

ONE WOULD KNOW HER NAME OR IDENTITY. SHE’D BECOME ‘ASK MINERVA’

AND HER RESPONSES TO READERS’ QUESTIONS WOULD BE PUBLISHED

UNDER THAT NAME. WELL, OF COURSE, BIANCA DECIDED TO ACCEPT THE

JOB, AND NOW I, THE WRITER, HAD TO RESEARCH ADVICE COLUMNISTS. THE

STORY AND THE BOOK TOOK AN UNEXPECTED TURN AND I JUST WENT

ALONG FOR THE RIDE.

Finally, when you look back at your body of work so far, what are you most proud of and

what do you still aspire to achieve?

I’M PROUD THAT I WAS DEDICATED (OR FOOLISH) ENOUGH TO WRITE MY

FATHER CAME FROM ITALY, KNOWING NOTHING ABOUT THE PUBLISHING

WORLD. I NEVER ASPIRED TO HAVE MY BOOK BECOME A MOVIE BUT I’M

PROUD OF THAT TOO. I LOOK FORWARD TO MORE SURPRISES AS I CONTINUE

TO WRITE ABOUT SUPINO. IN CONCLUSION, ‘SEE YOU AT THE MOVIES!’

Where to buy Maria Coletta McLean’s books

My Father Came from Italy is available at Amazon Canada and other major retailers.

Amazon+2ThriftBooks+2

 Summers in Supino: Becoming Italian available via ECW Press and online booksellers.

theauthorsbookclub.ca+1

 Mamma Mia!: Good Italian Girls Talk Back (Editor) is also available online. Goodreads

COULD WE ADD “PRIVACY IS A FOREIGN WORD IN SUPINO” FROM INANNA

PRESS

(For direct purchase links: Amazon Canada store of the author: amazon.com/stores/Maria-

Coletta-McLean Amazon )

Thank you, Maria, for sharing your journey and insights with Alla Salute. Your stories of

heritage, place and transformation resonate deeply both for Italian Canadian readers and beyond.

We look forward to your future work and the new chapters to come.