The Curse of Maiden Scars is a work of fiction intended to share the story of a young girl fighting for identity and opportunity in a harsh and unforgiving world. As an author and mental health professional, I know the exploitation of those struggling with mental illness, prostitution, and human trafficking are real and present today. This work of fiction is not meant to offend but to rouse thought around the experiences of victims of such traumas.
A trip to Venice sparked the idea for this novel. I was curious what kind of woman would appreciate—and fear—witnessing Napoleon conquer the Empire in four days in 1797. In my day job, I proudly support those struggling with grief and trauma. Starting the novel with the mental health history of the era seemed only natural.
My taste for literature has run dark since my teenage years. I was fascinated with the likes of Kafka, Poe, and Shelly and love Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables. It is epic and poetic and indelibly speaks about love and suffering. The Georgian and Napoleonic eras were a birthing wave of change that came with great devastation. I hope my readers won’t shy away as we explore timeless themes in old worlds with today's eyes. My stories are not intended to exploit or glamorize sensitive topics. I believe finding ways to look long and hard at suffering allows us to recognize and intervene when it transpires in real time.
Aretino’s Diaries is mentioned throughout the novel and was a work I discovered during my English Literature studies, specifically a class on Erotic Writing in the Renaissance. I read Pietro Aretino’s book the same college semester I became a mother. It was the first time I’d heard of the concept of a woman’s life in trios—Nun, Wife, and Whore. Aretino’s recount shocked me as much as motherhood changed me. When I was pregnant with my daughter, I later learned of Maiden, Mother, and Crone. A thematic overlap resounded to me, although admittedly distastefully.
I’ve always been fascinated by feminine history: our beauty, subjectivity, strength, and diversity. There is a common bond of fortitude, creation, and hope, often bread in sorrow and misfortune. I embrace these themes, along with the motto “life is difficult at its best”, thanks to my spectacular mother, Hungarian-born and raised in post-WWII Idaho (a.k.a. the middle of nowhere) by my lovely and hardworking Nagymama and Nagyapapa. My father’s family is compassionate and stoic. His Montanan upbringing somehow matched my mother’s European values. Although my family is not of nuclear design, I’m extremely proud of my parents and their fortitude. I thank one for ADHD and the other for dyslexia. Somehow, the neurodiverse find each other
I must thank my very patient Yorkshire-born husband for enduring my random interjections of inspiration. With his medical expertise, we share hours of stimulating conversation, and he’s my favorite travel companion. My son and daughter are constantly motivating and have inspired almost all my educational and professional pursuits. I love you both. And—you’re stuck with me.
This novel would not be as alive without the hours of detailed focus from my independent editor and dear friend, Candace Craig. She is a masterful wordsmith who understood the nuances of my dyslexic mind. She sweats love for imagery and literature onto every page she edits. Her brilliant philosopher husband, Dr. James Reid, generously read several versions of the novel and never gave false flattery when critical analyses prevailed. Tough love is the only way for me and for them. Their writing and editorial work with Craig-Reid Editing is second to none.
I also thank my beta readers, like Eve Porinchack, who appreciated the intimacy of this gothic and tragic tale. To my family and friends who have put up with endless hours of brainstorming, reading, and listening to novel snippets and who were subjected to historical facts you never knew—and perhaps never wanted to know—I love you all. Get ready for more. Life-long learning means peppering conversations with random details and historical connections that will make their way into future novels.
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