Maggie Blackbird

Today, author Judith Works is guesting. She’s talking about her latest release The Measure of Life, a women’s fiction title. Don’t forget to enter the Raffleocpter giveaway.

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I’m a writer who came to the creative aspects of the craft early one dark and rainy February morning in the Pacific Northwest shortly after returning from ten years in sunny Rome living la dolce vita. I sat in bed with a mug of coffee and thought about some of the incidents – good, bad, and surprising – my husband and I experienced and that it might be fun for readers to have a chance to share our adventures as rather naive Americans living abroad for the first time. So I began a memoir about those years. Remembering the beautiful fountains in Rome, I titled the story Coins in the Fountain, referring to the Trevi Fountain where tourists throw coins in to wish for a return. (Years ago there was a movie called Three Coins in the Fountain about a group of young women who came to Rome for romance. You might enjoy it for the 1950 styles and sentiments.)

It was challenging to learn to write creatively instead of bureaucratically as I’d done throughout my career. But I soon found it satisfied a need to be creative, and I wrote several short stories in between editing the memoir. After it was published, I wanted to continue to write and decided to explore the lives of other expats who come to the city for work. My personal situation was not typical (I worked and my husband kept house between golfing and sailing) as it is usually men who have the job and bring their wives and families with them. Among the women I knew, many were struggling because they had had to leave their careers behind and could not work in Italy. Children were sometimes uprooted in the middle of the school year and plopped into a totally unfamiliar environment where it was sink or swim. Families sometimes broke apart with the stress.

These women often experienced the same stresses as they would if they were still at home, but living in an unfamiliar country with a different language and culture magnified the emotional impact. Perfect fodder for a novel! So, I invented a young woman who experiences some of the setbacks and joys that I’d seen in women I knew in Rome.

It was an interesting exercise to weave in stories I’d heard from friends and acquaintances, to plot the arc of my protagonist’s life, and to capture her emotions as they change. And of course, I wanted to include references to food, so much a part of Italian life. Inspiring and mouthwatering!

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Title: The Measure of Life
Series: N/A
Author: Judith Works
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Length: 274 pages
Release Date: November 18, 2024

Blurb: A story of love and loss, lies and truth, begins in Rome when Nicole shares a cappuccino and cornetto with her Italian tutor. The meeting sets off a chain of events that upends the course of her life. While Rome also brings deep friendships and immersion into a sumptuous food scene there is no escape from acknowledging the consequences of her actions. In search of forgiveness and healing, she moves to an island near her childhood home in Seattle only to find the way to reunite the remnants of her family and discover her true path is to return to Rome and face the past.

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Deirdre knocked on the front door right on time. No one in Rome ever showed up on the appointed minute for a social occasion. I opened the door in my violet silk dress and bare feet. “Hang on, I can’t find my shoes and I need to finish my makeup.”

“Oh my gosh—I should have said it’s casual. Are you sure about the dress? Remember it’s Vashon.”

“I’m dressed now. I haven’t had a chance to go out for months.” I ran upstairs to finish.

Deirdre said, “Uh, a bit much for here,” when I returned wearing open-toed platform heels complementing the purple dress. After a pause, she added, “Oh, don’t worry, it’s fine and we’re late anyway.” I could tell she was flustered about something. When we parked in front of the gallery, I could see people holding glasses of wine while they looked at the photos. All looked comfortable in jeans and sweaters like Deirdre. I could feel my face was beginning to match my dress. People paused conversations to welcome Deirdre and her unknown and strangely dressed guest: me. Some stared briefly. Not unkind looks, but more of astonishment their friend had found such an alien.

A woman rescued me by saying, “Hi. I’m Meg.”

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After I earned a law degree in midlife, I had the chance to leave the Forest Service in Oregon and run away to the Circus (Maximus). In reality my husband and I moved to Rome where I worked for the United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization for four years as a legal advisor to the director of human resources. I could see the Circus that had hosted chariot races during the Roman Empire from my office window.

My husband and I reluctantly returned to the US after four years. But we pined for the land of pasta, vino, art, and sunny piazzas. Then the gods smiled and offered a chance to return to Rome with the UN World Food Program. Six more years of food and frolic in the Eternal City passed much too quickly. The indelible experiences living in Italy and working for the UN were the genesis of my memoir Coins in the Fountain.

Follow Judith: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Threads | Bluesky

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