Latinx In Publishing had the opportunity to ask Margo Candela a few questions about The Neapolitan Sisters: A Novel of Heritage and Home.
Latinx In Publishing (LxP): Where did the inspiration for the novel come from?
Margo Candela (MC): Writers are like memory magpies, constantly collecting random bits and pieces of life that might not make sense in the moment, but are too interesting to ignore or forget. When the idea for The Neapolitan Sisters came to me, it already had its beginning, middle and end. Although it was fiction, the story and characters were familiar to me in a way that I still have a hard time explaining. While the inspiration for The Neapolitan Sisters came both from my imagination and from being observant, what really set this novel apart from my previous work was my intention for writing it. I wanted to challenge myself as a writer, but I also wanted to allow my characters to be flawed, difficult and complicated without excuse or apology.
LxP: One of the primary themes within the story are the types of relationships that exist within families, but also outside of them. Can you talk a bit about the importance for you to highlight that?
MC: It's important, sometimes more so, for my characters to have an identity that’s not based on being a son or daughter, sister or brother, husband or wife, mother or father. How they function separately from those roles is one I like to explore because a lot of times, Latina and Latino characters don’t get to move away from that primary identifier of who and what they are. When they're navigating life in a larger social circle and away from family, they find themselves relating to friends, partners, workmates with the same skill set that either serves them or keeps them from moving beyond dysfunctional dynamics.
LxP: The sisters dealt with a lot of trauma that they all dealt with in their own various ways. Can you speak on your writing process, how you decided on each of the sisters' journeys, and how they would complement each other?
MC: Having three main characters who told their story in first person was a natural way to delve into how Dulcina, Claudia and Maritza would each be affected individually by their shared trauma. Even though they spent their childhood and teens together, they don't interpret that period of their lives in the same way, but they are strongly bonded because of it. Knowing this about them meant I had to let each sister go where she needed to go, even if it made me uncomfortable or took me by surprise. Once I allowed myself to just write what felt right for each sister, I was able to give all three of them added depth and humanity by accepting their flaws as part of who they needed to be. I really love these sisters and it was such a joy, even if sometimes a painful one, to get to know them and bring them to life.
LxP: What can readers expect to gain from reading The Neapolitan Sisters?
MC: The Neapolitan Sisters is about finding compassion and love not only for others, but for oneself. Dulcina, Claudia and Maritza’s acceptance of who they are to each other is the greatest gift they can both give and receive. Compassion, love, and acceptance are essential components to intimate relationships and the Bernal sisters are, to different degrees, able to realize this by the end of the novel. Once they do, they’re able to move forward with their lives, and also be in each other’s lives. This doesn’t always happen in real life, but it can in books which is why I’m so grateful that The Neapolitan Sisters was published after so many years of waiting for me to be brave enough to write it as best as I could.
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Margo Candela was born and raised in Los Angeles and began her writing career when she joined Glendale Community College’s student newspaper. She transferred to San Francisco State University as a journalism major, and upon graduation began writing for websites and magazines before writing her first two novels, Underneath It All and Life Over Easy. She returned to Los Angeles to raise her son and wrote More Than This and Good-bye to All That. The Neapolitan Sisters is her fifth novel and her first after a decade-long hiatus from writing. She now lives in San Francisco. Learn more at MargoCandela.com.
