Today, I am pleased to host the final stop in the “Cesare and Lucrezia Borgia” book blog tour. I would like to thank Pen and Sword Books and Samantha Morris for allowing me to finish this delightful tour with a Q and A discussion with Samantha Morris.

Why did you want to explore the lives of the Borgia family?
I first discovered the Borgia family while I was at University – I was supposed to be working on a piece of work for my archaeology degree but found myself wandering the library instead. It was there that I first found Sarah Bradford’s wonderful biography on Cesare – something just clicked in me at that moment. Who was this handsome guy (please don’t judge me) on the cover with the strange name? After reading Bradford’s biography I was hooked – I read everything I could get my hands on about them, watched everything I could but I wanted to know more. In particular, a lot of the books and sources that I read on them were quite dry, full of dry politics (which of course does have an important part in their story) – why wasn’t there much out there that was approachable? Why wasn’t there something out there that could tell their fascinating, yet complicated, story in a way that would suit everyone? That’s when I decided that I wanted to tell their story, starting out by writing a very small introductory biography on Cesare himself. After writing that I knew that they needed more, the siblings in particular.

Why did you combine the stories of Cesare and Lucrezia into one book
instead of two separate biographies?
Quite simply, there was nothing out there that concentrated on the both of them together. There were biographies of them separately, that dipped briefly into the other siblings part of the story but never something that was just about them. Their lives were so intertwined and I wanted to tell their story.

Why do you think the myths about these siblings still exist centuries
after their deaths?
Because people love scandal. And let’s be real, the myths really are scandalous. People love a good story and the more scandal within it, the better. The idea that they were incestuous, that Lucrezia poisoned her enemies etc really is the stuff of great fiction and it’s something that people both back then, and now, love to get their claws into. This is a real shame, and I hope I’ve shown this in the book, their real story is much more exciting.

What was the hardest part of writing this biography?
I’d like to say that this work was a breeze from start to finish but honestly that would be a lie. In total, I think it took me 4 years from start to finish with this one, from coming up with the idea of getting it started to get a publisher interested in it. There were times during that initial process where I thought that it would never happen – I was approaching publishers and getting rejected time after time so when the fabulous guys at Pen & Sword said they would commission it I was over the moon.
The research and writing part of it was relatively easy but I think it was the editing that I found the hardest. Going through what you’ve written time and time again to make sure it’s perfect is actually really hard work, and I would put off doing it because I hated doing it. Still, the pain was worth it because now the biography is out there and there really is no better feeling in the world than seeing people reading and appreciating your work.

If you can talk about it, what is your next project?
I’m currently editing a biography on Girolamo Savonarola which is due out at some point next year. I’ve also started the research for a biography on Gualdim Pais, Templar master of Portugal during the twelfth century. It’s certainly a bit different from what I usually concentrate on, and it’s going to be very hard work but totally worth it.

Where can people find you on social media?
I’m on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/theborgiabull

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/smorrisauthor/

and Twitter – https://twitter.com/SMorrisAuthor