By Honorary Reporter Sruthi Edakkal Peedikayil from India
Photos = Marianna Baroli

Marianna Baroli, the most prominent voice for Hallyu in Italy, is the first Italian journalist to interview Korean celebrities for the Italian public. Her Italian-language book "La Corea dalla A alla Z" (Korea from A to Z) was written in collaboration with the Korean Culture Center (KCC) in Rome as a comprehensive guide to Korea. 

Also a reporter for the Italian daily La Verita and magazine Panorama in charge of the Korean entertainment section, Baroli in an Jan. 8 email interview shared her memories from a presentation on Nov. 11 made at the KCC.

The following are excerpts from that interview.

Please introduce yourself.
I am a full-time journalist for Panorama, one of Italy's most prominent magazines and the first to have a section on its website for Hallyu (Korean Wave). I also work as an investigative reporter for the daily La Verita under the same editor as Panorama.

Why did you write your book?
My family always urged that I become a writer but I hesitated because I thought I had no proper opportunity. One day, I received a proposal from the KCC in Italy on if I'd write a book about Korea, something I'd wanted to write about. I didn't know that the question was a pitch for a project with the Korea Cultural and Information Service.

The first thing that came to mind was to create something that could help even the least interested person to get to know Korea in a better way. That's why the book is a guide A to Z on Korea, with digressions and external voices that I thought could have insights on Korean culture.

Describe the event where you introduced your book.
I'm not someone who gets emotional easily about this kind of thing because I see it as part of my work. Honestly, however, the day of the presentation was also when I had a copy of my book in my hand, and this brought tears because I felt that all the nights I spent awake doing interviews or building contacts were suddenly meaningful.

I was asked not to give a formal and boring presentation but an interactive talk with someone who helped during the pitch and the first part of the project. It was a meaningful time.

What was the writing process like for this book?
The project was approved in spring 2022. We searched for a month for the right editor since I wanted the book to be free, something highly unusual because it has over 200 pages. In the meantime, I did research as I had an idea of what I wanted and didn't want to read any book similar to what I wanted to create. I just asked my friends from Korea what they thought about adding this or that word to the book.

I started the writing process in mid-July 2022 and the book was ready by the end of the next month. It was the first draft but we didn't change much, just updating features. My main information channel was the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture and official websites. I also reached out to agencies and directly communicated with people. For graphic design, I wanted something using Korean patterns and the mugunghwa (rose of Sharon). We tried a few combinations and then the book was born. We chose to publish it just before the 140th anniversary of bilateral cooperation.

What do you think makes your book unique?
I think it's not pretentious. I don't intend to teach something through the book. I say clearly in my introduction that my mission is to give people a good time and ease their minds while reading.

As an Italian, how did you get into Korean culture?
Years ago, I watched the K-drama "Boys Over Flowers" and found it interesting. I also started listening to K-pop groups like 2PM and BIGBANG but not to the point of dreaming madly about Korea. I discovered BTS in 2018 and started getting into Korean culture. In 2020, I wanted to travel to Seoul but the COVID-19 pandemic stopped me. I asked for my editor's permission to start writing about Korea and here we are today.

What are your plans and aspirations?
I will keep doing interviews with Korean celebrities because that's what the Italian public loves most. I also want to write another book and have a few ideas. I want to translate this book into other languages with the help of other KCCs around the world.

msjeon22@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.