Written by Penna a Spillo
✈️ Category: Weekend in Europe
✍️ 4 Inspiring Italian Landscapes Every Writer Should Visit
I don’t know if writers need a particular landscape to find their inspiration.
Perhaps the landscape is already in the writer’s head, and any location is useful to free the imagination and inspire the story and the characters.
But for sure, there are landscapes that, due to their beauty or their atmosphere, are just perfect for a writer.
Are the landscapes that evoke emotions, and emotions run into stories, words, and thoughts.
There are landscapes that make up the perfect setting for a novel.
Or there are simply landscapes that give rise to calm and concentration.
In Italy, there are so many places like that: small villages by the sea, splendid views of mountains or hills, cities of art, and so on.
Everyone knows the most famous towns and regions in Italy, such as Rome, Florence, Tuscany, and Sicily, but here I would like to suggest some specific locations that, in my opinion, are just perfect for writers looking for inspiration.
🌫️ 1. Venice in December: Silence, Mist, and Mystery
Venice is always amazing, in all seasons, but during wintertime, between November and December, it has something really special.
Maybe because it is the only time with a bit fewer tourists, maybe because the cold and rainy weather is a little sad and emphasises its beauty, but during winter, the city actually has a magical atmosphere.
Try a walk through the small streets called “calle”, where the only sounds are those of your steps that resonate on the floor, or the lapping of boats and “Gondole” sailing along the canals between the ancient illuminated buildings.
Difficult for a writer not to be inspired by such a scenario.
🌊 2. The Ligurian Riviera: Sea Breezes and Vibrant Villages
Another perfect place for writers to find the right inspiration is definitely the Ligurian Riviera di Levante, between the Monte di Portofino and the Gulf of Tigullio.
Along the coastal road, there are many small villages of fishermen with colourful houses overlooking the sea.
Portofino, Camogli, Portovenere, and the famous Cinque Terre; all of them are those kinds of small villages among the olive trees with breathtaking views.
Try to sit at any point of the coast looking at the sunset, or strolling among the fishermen’s boats that come back with the fish in the early morning.
The scent of the sea and the sound of the waves are a perfect scenario to find your inspiration.
And before starting to write, don’t forget to take with you a slice of Ligurian Focaccia, the best food that you can have to complete your experience.
👉 By the way, if you want to discover more about Genova and its neighbourhood, read also My interview with Lucia, blogger at Stupisciti a Genova
🍂 3. The Langhe Hills: Autumn Colours and Culinary Comforts
Not as well-known as the Tuscan hills, but equally beautiful and inspiring for writers, are the hills of Langhe, in Piedmont.
Those are rolling hills that stretch as far as the eye can see for miles and miles.
The perfect season to come in autumn is because, with the autumn colours, the landscape turns into something special.
The colors of the leaves and the autumn forest, especially all the shades of green, yellow, brown, and red.
Chestnuts, truffles (typical of this area), pumpkin, pomegranate, and mushrooms.
The hills, the woods, the fireplace, the roast chestnuts, the first cold.
To combine all these sensations, it would be perfect for a “gastronomic tour”, in a place where the fragrance of the forest is mixed with the smell of the kitchen.
What could be better than this to inspire your next novel?
🏔️ 4. The Dolomites: Alpine Magic and Changing Light
In this list, I can’t forget to talk about the Dolomites, a fantastic mountain chain in the eastern Alps, on the border with Austria.
The Dolomites are particular mountains because of the colour of the rocks changing during the day, depending on the light.
Grey in the morning, golden at noon, and pink at sunset.
The landscape is completed by woods and small villages that seem to come out of a fairy tale.
Green in summer and white in winter, this type of scenery is perfect for breathing and writing in harmony with nature.
There are, in fact, hundreds of legends set between the woods and the mountains inspired by the colour of the rocks.
🚶♀️ Practical Tips for a Writer’s Retreat in Italy
These are, in my opinion, some of the perfect places to find inspiration to write in Italy.
But now, I would like to know which are the places most loved by writers in the United Kingdom.
Do you have any special locations to recommend?
Please, let me know here in the comments below, or on my Facebook page Penna a Spillo; I would be very happy to visit them to find my personal inspiration in this lovely country.
🧭 Discover more travel guides & itineraries
- Check also Porto for a Long Weekend: A Three-Day Itinerary
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