The Goretti Project

A novel-in-stories

In 1902, an Italian girl named Maria Goretti faced a grave temptation. A man implored her to give what should only be given in holy matrimony. But Maria, overflowing with virtue, declared she would rather die. In turn, this man stabbed her fourteen times with an awl. On her dying breath, she forgave him and wished only for his salvation. Canonized as a virgin martyr, she became one of the youngest, most beloved saints in Catholic history.

A century later, in 2002, I heard Maria’s story in my eighth-grade sex education class. As an Italian girl myself, I connected with her in both earnestness and horror. Could I be good like Maria? Am I brave enough to die for my virginity?

Today, I live in a country where 40% of women have experienced gendered violence. Meanwhile, Maria’s skeleton tours the U.S., stopping at 54 churches to remind us to be pure, chaste, and forgiving. This dissonance led me to ask not only what actually happened to Maria, but also who benefits from continuing to tell this version of her story.

The Goretti Project is a novel-in-stories that reclaims and interrogates the hagiographic myth of Saint Maria Goretti. Beginning with her murder in 1902, the novel follows how her myth was created and weaponized over the next century to serve the ideological aims of the Catholic Church.

Each story is told from a fictional perspective at a critical moment in the myth’s lifespan. The first recounts the events leading up to Maria’s death through the eyes of her best friend, Lucia Cimarelli—the fictional daughter of Maria’s real-life godparents and neighbors. Subsequent stories unfold chronologically with overlapping characters and interwoven details. For example, the second is told from the perspective of Principessa Barberini and picks up at Maria’s funeral, which became an aristocratic spectacle the Goretti family did not attend.

I’ve conducted extensive archival research including translating primary sources that were previously only available in Italian (e.g. newspapers, court records, tribunal transcripts, and devotional texts). I’ve applied a feminist lens throughout to analyze the systems of power and control.

While the Goretti Project is rooted in historical realism, this is a work of fiction that invites readers into the rooms where Maria’s story was shaped and into the hearts of those who live with its consequences.

You can follow along on my dedicated site, launching soon! 💜