| Name | Adriana Trigiani |
| Pen Name | NA |
| Nationality | Italian American |
| Born | September 3, 1969 |
| Died | NA |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Education | B.A (Theatre) |
| Genre | Literary fiction, romance, historical fiction, women's fiction |
| Notable Works | The Shoemaker’s Wife, Milk Glass Moon, The Queen of the Big Time, Lucia, Lucia |
| Notable Awards | Audience Award, Publishers Weekly Fiction Award, Library of Virginia Annual Literary Awards |
| Height | NA |
| Spouses | Tim Stephenson |
| Children | Lucia |
| Official Website | adrianatrigiani.com |
Adriana Trigiani was born in eastern Pennsylvania to a big, tight-knit family. They shifted to southwestern Virginia during the 1960s to Big Stone Gap. This helped to form the backdrop of many of her novels.
She completed her B. A in Theatre from Indiana’s Saint Mary’s College, after which she moved to New York in 1985. Trigiani made her off-Broadway debut in New York City as a playwright in 1985 at the Manhattan Theater Club with Secrets of the Lava Lamp, directed by Stuart Ross.
Between the years 1988 and 1998, Trigiani wrote the scripts for numerous TV sitcoms, including A Different World, which was a spin-off of The Cosby Show, which aired in 1984. She served as the executive producer and writer for City Kids and Growing Up Funny, with the latter being nominated for an Emmy.
Trigiani is the author of the very loved and popular Big Stone Gap series, which includes Big Stone Gap, Big Cherry Holler, Milk Glass Moon, and Home to Big Stone Gap. The series was set in Virginia, thereby allowing the author to add certain autobiographical elements to it as well.
She is also the author of the Valentine trilogy, which features a hardworking female protagonist attempting to save her family’s business. Viola duology is also among the series crafted by Trigiani, including young adult novels.
Her standalone books include Rococo, The Queen of the Big Time, and Lucia, Lucia. The author’s book titled The Shoemaker’s Wife is based on the journey of her grandparents, who moved from Italy to America during the early part of the 20th century.
Her books have been consistently making it to The New York Times Bestseller list ever since she started writing, being applauded for the unique voices she provides to all her characters. Currently, The United States alone has millions of copies of her books in print.
Trigiani’s debut novel, Big Stone Gap, was made into a movie that she had written and directed. The film was produced by Donna Gigliotti and had a stellar cast, including Whoopi Goldberg, Jenna Elfman, Ashley Judd, Patrick Wilson, and Jane Krakowski.
The movie opened the Virginia Film Festival and was a part of the list of the top 250 highest-grossing female-directed movies of 2014.
She was also the writer and director of Queen of The Big Time, a documentary that won several awards and was released in 1996. The documentary shed light on Roseto, Pennsylvania, which is her father’s hometown, and was shown in numerous film festivals.
Trigiani also owns a travel company known as Adriana Trigiani Tours. Her fans can get in touch with the AT Escape division, which allows them to explore places based on or inspired by the writer’s works, such as Spain, Scotland, Italy, Gibraltar, Austria, NYC, and so much more.
The Today Show on NBC has consistently featured Trigiani’s works for years. She has made an appearance on Good Day NY along with Lori Stokes and Rosanna Scotto and also on the chat show, The View. Trigiani is a regular guest on National Public Radio (NPR).
Not only has she served as a commencement speaker in several educational institutions, but she has also been bestowed with honorary degrees from Saint Mary’s College, The University of Virginia’s College at Wise, Emory & Henry College, The University of New Haven, and The University of Notre Dame.
Trigiani has hosted multiple literary awards and functions during the span of her career so far. Some of them include the Library of Virginia Literary Awards, the Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Awards, and the Poets & Writers Gala.
It’s evident that the writer likes to engage herself in activities other than writing as well, which is why she also hosts the Arizona Women’s Board Annual Authors Luncheon every year. The event aims to prevent kidney disease by using the means of education, awareness, and research.
She directed the movie, Then Came You, which ended up becoming the top comedy movie in the United States at the time that it was released in 2020. The cast included Elizabeth Hurley, Craig Ferguson, Ford Kiernan, Kathie Lee Gifford, and Phyllida Law.
Trigiani is as entertaining in front of an audience as she is with her words. She can constantly be found speaking at book clubs, literary festivals, events at libraries and classrooms, and workshops conducted for budding writers.
Writing Style And Approach
Trigiani stated earlier that one of her central goals as a writer is to empower women, and she does so by creating strong female characters and telling their stories.
She hopes that by narrating the stories of these fictional women, she will get to tell the world about at least some of the struggles women go through on a daily basis in the real world.
The approach she has towards her writing includes sitting with the stories and characters in her head for a long time. She lets them take solid shapes and forms before she begins to jot them down and converts them into chapters and books.
Artifacts and memories play a major role in Trigiani’s writing, for she often goes back to the past and derives something from it to implant in her books. This is seen in how she discusses the story of her grandparents and her childhood.
By giving her books a voice that’s both funny and aware, Trigiani explores the following themes in her creations:
- Family
- One’s social identity
- Life of the working class
- Personal loss
- The story of immigrants
- Environmental and social issues
- The importance of self-perception
Every writer is inspired by several authors, individuals, and artists who influence their work in some way or another. Some of the people who were positive influences in Trigiani’s career or whose work she enjoys include:
- Lee Smith
- Edna Ferber
- Dodie Smith
- Beverly Cleary
- Louise Fitzhugh
- John Springer
- Jack D. Hamilton
- George S. Kaufman
The legacy that Trigiani has already created for herself can barely be overstated. In addition to her many awards and accolades to her name, she has also been honored by organizations such as the Elkhart Education Foundation and the National Organization of Italian American Women (NOIAW).
She is the co-founder of The Origin Project along with Nancy Bolmeier-Fisher. The project aims to encourage and assist students in writing regarding their Appalachian heritage.
The program that started off with 40 students back in 2014, is currently present in 17 schools with 1600 students under its wing. Every student participating in the program is given a writing journal once the school year begins.
As they keep working on their project, they get to go on field trips to the Commonwealth places that are a rich potpourri of music, literature, history, and the arts. The students get a chance to interact with guests, such as authors, at historic locations.
For instance, the previous batches of students have enjoyed author sessions at Virginia’s Barter Theatre. After the school year is over, the final submission from every student is published in the form of an anthology and unveiled during an assembly.
Published by Virginia’s Gupta Foundation, a copy of the anthology is given to every student, and it is also kept at public libraries and schools.
Every child deserves to feel proud of their roots, which is one of this project’s aims. It also helps inculcate a passion for writing and reading among young minds, thereby helping them build a strong sense of identity and feel more connected to their heritage.
The writer has been professionally recognized for several of her works, which include both books and movies. Most of her books have had their names in The New York Times Bestsellers list.
The books on the Publishers Weekly Bestseller list include The Supreme Macaroni Company and The Shoemaker’s Wife. Her film, Big Stone Gap, was shown at the Seattle International Film Festival in 2015.
A couple of the awards and honors that Trigiani has been felicitated with so far are as follows:
- Audience Award (1996)
- Finalist for the Publishers Weekly Fiction Award (2005)
- Library of Virginia Annual Literary Awards (2006 and 2007)
- Finalist for the People’s Choice Award (2006)
- Best Ensemble Cast for the movie, Big Stone Gap (2015)
- Virginia People’s Choice Award for Fiction (2007 and 2019)
- Appalachian Heritage Writer’s Award
Adriana Trigiani is a best-selling author known for her humorous and heartwarming stories set in small-town America. Here are the quotes from Adriana Trigiani.
