"I believe that a decisive turning point in my life was the death of my father. A blow of this type destabilizes, the balance breaks. Then everything continues, but the scenario in which you move is no longer the same." Many things happen in the eyes of the writer Victoria González Torralba, as she speaks at the bar, the morning half-consumed, about the stroke that took her father, the legendary writer and journalist Francisco González Ledesma.
"In my case, his disappearance also had repercussions in the professional sphere, as circumstances led me to finish a novel that he had not been able to conclude," she explains regarding Peores maneras de morir (Worst Ways to Die), the last adventure of the cynical and fascinating inspector Méndez. "Then the idea arose to write a prequel to the famous character. It was a conversation we had had many times. We talked about how good it would be to novelize the inspector's origins. In the end, it was I who got into that adventure." And that's how, in 2017, Victoria debuted as a novelist with the acclaimed Llámame Méndez (Call Me Méndez), where we see the character still a teenager in an egregiously described post-war Barcelona. "It was a way of grieving. I never imagined I would end up doing something like that," she confesses while sipping a long coffee.
---A beautiful way to honor your father's memory and legacy.
---He always insisted to me, "you have to write." I never paid attention to him. I tended to contradict him. That's why I consider his death a double turning point, personal and professional.
These days, Buenos tiempos (Good Times) (Siruela), the new and anticipated novel by the regular, sees the light, posing a sordid crime in a Catalan coastal town in the 70s. A book that corroborates the talents inherited from the father with whom, on a literary level, one can treat as an amicable peer.
Surviving in the trenches of journalism
For more than thirty years, Victoria has worked as a journalist. "I started in sports, at the legendary magazine Don Balón. Then I spent many years in what were then called women's magazines. I handled the culture pages. Later, and for a long period, I worked as a freelance elaborating all kinds of reports and interviews."
Those were years when she came to smoke two packs of cigarettes a day. "When you could smoke in newsrooms, the pause to light a cigarette helped you think, to redirect the thread of what you wanted to tell. When I started, there were still typewriters and it wasn't as easy to correct as it is with a computer. To some extent, smoking worked as a pre-corrector."
---Do you still smoke?
"I quit for several reasons, but, above all, because it bothers me to depend on something. Tobacco conditions you, it forces you to be aware that you don't run out." And she admits that, although she doesn't miss it, "sometimes, while typing on the computer, I find myself holding a pencil between my fingers, as if it were a cigarette."
The first thing the writer highlights about her time in the journalistic profession is having survived it. "That's no small feat, in a sector that has been going through a strong crisis for years." Another, that her work has allowed her to "interview and meet very interesting people from whom I have always tried to learn something."
Now she seeks to fully focus on her role as a writer, but without forgetting the affections cultivated in the trenches. "My best friends I've made in a newsroom."
Extras in a theme park
"The history of Barcelona is full of fascinating episodes, which is why it is a fantastic setting for any novel. The ones that attract me most are those that have something epic, like the resistance of a large part of the population against the military uprising that caused the Civil War, the way they organized to defend their city and their ideals. Also the fortitude of the losers to endure what came next," argues the parishioner, before adding that, if she had to highlight a specific episode, "perhaps it would be the La Canadiense strike of 1919. Despite strong pressures, practically the entire city was paralyzed, including industrial activity. It was one of the most important labor mobilizations in history. With that struggle, in addition to wage improvements, the eight-hour workday was achieved."
---And right now, what would be your relationship with Barcelona?
"We have grown apart in recent years. Before, I perceived it as something that belonged to me. I think it was more open and progressive, a welcoming city, plural, built with people from all places. Also more authentic. I know it's an effect of globalization, cities all tend to wear the same uniform, but I miss the authenticity of the neighborhoods, the effervescence of real life, shops with personality," reasons the writer, for whom "speculation and an overwhelming and misunderstood tourism are doing a lot of damage." She sips a few more drops of her American coffee. "I have the feeling that the inhabitants of this city are given less and less space, that we have been stripped of power as citizens and relegated to the role of extras for tourists."
---Not many tourists come to this bar, despite our succulent offer. For example, to accompany what's left of your coffee, we have sandwiches, portions, or a good assortment of pastries.
A contagious laugh escapes Victoria González Torralba.
---Sweet, of course! I have a sweet tooth. My ideal city would be full of bakeries and bookstores.