Tiziano Scarpa was born in Venice in 1963. He is a poet, novelist, playwright and essayist. He has written a number of acclaimed novels including Eyes On the Broiler and Western Kamikaze. Serpent's Tail have published his 'cultural guide to Venice', Venice is a Fish. His radio play Pop Corn received international critical acclaim and was aired by the BBC and other European radio stations. He regularly speaks at creative writing conferences and writes for Italian national newspapers. In 1997 he won the 49th Italia Prize for his writing. Stabat Mater won the 2009 Strega Prize, the Italian equivalent of the Booker. He lives in Venice.

A heady tale of music and foundlings in Vivaldi's Venice Sunday Telegraph Disquieting, lyrical and intensely authentic -- Michelle Lovric It always feels as if there's an extra sense available to Tiziano Scarpa, one that fuses perception and emotion. He calls it a scrittura totale, total writing. I just think it's genius. -- Michelle Lovric, author of The Book of Human Skin