Barbara Baraldi, Golden Romics of the 34th edition
Between the black tones and Dylan Dog: the author of thrillers and comic book screenplays awarded by Romics d'Oro
Barbara Baraldi, a versatile writer and screenwriter, will be celebrated with the award of the Romics d'Oro during the 34th edition of the Festival, scheduled from 3 to 6 April 2025 at Fiera Roma.
With a career that ranges between novels, short stories and comic books, Barbara Baraldi has become a reference point for lovers of noir literature, thriller, fantasy and comics, leaving a deep mark on the collective imagination.
Debuts in the world of noir fiction with A Story to Steal (2007), winning the Gran Giallo City of Cattolica award for best short story. This success was followed by works of great intensity, such as The collector of broken dreams (2007) and Lullaby - The lullaby of death (2010), which have consecrated her as one of the most promising emerging authors of Italian noir fiction.
In 2010, Barbara Baraldi won the public with Scarlett, an enthralling dark fantasy saga published by Mondadori that mixes gothic atmospheres, horror and romance. The trilogy, composed by Scarlett (2010), Scarlett: Il bacio del demone (2011) and Scarlett: La terza luna (2015), has been a huge success among young readers, becoming a reference in the Italian fantasy genre.
In 2017, Barbara consolidated her vocation to psychological thriller for the publishing house Giunti, giving birth to the series of Aurora Scalviati, profiler of the dark. The first novel, Aurora in the Dark (2017), was followed by Dark Watcher (2018), Last Night of Dawn (2019), The Spider Season (2021) and Changing Bones (2022). These novels have confirmed the author’s talent in creating dense plots of suspense and disturbing atmospheres, winning audiences and critics. His latest novel is La bambola dagli occhi di cristallo (Giunti).
Barbara Baraldi started her collaboration with Sergio Bonelli Editore in 2012, starting with the story Il bottone di madreperla, designed by Paolo Mottura and published on Dylan Dog Color Fest n.9, and in 2015 she debuted on the regular series with the album no.348, The wrong hand, illustrated by Nicola Mari. Since then, it has been one of the flagship titles of the magazine, contributing to beloved works such as The Wild Years (2016), Casca il mondo (2019) and Jenny (2021), enriching the character created by Tiziano Sclavi with new emotional and narrative nuances. To crown her career, in May 2023, she was appointed curator of Dylan Dog, assuming a central role in the creative future of the series.
Throughout his career, he has worked with the Walt Disney Company as a creative consultant, published graphic novels with independent publishers in Italy, and in France with publisher Soleil. He has published novels for Mondadori, Castelvecchi, Einaudi and a cycle of guides to the mysteries of the city of Bologna for Newton & Compton.
His books are well received by critics and the public, and have been published in several countries including Germany, Poland, the UK and the US. He is one of the protagonists of the documentary BBC Italian noir (2010). Since 2017 he has been working with the periodical Tutto Libri - La Stampa. Since 2023 he is a teacher of comics at the Holden School.
During the 34th edition of Romics, Barbara Baraldi will be the protagonist of a special meeting that will retrace the milestones of her artistic career and an exhibition dedicated to her works.
