Ildefonso Falcones wants to write new 'Cathedral of the Sea' book

Catalan writer Ildefonso Falcones gave an exclusive talk at the Círculo Ecuestre social, cultural, and economic center for some of his fans. 

During the event he revealed that he "would like to write a second 'Cathedral of the Sea' book," his 2006 bestselling debut novel, translated to over 40 languages and with over seven million copies sold.  

"I feel satisfied that so many people have read my book and enjoyed it," Falcones said when asked about his success. 

His book about the building of the Santa Maria del Mar has put the basilica on the map for tourists, who might not visit the building otherwise. 

"I think a lot of tourists visit the Santa Maria del Mar thanks to my book, but I also need to acknowledge that the basilica is majestic on its own and probably didn't need my help," Falcones said. 

"Many people believe that it's the cathedral of Barcelona because of the book," he added. 

Barcelona as backdrop 

Three of Ildefonso Falcones' books are set in Barcelona. 'Cathedral of the Sea' and its sequel 'Heirs to the Land' are set in the 14th century, while 'The Painter of Souls' is set during the turn of the 20th century during the height of the art nouveau modernist era. 

"It's more comfortable to write about my own city, it's what I know, and everything is right where I am," Falcones said. 

Falcones didn't look for inspiration in other novels about the history of the Catalan capital while writing his books. 

"No other books speak of these buildings I talked about, so I didn't look for inspiration in other novels. Once I decided to write about Barcelona, I started reading historical books to learn new things that I can include in my book," the writer explained. 

Ildefonso Falcones had been writing for a while before his books would be published. 

"Suddenly I thought about what would interest readers and I thought of Barcelona in the 14th century because nobody had really written about it before, and especially not about the Santa Maria del Mar," he said. 

"Whenever I walked around Barcelona, I would always end up at the Santa Maria del Mar, so when I thought of writing about Barcelona, I wanted it to be about the basilica," Falcones added.