Francesco Maria Piave was engaged to write the new libretto and the two men tried to come up with a suitable subject, but the composer complained that his librettist "had not yet offered him an 'original' or 'provocative' idea". Writing to Piave, he added that "I don't want any of those everyday subjects that one can find by the hundreds."Verdi to Piave, 26 July 1852, in But at the same time, the composer expressed concern about censorship in Venice, something with which he was very familiar after his dealings with the censors concerning Rigoletto. As the months dragged on into October, it was agreed that Piave would come to Sant'Agata (Verdi's home near Busseto) and work with the composer. One subject was chosen, Piave set to work, and then Verdi threw in another idea, which may have been La traviata. Within a short time, a synopsis was dispatched to Venice under the title of Amore e morte (Love and Death). However, Verdi wrote to his friend De Sanctis telling him that "for Venice I'm doing La Dame aux camélias which will probably be called La traviata. A subject for our own age."Verdi to De Sanctis, 1 January 1853, in Although still bogged down at Sant'Agata, Piave was sanguine: "Everything will turn out fine, and we'll have a new masterpiece from this true wizard of modern harmonies".Piave to Carlo Marzari at La Fenice announcing that the libretto was complete, 20 October 1852, in
