Interview with Author Zaida Alfaro by Melissa Brooks

Zaida Alfaro is a singer-songwriter and draws from her experiences in the music industry in her

Miami Music Mystery series. I interviewed her to find out more about her writing, her inspiration, and what she is working on now.

1. Have you always been interested in writing?

Since I was young, I was always writing. I would write poems to my family. Then as I got older,

my poems progressed to song lyrics. In turn, I released two records. I then became an avid reader

of cozy mysteries, and one day I had an epiphany, I should attempt to write my own cozy

mystery, and here we are.

2. What is your writing process like? How does writing a story start for you?

I first draft the synopsis. Then, as horrible as this may sound, I figure out who I want to kill off

and the scenario of that untimely death. The dialogue between the characters is the last step to

my writing process.

3. Do you get writer’s block? If so, how do you deal with it?

When it comes to the dialogue, at times I do get writer’s block. I deal with that by taking a

couple of days off from writing. When I return from that short break, I read the last chapter that I

had been working on and reassess. I make sure to have music playing in the background and

disconnect myself completely, from my surroundings, from social media, from anything that

may deter my concentration.

4. What was your inspiration for the plot of The Last Note?

Like the novel’s main character Vy, I am the lead singer to a self-proclaimed Miami cover band.

I am also a singer-songwriter. All things relating to music or literature are my passion. As a

performer, I have seen a lot happen at bars and venues. I’m the outsider looking in. I figured,

why not put my musical life on paper and add a murder or two. Also, there are many amazing

cozy mysteries pertaining to food (Lucy Burdette), tea (Laura Childs), psychics (Victoria

Laurie), and flowers (Kate Collins), but there had yet been a mystery pertaining to music.

5. Why did you base so much about your main character, Vy, on yourself?

Being my first novel, I thought that I should write about what I know. I know music. I know

what it’s like to gig every weekend. I know what the hardships are of trying to make it into the

music industry. I wanted the readers to feel like they knew me, through my character Vy.

6. Why did you choose Miami for the book’s setting?

The Last Note’s main backdrop, the amazing city of Miami, Florida, is beloved and well-known

to me. I was born and raised in Miami. It’s an amazing city, and I wanted to share with the

readers the love I have for my home.

7. Are you working on anything right now?

I am working on the second book to the Miami Music Mystery series. It’s titled In the Key of

Dead: A Miami Music Mystery.