Florence Wetzel is…On the Writing Block!

Before we get into the interview, let’s take a look at who she is…

Florence Wetzel was born 1962 in Brooklyn, NY. She writes in different genres, including her release, Sara My Sara: A Memoir of Friendship and Loss, which was published in July 2024. Her novels include the thriller The Woman Who Went Overboard and the Swedish mystery The Grand Man. She has also authored horror short stories, a book of poems and memoir essays, and co-authored jazz clarinetist Perry Robinson's autobiography. Her latest book is Dashiki: A Cozy Mystery.

How much is based on real life versus made up?

Dashiki is a novel that blends fiction with real-life events and people. That’s my favorite kind of book to write, partly because I love doing research, and partly because it’s so satisfying when a story emerges from real-life details.

The core of Dashiki is a cache of missing jazz tapes. In 1957, John Coltrane’s first wife, Naima, made recordings of a seminal six-month gig with Coltrane and Thelonious Monk. The tapes later disappeared, and they’ve never been found. I don’t think anything devious happened to them; they were probably lost in a move or thrown out accidentally. When I set out to write a cozy mystery in the jazz world, I remembered this real-life mystery and decided to solve it.

Another jazz mystery is the death of the brilliant saxophonist Albert Ayler in 1970. His body was found in the East River in Manhattan, and to this day the case is unsolved. I considered using Ayler in my story, but ultimately I created my own jazz musician with a mysterious death. So sometimes it works like that: you don’t use the exact real-life incident, but it inspires your story anyway.

Do you always know who the killer is, or do your characters surprise you in the end?

I always know at the start. I can’t imagine not knowing, because then I would feel so directionless while writing. So with Dashiki, I knew the killer’s identity as I wrote the very first sentence.

That said, I had to be very careful not to give away the murderer too soon. I needed to be discreet when planting clues, and I reread certain scenes multiple times to ensure I hadn’t revealed anything decisive.

I once read that Agatha Christie didn’t know who the murderer was until she reached the end. That’s why her books are so good: there are several logical endings, and she keeps you guessing right up until the last page.

In what stage of your writing did you determine that your book was to be a standalone, or a series?

Dashiki was originally intended as the first in a three-book series, and I wrote it with that in mind. When the book was finished, I did go on to write book two. Midway through the first draft, I sensed the book wasn’t working. I pushed through to the end, and ultimately realized I was right—the book lacked something essential that I couldn’t fix. So I abandoned it.

To this day, I’m not sure why the second book didn’t work. Maybe it’s because I had a lot going on in my life at that time. I just never felt as inspired or engaged while writing the follow-up as I did while writing Dashiki.

In the end, Dashiki remains a standalone. Some readers have kindly said they’d love to see the characters again, but I don’t foresee that happening.

What is your ultimate goal as an author?

I actually have two goals. The first goal is to write, and by that I mean enjoying the process of writing books: researching, writing, editing. That’s my daily goal.

My second goal is to touch readers. That could be anything from pure entertainment to evoking strong emotions. It could also mean introducing readers to something new or giving them something to think about.

With Dashiki, my goal was always to create a story that readers could escape into. I also hoped readers might become curious about jazz, perhaps exploring the artists and songs in the book and enriching their lives with this beautiful music.

What is Dashiki about?

During an interview with reclusive singer Betty Brown, jazz journalist Virginia Farrell is shown priceless tapes from the legendary 1957 Thelonious Monk-John Coltrane gig at the Five Spot. Betty asks Virginia to get the tapes to their rightful owners, and Virginia promises to help.

When Betty is found murdered, Virginia decides to investigate. In the spirit of Nancy Drew, Virginia enlists her six-foot blonde roommate Socks to scrutinize the various suspects. Detective Robert Smith from the Hoboken Police Department joins the investigation, his focus divided between an unsolved murder possibly linked to Betty Brown’s death and an undeniable attraction to Virginia.

Dashiki is a cozy mystery with a dash of romance, immersing readers in the fascinating world of jazz — the musicians, journalists, scholars, and fanatics.