Artist Feature: Ali Z

Singer-songwriter and Novelist,
Ali Z

This month we had the opportunity to talk to talented singer-songwriter and novelist, Ali Zagame, whose work seeks to inspire and empower others.

Q: I like to start at the beginning, so I would love to hear more about where you're from, and how/when you first discovered music and writing?

I was born in Paris, but I rarely say that's where I'm from since I don't really remember much before my family and I moved from Europe to Massachusetts when I was 5 years old.

I first discovered music when I was a kid in band class, and my first instrument was the clarinet. I didn't love it all that much, but I did fall in love with choir around 5th grade and started taking lessons the year after that. Then music theater was my life because, honestly, it was all my school offered. We also had a small A Capella group, but since I'm from a relatively small town in MA, the options were limited.

Music just gradually took over my life in the best of ways. Writing came a bit later, and stemmed from my love of reading. I started writing poems around the same time I fell in love with music and that gradually grew to short stories. It's always been a part of me in some way, but I started writing 'seriously' (read: what I thought was serious at the time) when I was 16 and started my first novel. I self published it when I was 18— but don't go looking for it. The concept was interesting, but the execution was...eh, it was an okay first book, and I'll leave it that!

Q: Do you identify more as a musician or author, or are those things completely intertwined?

I'd say they're completely intertwined at this point! One of my jobs is scriptwriting and the other is teaching music lessons. In my free time I write novels and songs — I'd be unhappy to leave either behind, and they both feed into the other.

What I'm listening to inspires my writing and what I've read or written inspires my music. They've got a symbiotic relationship going on! Lately, I'd say I'm identifying more as a writer and a hopefully soon to be published author simply because I'm querying (pitching my book to agents) so I'm in that mindset a bit more often. Still, I've split my creative heart pretty evenly between the two.

Q: Can you talk more about your creative process and how you find inspiration?

Oh man, this one's a tricky one! For me, my music is most inspired by any difficult time I'm having or something I can sympathize with. I can't really write a 'happy' song or even write a song out of nowhere — I've got to feel a bit heavy at the time. It's a double-edged sword because while I don't *want* to feel miserable, I need to be in a specific mindset to write a good song. Sometimes I can get myself there, think about how I want to express a time in my life, but I'd say my best songs, easily, have been written when I'm going through the most frustrating points in my life. I joke with friends that if I'm going through a rough patch, at least I'm bound to get an album out of it!

Writing, on the other hand, is totally different. I can't only write a novel when I'm in a bad mood or else I wouldn't be at all consistent working on it, and it would take ages to complete. Thankfully, I don't need a ton of inspiration to write a book because, whereas my music is largely really personal, my books aren't at all a reflection of me or my own emotions.

Music is my way to deal with my own life, and writing is my way to escape into someone else's. I don't focus too heavily on world-building since the settings I use tend to be modern or already built, but I'm inspired by little ideas or nuggets. For example, my idea for my work in progress started all from a question; 'what if a grim reaper was really bad at their job?' — and then it just grew from there.

Q: Do you feel you have a mission or vision as an artist - any particular thing you hope to communicate or provide through your work?

Yes and no — it depends on the work. I've had some songs that are really specifically trying to send a clear message, and those are probably the most personal ones. I've written a song about sexual assault called 43720 — the number my rape kit was given in the hospital. That one is very clearly sending the message of ‘hey, you're still a person after this happens, you're still valid, no one can change you and who you are.’ Some songs are just meant to tell a story and meant to be entertainment with a more general meaning.

In a novel, the meaning can depend on the character, too. One of my characters, Daphne, is compassionate, but not weak. I think that too often, kind, gentle characters are seen as weak ones, so she's meant to break that stereotype. Whereas Colin, in my recently completed work, proves that being unwilling to change and stubbornly refusing to adapt isn't necessarily a strength.

Q: What is your proudest accomplishment to date and why?

I don't know if I can pick just one thing because I'm proud of a few for different things! But one of my proudest is getting my current job as a Scriptwriter. Being a salary employee as a writer is an absolute dream, and so, so difficult to attain for so many. I'm eternally grateful to have a job where I actually really enjoy myself and learn about a new topic every day. I fully recognize how lucky I am, and I'm proud of myself for all the hard work that goes into it.

I'm also proud to live in a house with my fiance. We found and bought this house together even though it seemed so unattainable for so many years. I have my own office and an adorable dogg-o that sits next to me while I work — I couldn't ask for more.

Q: Changing up the subject a little bit, what are some of your favorite hobbies/interests outside of art?

Aside from writing music/playing musical instruments and writing books, scripts, and reading, I honestly just love cuddling my dog and occasionally painting awful watercolors. I can't draw or paint at all, but I like trying from time to time!

Q: Can you tell us about any projects you're currently working on, or ideas you have for the future?

I'm currently working on Lady Death, the grim reaper story I mentioned. I don't want to give too much away since it's still only about halfway done. I've also got some music videos that'll be in the works soon.

I also wrote a play for Elemental Women Productions that's in the works. I've written a few new songs for my next album but that won't be coming for a very long time — it takes at least a year to release a new album, and my latest one, How To Be, came out this past March.

Q: If time & money were not an issue, what would you most like to create?

I think I'd still be writing books and songs for sure, though I'd actually want to start some sort of charity or non-profit for those that struggle with reading and learning disabilities. There's this one font called dyslexie that's said to be fantastic for people with dyslexia, and I'd love to be able to run some sort of company that works with authors and the dyslexie font creators. Some scientific research says that the dyslexie font doesn't actually help much at all, though I know a few people personally that say they have a massive preference for it. So I'd love to see if a scientifically proven font can help people with dyslexia and pair up with well known authors to offer their books in that font. Just an idea I've had for a little while that who knows, maybe one day it can become something!