Elia Barceló concludes her crime saga in Santa Rita: "In my novels, I only kill men, and it's because they deserve it."

Do you feel a certain sense of orphanhood at the end of your saga, as if your children were leaving home? Man, it's a little sad to close the door when you know you're closing it forever. But you also know that they, the characters, stay inside, that you can come back and visit them whenever you want. And they live on inside me. I loved them very much, I still love them very much. It's been almost five years, and when you have that much time in your head, it's really sad. It's like when you used to go to the port to say goodbye to someone who was going far away, and you knew you might never see them again. But since new ideas come to you and you're eager to do other things... well, it's good.

That is to say, it closes that door tightly but is already opening another. The saga is already finished; there are four seasons and that's it. A very nice lady at a book club told me, 'Well, there are twelve months' (laughs). As for ideas, I want to return to one of my basic themes, which is the question of family secrets that mark subsequent generations, discoveries... And also work on our country over the last forty years. Then, I don't know, if during the summer a brilliant idea comes to me that overshadows this one, well, I'll get on with the new one. I do those things.

There were also secrets, and plenty of them, in this series that's ending. For the next one, do you talk about realism or fantasy, another of your favorite genres? It's for adults and not fantastical. I'm working on another fantasy series, which I started last year and had to leave because I had other things to do. Maybe I'll finish that one and then move on to another, we'll see.

You were one of the first authors to begin writing fantasy literature, when it was barely even a topic here. Do you feel like a pioneer? (Laughs) If I think about it, yes, but I don't usually think about it much. Since I've always been like that, I've never felt like I was doing anything special. I've always had the idea that fantasy is part of life and that it's nothing strange, or special, or invented. The thing is, we only have five senses to perceive the reality around us, but I'm convinced there are more things we don't grasp. So, I like the fantasy genre for its challenge and its potential for reflection. I like to confront my characters with unexpected things and see how they react. The reaction is completely realistic, but the trigger can be a ghost, or a vampire... You don't have to believe in vampires to write about vampires because the fun is how one reacts to something unexpected or that doesn't seem possible.

Is that why someone writes? To invent something that doesn't exist? Well, we know that blood-sucking vampires don't exist. There are others who do exist: people who suck energy, who suck light, who suck everything. And they are very, very dangerous.

Returning to Appointment with Death, I think it bothers you that people call your thing cozy crime , that is, friendly crime. Why? I think cozy crime doesn't capture what I'm doing. Because they're not like that, sweet old ladies with candy and arsenic. The problems I show in Santa Rita and the crimes I show in Santa Rita are perfectly serious and brutal; all crime is brutal. The fact that the crime takes place among roses and bougainvillea doesn't take away any of the savagery from the crime itself. Whenever you decide to take a person's life, it's serious. It's just that the style can be softer, have touches of humor. Not everyone is depressed and alcoholic. I'm talking about the investigator and the police apparatus we know from crime novels, where it's always nighttime, they eat garbage, they're alcoholics... Normal police officers are people like anyone else, who do their job well, but who don't obsess or destroy their family to solve a case. When they get off work, they go out with friends for a few beers. Gosh, normal people. That's why I use normal characters in my novels, and many people say they're cozy and friendly. Well, it seems perfectly realistic to me—people laughing, arguing, having a beer, having a rough day, snapping at their boss, or later realizing they need help and doing it... That's life.

Is crime fiction experiencing an excessive and dangerous success? Well, there are many clichés, many repetitions. One thing that I personally find outrageous is that there are many novels in which the details are increasingly disgusting and repugnant. And what's done to the victims, who are always women, is worse. And the torture, and the ripping off of their skin, carving names into them with knives while they're still alive... They're inventing increasingly disgusting things. Apparently, there's an audience that accepts and appreciates it. It's unfortunate because it gives the impression that we're creating a society, and not just in novels, in which the uglier, more pleasant, and dated a piece of news, the more clicks it gets. Of course, journalists put in the most filthy stuff they can find to get clicks. And novelists say, 'Well, in this one, which was so filthy and so successful, I have to do something even filthier.' I don't do those things because I, personally, don't like them, neither as a reader nor as a writer.

And if your success depended on this shift, would you accept that change of approach? No, no, no. I am who I am, and I do what I do, and think, and what I think. And besides, I'm at an age that, girl, how can I put it? I eat every day and I eat well. I don't need to sell myself to survive. I've had a very decent and proper job that allowed me to pay the bills. And that gave me the freedom to always write. I was a university professor and had 62% of my place. And every time they offered me a full position, I said, 'no, thank you,' because otherwise, I wouldn't have had time to write. That's how I paid for my freedom. I've always written what I've wanted to write. Because I understand that when there are people who depend solely on what they write, they're scared to death. They say, 'If the next novel doesn't work, how will I pay for the rent?' Then they see that it's the turn to dismember, so dismember.

Your characters live in a community, a concept, now that housing is so difficult, that it seems either obsolete or hides shady lives. Do you propose a subliminal interpretation with this idea? I hadn't given much thought to the housing aspect. I thought about it because of the university characters I describe, who don't have a penny and who, thanks to living in Santa Rita, can afford to go to university and eat every day. And in return, they work and help out. What was important was to offer that spark of hope. I know it's a utopia and that most likely this won't become a reality. But it's a way of showing that with willpower, with determination, many things can be improved. Young and old can live together in harmony and joy, and collaboration can be made possible, and solidarity can help make life better, help people feel better about themselves. Don't say "just me," all selfishness, me and me. Give in, collaborate...

This way of life is possible thanks to the generosity of the protagonist, Sophia O'Rourke. Has Elia Barceló met many good people? I have to say that over the years I've realized I've been incredibly lucky. I always thought my situation was normal: having a family that loves you, helps you, and protects you was normal. That being with nice friends who don't betray you was normal. That having a partner you can trust 100% was normal. And now I'm realizing that, gosh, there are people who haven't been so lucky. So, I draw from my own experience. That the men I've met were very good people. That I was happy where I was. Well, at university there were a few who weren't exactly nice, but I always pushed him away (laughs). And that's what happened. When you're so bitter and have such a bad temper, I think it's not normal.

Her optimism certainly comes through in her novels. I guess. Now I feel optimistic and positive. There was a time when I thought to myself, 'You're a complete idiot, girl.' And I have a friend who occasionally tells me, 'You're so innocent it hurts.' Well, okay (laughs). And I have another friend who tells me, 'Never say bad things to yourself,' because that sinks in. Words have an effect. Although I'm not one for saying 'oh my God,' or 'gosh.'

Alicia Giménez Bartlett, another prominent noir author, isn't a fan of soft words either; she prefers bold ones. Is this generational? Yes, Alicia is also very rude (laughs). I mean, in her expression. Alicia and I are more or less from the same generation. In our time, girls were raised to be refined and elegant, not to swear. To be polite and kind. For us, a positive development was learning to speak as badly as men. In other words, being able to say "fuck" and not blush. For us, it was an achievement. Now, since it's no longer fashionable... young journalists will think, "What terrible things is this woman saying?" That's why we have to explain it: this was hard to achieve.

Does Barceló's prose contain messages intentionally, or is it better to avoid them? Those who don't include them are in case they lose their audience. For many people, the ideal is not to have an opinion on politics, religion, or soccer, so as not to argue with anyone. If you say something is bad and readers of that political persuasion don't buy your work, well, you're left without readers. My novels always have a message, because I'm convinced that every thought, action, or word is political. You can't have a work made of words that isn't. Personally, I think it's outrageous that you think a certain way and it doesn't show in your books, or you do it the other way around because it's fashionable or you don't want to commit. That's why I've stopped reading many people throughout my life. I had read novels I liked, and when I met their authors, I realized it was all a lie, that that person wasn't like that in their daily life.

Is it difficult to maintain that coherence in such creative work? It doesn't seem that way to me. It's simply about expressing what you feel. As a reader, I'm interested in seeing the world through different eyes. I agree with some books, with others I find they pave the way for me, and with the last few, I say, 'This guy has completely lost his mind.' And I don't read them again. That's what literature is for, and being authentic is a value. As a reader, I've left many books unfinished. I came to the conclusion a long time ago that it's impossible to read even 10% of what comes out in your favorite genre. What you do is choose what you think will bring something to you. And if it doesn't, you drop it. The book isn't for you, nor are you for that book. What I do is give any novel 10% of its total length. If up to that point I feel like it's not, then I drop it.

We talk about your characters again. Have you also grown fond of the bad guys, or is it only possible to love the good guys? With the bad guys... less so. Besides, I kill them pretty quickly. And they've earned it. In the series, one thing I've done on purpose is not kill women. I'm sick of women being killed in soap operas, especially young and beautiful ones. I've killed men who, in some way, have deserved and earned it. But with crimes for which you can't go to the police. For example, when your husband has cheated you out of your life, you can't go and tell them: 'He promised me a vasectomy and didn't get it, and since he had a child with someone else...' You can't go anywhere to protest. 'You're a bigger fool than me, you gave him this and that,' they'll tell you.

This categorical attitude toward women—aren't you worried it might bring you criticism or trouble? I'm not worried at all. Just think, we've been going through a couple of millennia where the only ones who had a voice were men. Women were always at the bottom. We've always been the victims. Today, women are still being murdered, and it seems to me we haven't achieved everything. We have a perfect right to equality, and we don't want to be killed in the street. If there are people who don't want to read that or think this woman is annoying, then they can read something else, like soccer news; that's really cool.

The Book Fair has been a regular event for you for eight years. How did you experience it this year? One thing I really like is realizing that so many books are bought and read. There really are readers. The press spends all year complaining that people don't read in Spain. It's not true, and young people read a lot. And so do retirees. That warms my heart. Reading isn't going to be lost just because there are platforms and television programs. And I love meeting people who have effectively and three-dimensionally read what I write. And who have opinions. It gives me a lot of oxygen to keep going, because being a writer is a pretty lonely thing. There aren't just numbers, there are people. It gives you a rush.

Is winter necessarily the bloodiest season for crime fiction? This book I'm closing with is winter, but it's still luminous. Crimes can happen at any time, just as terror can come with or without light. That saying that the darker it is, the more frightening it is isn't true. You can experience true horror in broad daylight. That's the legacy of the Romantics. It's just as sad even when the sun is out, if you've lost someone.