Frank Zafiro served in the U.S. Army from 1986-91 in Military Intelligence as a Czechoslovak linguist.

In 1993, he became a police officer in Spokane, Washington. During his career, he worked as a patrol officer, corporal, and detective. In 2002, he became a sergeant and entered into leadership roles. He was fortunate enough to command patrol officers, investigators, the K-9 unit, and the SWAT team. He retired in 2013 as a captain.

From 2013-17, Frank taught law enforcement subject matter at community college, university, and as an independent consultant on leadership for an international non-profit. He also occasionally hosted a series of writing workshops, but since 2017, he's mostly worked as a full time writer. 

Frank earned a BA in History from Eastern Washington University in 1998, and an MS in Administration of Justice from the University of Louisville in 2012.

Frank began writing seriously at about thirteen. In 1995, he started the first draft of Under A Raging Moon, which would become the first book in the River City series of police procedurals. River City, a fictional version of Spokane, Washington, features an ensemble cast of officers, detectives, and leaders as they face a variety of crises over the course of the series. 

River City is also the setting for Frank’s series of Stefan Kopriva mysteries, and Some Degree of Murder, a novel written with Colin Conway. Novels such as The Last Horseman and the SpoCompton series are set in Spokane proper, while other books include a variety of different settings, such as the Ania series with Jim Wilsky (set in Chicago, Las Vegas, Northern California, and the Florida coast). The Bricks and Cam Job series he wrote with Eric Beetner has a distinctive east coast flavor, as do his novels with Lawrence Kelter (The Last Collar, Fallen City). He has also partnered with Bonnie R. Paulson in their thriller, The Trade Off, set in Spokane and North Idaho.

In 2019, Frank teamed up with Colin Conway again for the first book in a new series, Charlie-316. This four-book arc would conclude in 2020 with Code Four. Also in 2019, Frank created and edited the novella anthology series, A Grifter's Song.

Frank has held the #1 author spot for police procedurals on Amazon, and remains a prolific author with over two dozen novels to his credit. Frank’s books are available in all formats — paperback, ebook, and audio book.

In addition to novels, dozens of Franks’ short stories have been published in magazines (print or online) and numerous anthologies. He is a three-time finalist for the Derringer Award (given by the Short Mystery Fiction Society). In June 2017, he launched the crime fiction podcast, Wrong Place, Write Crime, which he hosts.

Frank also writes mainstream fiction under his real name, Frank Scalise. He currently resides in Redmond, Oregon, with his wife, Kristi. He is an avid hockey fan, reader, movie lover, gamer, and a tortured guitarist.