About This Plague of Days

This Plague of Days is my most successful series and the omnibus won an honorable mention from Writer’s Digest in their ebook awards in 2014. I write full-time now, largely based on the success of TPOD. It’s been a long road to get to this point and I have much more to do. Here’s how I got this far:

Back in 2008 and 2009, I wrote a long disaster novel about a young man on the spectrum whose family was caught in the middle of a killer pandemic. I’d written several books by then but I had not released any of them. The kindle revolution had not yet hit. I’d worked in traditional publishing for several years and was not enthused about submitting my work to agents and publishers. I’d been writing as a freelancer and columnist in addition to my day job in healthcare. In fiction, I wrote for pleasure and for myself. That was the extent of my ambition. I loved reading and writing but I had no plans to publish.

As sometimes happens, a confluence of events took me to the next level. In 2010, I  attended a writing conference in Victoria, BC. I met my first reader who left all paperbacks behind and read ebooks exclusively. Heresy to some at that time. I had and still have a vast paper library but ebooks were a revelation. That same year, I attended a talk by director Kevin Smith. He talked about creativity and exercising those expressive, artistic muscles. I got inspired to jump in and publish the books I’d been writing for so long. My first test was Self-help for Stoners. Anthologies featuring my award-winning short stories followed. I had a taste and I wanted more.

I formed Ex Parte Press and went professional. I rewrote TPOD. The story transformed from a disaster novel set in North America to a global disaster with zombies, vampires and paranormal elements that explained the mythology of The Way of Things. (If you’ve read it, you know. If not, I encourage you to check out the trilogy!)

With the support of my family, I took two years off from my day job and got to publishing seriously, often working 16 hours a day. That pace took a toll on my health. I loved it but I had yet to find any work/life balance. I was working too hard and not making enough money. After two years of hard slogging, I went back to the day job for another few years. Going back was a hard decision. I didn’t know it yet, but after the freedom of being a full-time author, the law of diminishing returns had kicked in with my day job. It wasn’t all bad, but it wasn’t good enough.

History doesn’t necessarily repeat but sometimes it rhymes. Once again, I found I was working too hard in my day job and not making enough money! Stressed and feeling underappreciated, I experienced several panic attacks that brought my anxiety to my breaking point. I finally figured out that if I was going to go through all that, I may as well do what I loved most, but smarter.

Thanks to This Plague of Days, I retired early in 2018 to write full-time, forever this time. There’s no going back. I’m too happy living the writing life and my old profession was not worth the pain and emotional investment. Books are my life. I’ve done my dos, endured some don’ts and paid my dues. This is what I wanted since I was a little kid and, for better or worse, I’m married to it. 

I still have books that I wrote before 2010 that I have yet to release. I have plans for them after some revamping, but the This Plague of Days series became the foundation for Ex Parte Press. It was first released as a serial. Then I put it out as a trilogy and all three books can be found in the This Plague of Days Omnibus. I have fresh plans for a TPOD prequel to be released later this year.

Writing and publishing is not an easy gig but when I find it challenging, I go back to the happy emails I’ve received from people on the spectrum and the parents of children on the spectrum. They love the portrayal of Jaimie Spencer. From his special interest (Latin words and dictionaries) to his secret thoughts and perceptions, he’s a special character. As a selective mute, Jaimie was a challenge to write. What made him an unlikely hero in the apocalypse made for unique fiction, with or without zombies, vampires and dangerous, desperate humans.

Though I sometimes work as a book doctor and I have pseudonymous works out there, my official tally as I write this in January 2020 is 25 books. I’m very grateful for all the help I’ve received and the readers I’ve managed to herd onto my crazy train. Gari Strawn of strawnediting.com is my editor, ever helpful, ever vigilant. My wife is the most supportive spouse any writer could hope for.

I’ve told many stories since This Plague of Days but they all have a similar tone and sensibility. Whether I’m writing science fiction or killer crime thrillers, my inspirations are William Goldman, Stephen King and Kurt Vonnegut. Amid the chaos, there’s humor to be found. Amid tragedy, I try to offer a sliver of hope. First and foremost, the brain tickle business is about entertainment. I’m having fun with it. I hope you find it fun, too.

If you’re a fan of my fiction, join the Inner Circle on my Facebook Fan Page. At Fans of Robert Chazz Chute, you’ll receive daily posts, behind-the-scenes whimsy and assorted whatnot. Members get a shot in a raffle to have a character named after them in future novels. Thanks for reading, reviewing and for being a reader.

Cheers!

RCC