Category: the writing life

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Does a Canadian Setting Hurt Sales of Crime Thrillers?

We are always scanning the horizon for what’s new. Last night, I rediscovered a gem at the bottom of the jewelry box. I found the answer to my question there, too.

A cop once asked me, how can you write crime thrillers without a cop as the central character?

“Easily,” I replied. “A team of crack investigators with all the power and authority of the badge is playing on god mode. I write about underdogs. The police may show up in my fiction, but they’re only batting cleanup after some crazed characters do the interesting things crazed characters do.”

The protagonist of my new release is a former FBI profiler, but he’s got PTSD, a bum hip, and a slippery grip on reality. Dr. Simon Fethullah relies much more on his wits than his gun.

In Where the Night Takes Us, all the action takes place at Dr. Simon Fethullah’s hideaway in Montana. He thought he was safe there. He was mistaken.

PRE-ORDER NOW


The second book in the Fear-Death Series is titled When the Night Finds Us. The novel is in the editorial pipeline. (I’m going over edits and suggestions today.) The story is set in Texas.


How the Night Claims Us is a pile of notes, character descriptions, and plot points at the moment. But what setting will be best for the third in this series?

This is not my first foray into crime fiction.

My backlist includes the four books in the Hit Man Series, The Night Man, Brooklyn in the Mean Time, Vengeance Is Hers, Murders Among Dead Trees, and Sometime Soon, Somewhere Close. (Ahem! See the sales links to the right.) Most are set in the United States.

Initially, When the Night Finds Us was going to be set in Florida. As a proud and thankful Canadian (and a member of the Crime Writers of Canada) I reconsidered. I grew up in Nova Scotia. It’s not an exotic destination to me, but it is unfamiliar or much loved by many. Dad always referred to the Annapolis Valley as “God’s Country” and, though he’d traveled the world, he couldn’t imagine the allure of living anywhere else.

Where the Night Takes Us is set in a fictional, rural area of Montana. When the Night Finds Us is set in Defiant, Texas. (That name sounds redundant, doesn’t it?) Is it time to add an international flavor to my forensic psychiatrist’s investigations? Would a Canadian setting hurt sales with my American readers?

Retrieving the Forgotten: In Praise of the Backlist

To taste that Nova Scotian flavor again, I revisited an anthology I published in 2019. Sometime Soon, Somewhere Close explores the minds and methodologies of some messed-up people. The first story is set in Port George, Nova Scotia. When I was a kid, my parents often drove the few miles up the mountain and to the shore there to take in the sunset over the Bay of Fundy. (Motto: Highest Tides in the World!)

The sunsets were lovely, especially that sumer the dust from Chinese nuclear tests colored the sky. (Not kidding.) We could see the lights of New Brunswick across the waves. It looks closer than it really is, but it would not be an easy swim. It was cooler on the shore, so while descending the South Mountain back down into the Valley’s summer heat, all the car windows would fog up in a flash. The fogged windows hit about the same moment your ears would pop from the change in elevation.

It’s the sort of drive you take with your parents when you’re little, and if you’re good, you might get ice cream in Margaretsville. Later, after you get your driver’s license, you take your girlfriend on those same forays to the Bay of Fundy to see the sunset and wait for the stars to come out.

Revisiting old work can produce a very particular anxiety: Is this how I finally discover a typo previously missed?

However, thankfully, no typos! Rereading that story after all this time was wonderful. And it pulled me into the next short story, and the next, and the next! It wasn’t mere nostalgia. Details I’d forgotten came flooding back. Not to toot my own horn too hard, but damn, that Robert in 2019 turned some good phrases and added clever twists. I’d like to think I’ve only improved, of course, but time and distance from a previously published title added to my appreciation of what I was doing with that book. I’ve had time, and many books since. I was nice to come at it anew.

In short, Somewhere Soon, Somewhere Close holds up.

READ SOMEWHERE SOON, SOMEWHERE CLOSE NOW

So, what’s next?

There are logistics to consider, and a few minor adjustments. I think I can get Dr. Simon Fethullah, his driver Paloma, and Simon’s enormous dog, Stephano, up into the Great White North. There are rich settings in Nova Scotia, and I know them well, so why not? My impulse for the change started with an Elbows Up attitude, but the place will serve the story well, too.

But a haunting question chewed at the back of my brain. Most of my readers are US citizens. Will they be interested in a setting outside the United States?

After graduating from journalism school, I got my first training in publishing at the Banff Publishing Workshop decades ago. I remember two lessons from that bootcamp experience:

1. Unless it’s a book about golf or gardening, green covers don’t sell.
2. American readers want American settings (not North American settings).

I’m not sure about #1, but #2 has changed. For those who disagree, maybe I’ll change their minds.

Last weekend I visited a very small but very well-curated bookstore. Scanning the Mystery/Thriller/Suspense sections, it was remarkable how many vicars in Yorkshire are sticking their big noses into murder investigations. Book clubs across the UK are embarrassing Scotland Yard with their amateur sleuthing. The lessons I learned at the Banff School of Fine Arts was a wonderful introduction to publishing (and got me jobs in book publishing the moment I moved to Toronto). But some stale advice has become old tattered hat, ready for the bin.

People want a good, well-written story that keeps them up at night turning pages. I can deliver that, no matter where Dr. Simon Fethullah hunts serial killers.

The pre-order for Where the Night Takes Us is up now, only 99 cents for a limited time.

~ I am Robert Chazz Chute. I write suspenseful novels about evildoers now and at the end of the world. Or is “now” and “the end of the world” redundant?









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Where are you taking me? Lessons learned.

Where the Night Takes Us is the first book in the Fear-Death Experiences series. It’s a thriller about Dr. Simon Fethullah, a retired FBI profiler stalked by the Rainy Day Cannibal. Rainy Day is in prison, but his reach goes far beyond the bars of his cell.

Early feedback has been great! The beta readers love it!

Note: Where the Night Takes Us is available for pre-order now at this link. The novel launches September 14th! The pre-order price is heavily discounted. And thanks! With a couple of clicks, you help me immensely.

Yesterday, I passed a big milestone on the path to publication.

I completed the manuscript for the sequel: When the Night Finds Us. This mystery/thriller begins with Simon, suffering fallout from the events in Where the Night Takes Us. When a villain runs him off the road, the good doctor is injured but intent on finding new purpose. He buys a big RV, hires a driver, and heads off to Texas with his faithful dog Stefano.

His mission: A girl has gone missing from Defiant, Texas. Find Willy Dupree, dead or alive. As his perception of reality blurs, Simon will have to find his way through the darkness and, maybe, back to the light.

I’m so happy with the story. It has heart and thought, twists and turns. I love all the sassy banter with Simon’s driver, Paloma Garrido, too. There’s action and mystery, but room for plenty of jokes, too. My final draft is off to my editor, the great Gari Strawn. I’m aiming to release this sequel by the end of October.

Thriller cover for the novel When the Night Finds Us


Lessons learned

  1. The previous two novels I’ve published, Vengeance Is Hers and Endemic, are big books. I wrote them that way because the stories I wanted to tell demanded room to move. Vengeance Is Hers, in particular, needed length because the instigating incident occurs when the heroine, Molly, is in high school. After a tragedy, she leaves the only home she’s ever known to try to leave her penchant for vengeance behind her. She grows up a little and tries to make a peaceful life. Her instinct to seek justice in her inimitable way leads her to lose her job in academia. With nowhere else to go, she returns to Poeticule Bay, Maine, after twelve years. When she discovers that the town has changed, but the villains haven’t, she slips back into revenge mode.

    When I discussed the book with literary agents, they had two concerns:

    (A) The age of the protagonist. Is this a young adult story? Is it contemporary women’s fiction? New adult? Molly goes from a teenager to twenty-nine, so what shelf in the bookstore is appropriate?

    (B) The length. At 114,000 words. Was it too long for the usual genre expectations?

    My answers: To point A, Vengeance Is Hers crosses genres. Point B, yeah, maybe so (but so what?)

    If I had to pick one category for VIH, I’d say New Adult, but my primary market is not bookstores. My sales platforms are mostly digital. By not heeding the agents’ cautions, did I hurt my book sales? No. Online sales platforms are search engines. There is no shelf. There is metadata, keywords, descriptions, and the cover. That’s what sells it.

    Besides, the VIH story I wanted to tell required that length. To serve readers best, a better story demanded I write against industry expectations.

    Lessons learned: Not all advice is for everyone all the time. Consider good advice from well-meaning experts. Reject advice when it feels constrictive, dated, or simply not for you. Follow your heart. No regrets.

    BONUS: And take heart! The publishing industry is, in many ways, a complete mess right now. If you’re forging your own path, you’re in great company.

    2. Not fitting into a box is not what hurt the sales of Vengeance Is Hers. I did.

    I focused on the writing, not the marketing. VIH is considered excellent by those few who have read it. However, I was impatient. It had been a long time since I’d published Endemic, and I was concerned I’d been forgotten by my readership. Too eager to hit the button, I basically tossed VIH out there without priming the pump by letting more people know it exists. There are so many books published each day that it’s very easy to disappear in the book marketplace. That’s more and more true each day with the flood of AI slop books.

    Lesson learned: Hope, history, laurels, a few ads, social media posts, and newsletters are insufficient. We must advertise and nurture sales as if the book’s a flightless baby bird in the nest. I write great novels. (Hey, false modesty is false!) But anemic marketing is the equivalent of an opera singer belting out beautiful arias in a soundproof room.

    So what’s next, Rob?

    For Where the Night Takes Us, I’ve engaged BookSirens, Booksprout, and Itsy Bitsy Book Bits to find reviewers. I’ve sent out advance reader copies. I’ve completed fresh research, and there’s yet more to do. I’ve experimented with ads and taken more book marketing seminars. I have someone lined up to help me promote When the Night Finds Us.

    I’ve proven myself great at plotting. Now I have to engage in more planning. Do I enjoy the marketing end of the publishing business? Not really. I didn’t always enjoy selling other people’s books when I was a rep for several publishers. However, I sold millions of dollars’ worth of books to stock bookstores across Toronto and Cottage Country.

    I love writing. I love entertaining readers. It’s unreasonable to expect to enjoy every aspect of your work. To find readers, I have to promote. I can’t hide in the blanket fort forever with only my keyboard to keep me warm. And so, to market, to market.

    (Hint: If you do enjoy every aspect of your work, keep it to your own damn self, weirdo!)

    3. About Shiny Keys Syndrome
    Working on the Fear-Death Experiences Series, I got back in touch with an edict I’d almost forgotten: Commit to one path and don’t be too precious about getting the words down.

    It is so easy to suffer Shiny Keys Syndrome. Ideas are cheap, but it’s the execution that takes so much time. I do not use generative AI, and I’m not a great typist, so I go slow.
    Along that long road, it’s easy to get distracted by the latest brilliant epiphany for a different book. I often wake up with inspiration in the morning or the middle of the night. Instead of looking away from my work in progress and listening to the siren song of those jangly keys, I stay the path, hold the line, and keep working on the book I’m already writing. So many ideas, so little time! If only I were immortal, or at least nigh-immortal.

    To ensure that I don’t wander off like a toddler at the fair, I’m keeping better track now. Each day I record what I accomplished and what I plan to do tomorrow. All in shorthand, my notebook is part diary, part tracker, and all encouragement to keep my energy up and the momentum moving forward. Being a novelist is fun, but at its core this is still work. It’s a job, and jobs require attention, purpose, focus, and showing up consistently.

    Final thoughts

    Track your progress, because that which is not measured is not improved.
    Show up.
    Keep going. Maintain momentum.
    Do what you have to do, even the stuff that’s not comfortable.
    Peace and prosperity may be your aim, but getting there won’t be without speed bumps.
    Too much comfort is a trap.
    Explore options and don’t be intimidated by what you are comfortable with. For instance, running ads can be confounding, but confidence doesn’t come before the task. Confidence follows the work.


    Vengeance Is Hers and Endemic are available on Amazon and these fine stores:

~ Have we met? I’m Robert Chazz Chute, blanket fort dweller, achy-ass cyclist, erstwhile Nova Scotian, graduate of journalism school and the Banff Publishing Workshop. Fifteen-time writing award winner, I’m also a raging hypochondriac who rages against the night. I pen apocalyptic epics with heart and suspenseful thrillers with brains and muscle. Since writing the Fear-Death Experiences series, I’ve become a huge fan of Cane Corsos like this guy:

Cane Corso dog.
Stefano, the helpful Cane Corso doggie.


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Spider-Noir, Reviews, and What’s Next?

There is a line from Spider-Noir that I found especially fun. Do I need to add spoiler alert here? Relax. It’s memorable, but minor.

A guy comes to a PI’s office asking him to follow his wife to catch her cheating. He shows a picture of said wife to the PI (played with great glee by Nic Cage). This woman is absolutely gorgeous. The PI looks back and forth from the picture to the man. Sorry, but he’s not gorgeous, and that’s the point.

With perfect, world-weary delivery, Nic asks, “Are you a wealthy man, sir?”

“No.”

“Possessed of a keen wit?”

(Close-up on the not-gorgeous man’s face.) Baffled, he answers, “Huh?”

It’s a small moment, but it is funny. Good acting. Solid writing.

I sometimes wonder about character actors, though. How do those casting calls go? “Hey, uglies, we got a role for ya!”

And what about the very elderly cast as the soon-to-be dead in medical dramas? Do these actors call up their children and grandchildren and say, “The casting director took one look at me and said, ‘No makeup needed! You look half-dead already! I’m on the next season of The Pitt!”

It’s brutal. Or maybe it just acknowledges the vicissitudes of life (and death). What self-confidence they must have! Or self-acceptance. Or devotion to and love for the art? Are they mentally healthy? Is it simply the desperate need for a paycheck?

Given what I do, I should understand the impulse better. After all, I get book reviews. Most of my reviews are happy ones from satisfied readers. I go back and read those occasionally when I feel down. Some days, those keep me going.

The nasty ones, though? I don’t have to return to. I remember them verbatim. Like the reviewer who, several times, wrote, “Fluff you, Chazz!”

That person obviously meant, “Fuck you,” but her intent was undermined by her twee use of the word fluffing. As a euphemism, it’s not the threat she thinks it is.

Then there was the guy who wrote, “I see this author is Canadian. I certainly hope he stays there.” No worries, mate. I wouldn’t dream of coming anywhere near you. Book reviews aren’t a venue for personal attacks. Don’t fight me. Fight with your family at the dinner table like you usually do.

(In case you missed it, I’m not telling anyone what kind of review they should write. I’m merely saying what shouldn’t be controversial: Don’t be an asshole.)

This morning I saw an Instagram post from an author who made an interesting observation. Thoughtful critiques and bad reviews are part of the deal. But what’s with those reviewers who don’t like any book? They review plenty, but the ratings they give never rise above a one or two-star. The Instagram author asked, “Why do you read? It seems like you don’t enjoy it at all.”

Maybe some mean reviewers are jealous writers. (Of course, it’s entirely possible they could be right some of the time, too.) Or perhaps, as the popular saying goes, “The cruelty is the point.”

Some reviews feel performative, an attempt to demonstrate vast intellectual superiority. Like this gem: “Well, actually, the black plague was great for the average European peasant.”

Tee-hee. What fun!

If a book has zero negative reviews, it hasn’t reached a wide audience. Plenty of people who were never the target demographic are eager to decree, “This book is the end of literature,” or a similar maximalist claim. Too few people say, “It’s not for me.” Too many say, “I didn’t enjoy this and no one else should, either.”

No matter, though. I persist. Maybe I can relate to those character actors. I keep going because this is not just my job. It’s my purpose. Publishing can be scary, but the day-to-day of the writing life is fun. In daring to try to entertain others, I am entertained. I focus on writing the next book, what happens in the next paragraph, and polishing the next line.

Anybody who tries to do anything will encounter Negative Nellies who don’t know how to express themselves constructively. Or they’re just mean. The failure is not found in falling short of pleasing everyone. The failure is in not continuing to try.

To creators and doers everywhere:

It’s okay.

You’re okay.

Keep going.

Next is a powerful word.

~ I’m Robert Chazz Chute, your friendly neighborhood suspense writer. My next two thrillers come out in September. In the meantime, I’ve got plenty of novels and collections for you to read and (I hope) enjoy. Send your thoughts, feelings, and death threats to expartepress@gmail.com



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I wasn’t babbling. I am musing pensively.

The cover of Where The Night Takes Us
Where the Night Takes Us is coming this fall.

While my editor, Gari Strawn, works on the final edit of Where the Night Takes Us, I am working on the second draft of the sequel, When the Night Takes Us, a psychological thriller.

Forensic psychiatrist Simon Fethullah used to work with the FBI. Retired, he’s tracking down the cold case of a missing girl in Texas. He owns a huge RV, but due to his medical condition, he’s had to hire a driver. The driver’s name is Paloma.

Here’s a little excerpt:

I sighed and reviewed the pictures Willy had posted. “I want to believe she’s not down in the dark. The City of the Dead swallows the lost and waits for us all.” 

Paloma shot me a quizzical look. “I’ve been to the City of the Dead. Took a tour while on leave once.”

My head came up as if I were awakening from a dream. “Huh?”

“The City of the Dead is Cairo,” Paloma said. “You know, Egypt! What are you babbling about?”

“I wasn’t babbling. I am musing pensively. And no, I don’t think Willy had the resources to make it to Egypt. Sorry. My inner monologue leaked into my outer monologue.”

“Well, rein that shit in, boss. You sound crazy.”

It’s more than merely sounding crazy, I thought.

I will be posting a pre-order link in the near future. Sign up to the newsletter or subscribe to this blog for details and news as all is unleashed. 🙂

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Vengeance Is Finally Everywhere

My latest thriller!

A while back, I reevaluated the business side of my publishing experience. For most of my backlist, Amazon was no longer delivering. There are many variables to what makes books hit or miss. I’ve gone into detail about that before, so I won’t belabor that again here.

So I made a move, quite literally.

Most of my books are no longer exclusive to Amazon. You’ll still find them on Amazon, but you’ll also find them on book sales platforms across the planet. Think library services like Overdrive, and publishing platforms such as Kobo, Tolino, Barnes & Noble, and Gardners.

I have also added Vengeance Is Hers to a newish sales platform I’d only discovered recently. Laterpress is one way authors can sell their work directly. Check out Vengeance Is Hers on Laterpress here.

Vengeance Is Hers (and many more can be found on these services.)

Screenshot
The Night Man cover
http://ow.ly/1KcI50BVp04
This was not supposed to be a prediction or a prescriptioon.

Enjoy!

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It’s hard to sell a book, and getting harder

Selling books for a living is hard. At Chapters Indigo, I met Yahaya, who was selling his novel, Struggles of a Dreamer. It’s a sugary mix of Chicken Soup for the Soul and The Richest Man in Babylon.

Yahaya, author of Struggles of a Dreamer

As shoppers passed by, he humbly asked, “May I tell you about my book?” That takes a lot of guts and time, and I respect the effort. Nice guy. I bought a signed copy.

Yesterday, I joined the Crime Writers of Canada. (Huzzah! It was long past time I got around to that!)

This morning, their first missive to me was a newsletter announcing, among others, the best crime novel set in Canada. Salt on Her Tongue looks great! I was immediately intrigued because I grew up in Nova Scotia, seven miles from the Bay of Fundy.

But here’s the rub: Published in June 2025, the novel has but one review on Amazon.ca. (Canucks, stand up!) Alas, no reviews on Amazon.com.

Best Crime Novel Set in Canada

Sponsored by Shaftesbury with a $500 prize

C.S. Porter, Salt on Her Tongue, Vagrant Press

Animated by the intense fog and turbulence of the Bay of Fundy, as well as the personal struggles of the varied characters who take the reader on this gripping journey, Salt on Her Tongue keeps the reader engaged through masterful pacing and startling revelations.

The jurors pointed in particular to how well the author evokes the geography, maritime life and weather that forms the setting, and how well it amplifies the conflicts and mysteries in the plot. Also, the characters, from salty locals disdainful of big-city practices to wealthy and powerful elites, are drawn with a clarity that brings them to life, making the reader see their unique perspectives. Notably, the detective’s self-awareness of her mental fragility helps the reader see inside her head, empathizing as she persists despite barriers, including that the people around her seem to be trying to hinder her investigation. Further, the scope of the plot is engaging, convincingly telescoping from local corruption to an unexpected plot twist sure to leave readers satisfied.

Looks great! But sadly, not visible enough. (Yes, I’ll be getting a copy. I’ll check my local bookstore today.)

Re: Marketing

I’ve been in this position, and it’s uncomfortable.

Vengeance Is Hers has been out a year and has stalled at five reviews in the States and seven internationally. I admit, I didn’t launch it correctly. I simply tossed it out there, sent some emails, and posted a few ads, hoping it would catch readers’ eyes and Amazon’s algorithms. Alas, that was not to be.

I love Vengeance Is Hers, but what does my love for my work matter when it comes to the book marketing side of the publishing business? People who read it tend to enjoy it a lot, but few have read it.



As I prepare for the launch of the new series, Fear-Death Experiences, I’m going at it differently. I’m looking into engaging a publicist, Booksprout, and a launch service with Reedsy. I’ll set up a pre-order as we hunt for more readers interested in getting advance review copies.

Meanwhile, Amazon has changed its review filters, probably in response to receiving false reviews, reviews written by AI, and too many AI books. If a book gets too many reviews all at once, for instance, the AI reviewer might flag the reviews for deletion. Way to go, Amazon. In your quest for more organic reviews, you’ve made it harder for authors to reach readers. The same wave floods all boats.

This is one of the reasons I’ve taken most of my catalogue wide. You’ll find most of my books are no longer exclusive to Amazon. Draft2Digital has my work on library services and book platforms everywhere now. (Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Tolino, you name it).

Whatever the struggles of writing and publishing, I persevere. It requires time, talent, persistence, business smarts, and stupid, blind optimism. It’s no great burden. It can be very frustrating, but I love the writing life.

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Where the Night Takes Us is Coming

I have a cover and back jacket copy (below). The manuscript is in the editorial pipeline. Things progress!

Dr. Simon Fethullah’s weapon was his mind. It is also his torment. 

As a forensic psychiatrist working with the FBI, Simons’ testimony helped to convict the Rainy Day Cannibal. After taking a bullet for his trouble, Simon retreats to the wilds of Montana to hide and to heal with his loving wife Carla and Stefano, their massive dog. Simon seeks peace, but murderers have long memories. When the President’s Press Secretary is assassinated, a serial killer’s dreams become our nightmares. 

Though caged, prison walls cannot contain Rainy Day’s ambitions. The madman has a loyal following and a vendetta that demands a terrible price. When threatening postcards find their way to Simon’s door, it’s clear that dangerous people know how to find the good doctor, and they are coming for blood.

~ If you’re new here, I’m Robert Chazz Chute, an introverted author pretending to be an extrovert. I write apocalyptic epics and killer crime thrillers. My next series follows the adventures and misadventures of a brilliant forensic psychiatrist who is haunted, but not in a supernatural way. Think Dr. Gregory House of House MD (but with a big Cane Corso, a gun, and a love for murderous puzzles).