Not too tedious, I hope.
Here’s something – 500 words or so, therefore on the long side for an FB post – but it might interest readers of the Chet and Bernie mysteries, or potential readers.
There are turning points in life: one of those clichés that turns out to be true. One evening at dinner my wife said, “You should do something with dogs.” Dogs had appeared in some of my earlier books—Buster in Oblivion, for example—but in what you might call trot-on supporting roles. I knew my wife meant something else, such as … such as …? And then KAPOW! In thirty seconds the supporting beams of the whole structure to come arose in mind. One, I would write a mystery based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s design where the private eye’s sidekick tells the story in first person narrative. Two, this sidekick would be a dog. Three, and most important: this dog narrator would NOT be a talking dog. He would be as canine as I could make him, knowing nothing a dog wouldn’t know (and at the same time would be aware of things human miss, like the scent of perpy nervousness).
Chet is the dog, Bernie the PI. Chet’s an unreliable narrator but a super-reliable crime fighter, and he outgrew the sidekick role from the first word of Dog on It, the first book in the series. For newcomers, I should explain that the Chet and Bernie mysteries are not cozies. There’s darkness, and the pain of life is felt not just by Bernie but by Chet, too. But—and I think this is part of the appeal of the series, if I may say so—he quickly springs back to his reset position, and that position in all about joy in life. Is that why I often hear from readers who say Chet and Bernie have helped them through hard times? That’s been a huge and humbling surprise to me.
People ask if the series should be read in order. Answer: NO. Chet just doesn’t roll with that kind of rigid sequentiality. You could easily begin with Cat on a Hot Tin Woof. Chet would be pleased if you did because he and Bernie have never faced a more challenging case. It’s about a cat named Miss Kitty who lives with a struggling mom and her teenage daughter and has suddenly and recently become a money-making internet influencer. But now Miss Kitty is missing and must be found quickly and without anyone—her fans, her talent agency, certain Hollywood types—knowing she’s gone. Has Miss Kitty simply wandered off? Or is something more dark and dangerous going on? Dark and dangerous is what Chet and Bernie do, but would Chet prefer not to take this particular case? Very much so. His attitude toward cats is … well, I’ll let him tell it: Today was shaping up to be special. But just then, when I couldn’t have been feeling any more tip-top, I smelled cat. Were there any cats in view? Not a single one. Cats can be tricky. In fact, there’s nothing trickier. I slid down from the summit of tip-top.
Welcome—or welcome back—to the world of Chet and Bernie.
8 Comments on “Long Post”
Love the back story on the creation of Chet and Bernie. Maybe in a future book, a cat (a BigTiny type, perhaps) could save Chet and Chet learns a new appreciation for them.
Just saying……
Your wife deserves a commission on every C&B book you publish, or at least a really nice Valentine’s present every year. I can’t help but think her inspiration to “do something about dogs” might have been influenced by the family dog(s) at the time. Did you have a dog at the time and who was it? What could that dog have done (or your interaction with that dog observed by your wife) that could have motivated your wife to say you should write a book with a dog in it?
Somehow I think there is a bit more of a back story to this.
Also, Chet and Bernie is your longest series. Your YA books end with a trilogy at most, but the Chet and Bernie books keep going strong. Sixteen so far and you’ve said you have an idea for the book after CoaHTW.
It is so sad to slip down from the summit of tip-top! Poor, poor, pitiful Chet! (Had Linda Ronstadt on my playlist today.)
To ML – we’ve always had dogs. I believe it was Pearl back then. Then we had Pearl and Audrey overlap. After that just Audrey. And now Dottie. She’s dozing under my (our) desk right now.
Pete and WTAFP, which dog of OFA was the one Rio kept insinuating was Wookie’s girlfriend? As if a secret agent would have time for a dalliance!
BigTiny. I’m pretty sure that it was Audrey. Wookie was definitely very taken by her.
Rose and Peter. Looks like it’s another big storm coming your way. We will likely just catch the tail end of it, probably just 4-5 inches.
WTAFP: Grizz and I do our food shopping on Sunday. I am sure many people will be making French Toast (No milk, eggs, and bread). ;^)