Posting Sample Chapters: How Much is Too Much?

[Anne]

Good evening, fellow authors!

I am gearing up for the release of my debut novel, "Murder At Castle Rock," and plan to post some sample chapters on my website for potential readers to check out before deciding whether or not they want to buy the book.

Here's my problem: The novel is a murder mystery, and while the pacing isn't slow, due to the set-up and several pre-murder clues, the first character does not actually die until the end of the fourth chapter. I had planned to post the first two chapters as the sample, but because of the aforementioned issue, would it make more sense to post the first four instead?

How many chapters or pages do you usually post as samples?

[Peggy]

How long are the chapters?

[Anne]

Hi Peggy!

The first two are 15 pages each, but the third and fourth are a little shorter--the fourth chapter ends on page 46. The book itself is 240 pages long.

[Peggy]

Then I would post all the way to end of the fourth chapter since that's where you have a hook. Once people read that part, they will want to see what happens. Just a suggestion since the chapters are nice and short. By the way, I like short chapters which is one of the reasons I like James Patterson.

[Anne]

Thanks Peggy! I like short chapters too--much easier to digest in one sitting when you're short on time but need a good read :)

I appreciate the advice!