Libby Fischer Hellmann

writes the Ellie Foreman mysteries, the Georgia Davis thrillers, and several stand-alone thrillers. Her Ellie books are a cross between “Desperate Housewives” and “24”, but the Georgia Davis PI thrillers are more hard-boiled. Her stand-alones include a “trilogy” of thrillers set during the revolutions of Iran, Cuba, and the turbulent late Sixties in Chicago.

Foreign Translations and Indie Publishing, Part 2

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Picking up from the end of Part 1, I’m afraid I left you with the impression that investing in a foreign translation of your book isn’t worth the cost and effort. That may be true for some, but the benefits are pretty awesome too. (Btw, be forewarned… this is a looong post.)       … Read more

Foreign Translations and Indie Publishing: Part 1

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One of the most exciting opportunities in our brave new world of indie publishing is foreign translations. At least to me. When I was traditionally published, only the top best-selling crime fiction was translated, and it was often a NY Times listed book. I didn’t sell well enough to make the cut, and I envied … Read more

Repeat After Me: Try Not to be Cynical… Try not to be…

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Just read today’s Progress Report from Think Progress and am trying not to be cynical. For those who wonder why, here’s what they are reporting: ALEC: The Exodus Continues by CAP Action War Room Posted on March 24, 2015 at 5:28 pm Oil Giant BP Cuts Ties With Koch-Backed Lobbying Group Yesterday, Oil Giant BP … Read more

50 Tips For Fiction Writers

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Whew! It took over a year to do, but my 50 Free Tips for Fiction Writers is finally complete. You can find them over at Pinterest. They’re also scattered among my blog posts over the past year, but they’re all together in order  here. Here’s what they look like:             … Read more

Writing Lite Tip 50: Never pay for a review

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Writing Lite Tip 50: Never pay for a review. It will come back to bite you.

Enough said? You don’t need to pay for reviews. You can find reviewers online, on Facebook (Check Reviewing groups), Twitter, Google+, and more. Some kind souls have even made lists of reviewers who will review self-published books, but you’ll have to check to see how timely they are. Make sure you craft a respectful, polite … Read more

Writing Lite Tip 49: Pay for a professional cover & interior

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Writing Lite Tip 49

You probably already know how important a good cover is. Save your pennies for a graphic designer who has experience and knows what he’s doing. And don’t forget to have them create a back cover and a spine, whether or not you’re planning a paperback release. You might want one at some point. Covers are one … Read more

My China TV Interview– Ferris Bueller was Right

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Remember when Ferris Bueller says to the camera “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around for a while, you could miss it?” Well, I just had one of those days. It started Monday evening with an email from a producer who works for CCTV America. What’s that you ask? “CCTV News” … Read more

Writing Lite Tip 48: Use characters’ actions instead of dialogue tags

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Writing Lite Tip 48 - Use characters' actions instead of dialogue tags.

You already know you don’t need dialogue tags other than “he/she said” or, occasionally, “he/she asked.” Often, however, you don’t need a tag at all, if you couple it with a character’s action. That action, BTW, will tell you more about a character’s frame of mind than a bunch of words. Examples: Ellie ran a … Read more