Lean Where?

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Ex-VP of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google and a former Facebook CEO, Sheryl Sandberg is a powerful woman. Her best-selling first book Lean In – Women, Work, and the Will to Lead, deals with the importance for women to  ‘lean into’ life to capitalize on both professional and personal opportunities. A heady mix, … Read more

I Moved to Chicago for the Weather

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This is a reprint of an essay that appears in the current Mystery Readers’ Journal, Fall edition, which is all about Chicago. The magazine also includes essays by nearly two dozen other Chicago authors, including Marcus Sakey, Michael Sherer, Jack Fredrickson, Sheldon Siegel, and others. For more, check it out here.  Um… actually that’s a … Read more

Inside Havana Lost

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I’m so pleased to present my first “Glossi.” A Glossi is a short online magazine that you can create (free) about a subject. I did mine, of course, as a short virtual tour of Cuba, using excerpts from HAVANA LOST. Enjoy! Click to view Havana Lost on GLOSSI.COM  

Revolutionary talk – Why I set my novels in violent times and places

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In fiction, they say, there must be conflict on every page, even if it’s only someone wanting a glass of water that he or she can’t get. I tend to overdo things in general, and creating conflict is no exception. What could provide more conflict than a revolution? When my characters’ lives unfold against an … Read more

An Interview with Libby – On Havana Lost and a Writer’s Life

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Havana Lost

Well, that’s it. My latest novel, Havana Lost, is finally out in the wild, being read by a bunch of fans who have downloaded the Advance Reader Copy. I’ve already been asked a whole load of questions about the writing process, the book, the characters and Cuba itself. Here are my answers. What attracted you … Read more

Thumbs Up On Gatekeepers, But Who… And How?

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Happy Fourth of July, America…. Hope it’s a good one. Now… on to business. Some say the lunatics have taken over the asylum. Until recently, agents and traditional publishers were publishing’s gatekeepers, deciding whose work was printed and whose was rejected. The growth of self-publishing has turned everything upside down now that anyone, anywhere, can … Read more

Author Superstars and Branding

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Libby Fischer Hellmann - Crime Author

Libby Fischer Hellmann - Crime AuthorThere are superstar scientists, property developers, art dealers, actors, singers, models and brands.  It’s a celebrity-mad world. But what about authors? Everyone knows you need to market your books if you want to make your career successful as a writer. But what about marketing yourself?

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Five Reasons to Publish a Print Version of your Ebook

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  Those of us who have published our own ebooks over the past few years know it can be an exciting and profitable venture. And the ebook market is still growing, though not at the same pace as it was—but we knew that was bound to happen as the digital industry begins to mature. A … Read more