NORTHFIELD, IL, UNITED STATES, May 8, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Libby Fischer Hellmann is an honored writer who began her career in broadcast news in Washington, DC. When she moved to Chicago to work in public relations, she began to write gritty crime novels and murder mysteries. She’s also written six historical thrillers. To date, she has published 18 novels in three series, and even more short stories. The series include The Ellie Foreman Mysteries, The Georgia Davis Thrillers, and The Saga Series.
Libby has been nominated for many awards in the crime fiction community, including the Agatha and the Anthony. She wryly says she’s even won a few, such as the Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year (2021) and the Readers Choice Award (more than once.) According to Harlan Coban, a fellow mystery writer and now a TV host, just being honored is a great achievement for a writer.
Many of these books have a piece of Libby’s life or personality in them—her Ellie Foreman series features a single mother and a teenage daughter living on the North Shore of Chicago, which was exactly Libby’s lifestyle when she wrote the series. She is also admittedly political. “How can you grow up in DC without developing leanings?” she asks. Some even creep into her characters and plot lines.
Why murder stories?
“I’ve always been fascinated by human nature. How can someone end another life? It’s such a heinous act! I needed to understand the motive behind murder; be it revenge, greed, or something else. I also wonder why we repeat the same mistakes over time when history teaches us differently? How and why do societies blunder into wars such as World War II and Vietnam? Those questions never seem to be answered adequately.”
Libby also says that the craft of solving a crime inspires her. She loves figuring her way through a puzzle. Always with a twist or two. And she loves to travel, which she has with her daughter, weaving locales like Cuba, Germany, and Vietnam into her work.
Libby notes that she began writing rather late in life. It was in the 1990s. The O. J. Simpson Trial made an impression on her, and she became fascinated with forensics and all the tools that crime solvers can now apply. After her father’s death, she went down to her basement and only emerged once she had written her first manuscript. It was roundly rejected, so she joined a writer’s group, the kind that asks you to submit work for review before accepting you as a member. Their advice helped her publish her first novel, An Eye for Murder, in 2001.
The root of the Ellie Foreman Series
That manuscript, which introduces Ellie Foreman was actually her fourth novel—she calls the first three “practice” novels. The book was based on the first short story Libby ever wrote, with war and the German Bund in its plot. The protagonist was a teen boy named Jake Foreman. She advanced time by about forty years and set the novel on the North Shore. The third Ellie Forman book featured police officer Georgia Davis, who later grew into a series of her own.
Ellie Foreman and Georgia Davis, she notes, are true modern and empowered women, in contrast to the female stereotypes in detective stories of the past. Ellie is not a hard-boiled character, but she is a bit unique (she shoplifted as a teen and needs support in the garden.) Georgia Davis has her own issues.
Podcast Pro
In coming to the Close Up Radio Podcast Libby will talk about women and her role in changing perceptions. This is not the first podcast for her; she has appeared on others and even hosted some. One was a streaming mystery video series called Solved. Libby has also interviewed other crime authors. They discuss plot, craft, characters, story arcs and more. Connecting with other writers is a joy for her.
Libby’s books are page-turners, and you might stay up all night to finish one. They are widely available online and also in her Shopify bookstore https://store.libbyhellmann.com/. If you purchase through her store, every additional book in your order will earn a discount. Libby’s writing work, combined with her years in broadcasting, make her an outstanding interviewee so be sure to hear her podcast tape.
Close Up Radio recently featured author Libby Fischer Hellmann in an interview with Jim Masters on Wednesday May 6th at 1pm Eastern
Listen to the Podcast
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/close-up-radio-spotlights-crime-fiction-and-murder/id1785721253?i=1000766599963
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-close-up-radio-242020413/episode/close-up-radio-spotlights-crime-fiction-and-murder-mystery-author-libby-fischer-hellmann-332862270
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2LJ4ZliXCNRyw25PNgzduI
For more information about the author and her books please visit https://libbyhellmann.com/
Lou Ceparano
Close Up Television & Radio
+ +1 631-850-3314
email us here
Visit us on social media:
Facebook
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability
for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this
article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Media gallery
