"Sims orchestrates the action—and occasional comic relief—for maximum impact." —Publishers Weekly
Awarded the Silver Medal in general fiction. —Florida Book Awards, April 11, 2018
"A rollicking good mystery." —Lori L. Lake, Midwest Book Review
"Your evening read will keep you up 'til dawn." —Whitney Scott, Booklist
"Colorful episodes involving trailer parks and luxury cars." —Kirkus Reviews
"Sims has created one of those heroines who you wouldn't like to be but you'd like as a friend." —Sharon Wheeler, Reviewing the Evidence
"You'll be surprised over and over." —Caroline McCullagh, Mensa Bulletin
"Each of these four stories is a tiny gem." —Neil S. Plakcy, author
"The approach is always positive and well worth the price of admission." —Ellen Hart, award-winning author
"A page-turner from stem to stern." —Kirkus Reviews
"Goes down easy, like a perfect cup of coffee." —Crimespree Magazine
"A fast-paced, atmospheric mystery. Sims shines." —Melinda Bargreen, The Seattle Times
"Spot on dialog and well drawn female characters." —Ryan G. Van Cleave, Scene Magazine
"Byrd is a very likable amateur sleuth and Sims is a really entertaining storyteller." —Andrea L.T. Peterson, Woman's Monthly
"Appealing characters, and a rabbit mascot." —Library Journal
"A nerve-tingling thriller, rich with characterization and humour." —Vancouver BC Public Library
"Hilarious. Lillian is a true original." —Kirkus Reviews
"Unforgettable characters, lovely moments and brilliant dialogue." —The Lesbian Review
"Elizabeth Sims proves herself a true writer's friend." —Jamie Morris, Director, Voice Heart Vision
"Sims' wry commentary on life in Hollywood is dead-on." —Publishers Weekly
"An intelligent thriller." —Jay Strafford, Richmond Times-Dispatch
"You just have to love Rita." —Kirkus Reviews
"Sims is a master of word choice, sentence structure, and plot development." —Mensa Bulletin
"I flat out loved this book." —Sheryl LeSage, Liberty Press
"ANYONE assessing America’s best short story writers needs to include Elizabeth Sims." —New Pop Lit
"Much charm and deprecating humor." —Kirkus Reviews
"A nifty little puzzle solved by a most intriguing female detective." —Rex E. Klett, Library Journal
"Don't overlook the work of this excellent and entertaining author." —Denise Pickles, Mary Martin Bookshop
"What more could a reader ask for?" —Cheri Fuller and Nikki Little, Curve Magazine
"The quality of writing and the entertainment value are high." —W Spice
"Packs a twelve-week writing course into 280 pages." —Julie Compton,
author of Keep No Secrets
"Intricate and surprising, this is a gripping read." —Kristine Huntley, Booklist
"The two leads, Rita and George, are engaging and believable." —Hallie Ephron, Boston Globe

Elizabeth Live

VIDEO: Elizabeth Introduces You've Got a Book in You

Speaking and Workshops

Elizabeth Sims Drawing by Bob Eckstein — Drawing by Bob Eckstein

Elizabeth is an entertaining and informative speaker, presenter, panelist, and workshop leader. She’s appeared at countless bookstores, as well as conferences, events and schools, including:

Writer’s Digest East (New York)

Writer’s Digest West (Los Angeles)

Bouchercon

Bentley University (Boston)

Ringling College of Art and Design (Sarasota)

Left Coast Crime

Lambda Literary Emerging Voices

Golden Crown Literary Society

Alaska Writers Guild

Florida Writers Association

Florida Heritage Book Festival

Palm Springs Writers Guild

Permian Basin Writers' Workshop

Write on the Sound (Seattle)

June Mazer Archives (Los Angeles)

Simpson College (Iowa)

North Olympic Library System

LGBTQ Resource Center Gulfport Library (Florida)

See the end of this page for some actual audience feedback.

Some of the presentations / workshops Elizabeth can give to groups:

Supercharge Your Plot
You've Got a Book in You
How to Write Dynamite Mysteries and Thrillers that SELL
Short Story Writing for Publication
How to Write Dialogue Like a Pro
Rough it Up: For a Better First Draft, Get Messy
Down and Dirty Research Tools and Techniques for Authors
Quit Your Day Job: Seriously!

She can also create material to fit your needs.

Elizabeth loves to talk with literature students, and is a lively reader of her material. Her wide experience in writing and publishing makes her a knowledgeable, insightful speaker.

Are you scheduling a women’s literature / feminist / GLBTQ lecture series? Elizabeth will entertain and inspire.

esims@elizabethsims.com

How do audiences respond? Here is the complete, unedited written feedback given by the audience after her presentation on writing mysteries and thrillers at a Florida Writer’s Association conference:

“Loved the humor and self-effacement of presenter. - One of the best ever workshops. What a woman! - Outstanding. - Presenter, funny and organized. - Very entertaining and fresh presentation. - Best so far. - Humor combined with learning. - Thank you for sharing stormwriting talk. unique. You're a great speaker. It's nice that you brought your personality into the presentation. - Gems of writing wisdom. - Good handout material. - Excellent presentation & presenter. This could be a longer workshop. - Great sense of humor. Slides with listed content had great information, but passed too quickly. This was a fantastic presentation. - The best presentation of the conference. - Her humor and ease of explaining things. - Excellent. Good material. - Great information delivered with expertise & in fun manner. - Humor. She involved us in a writing exercise - who knew I could do it in 5 min. - Great presentation. Very knowledgeable person. - Order, procedure & humor. - Great sense of humor pervades her instruction throughout. - Expertise & sense of humor. - Awesome. - Fun. Thanks. - Super. - Speaker & Subject. - Great. - Clear presentation. Personable & enthusiastic delivery. - Funny. Great job. - Funny & helpful. Don't interrupt the lecturer with questions. - By far the best presenter of the weekend. Kept my attention throughout. - Extremely entertaining. Great speaker. - Great speaker. - It was helpful. - Good handouts that were interactive with presentation. - Personal style - hilarious & informational. - Excellent job. Really helpful...funny too. Delightful, interesting, wanted more. - Excellent. Ask her back. Could use more time. - Would have liked more mystery/thriller information but thought the presentation excellent. - Didn't like storm writing on own. - Very informative, plan to purchase her book. - Everything, tremendous speaker, humor, depth to the point, very intelligent. - Specific & usable information. - Great. - Funny lady, practical, helpful. - Humor. Simple outline of story building. - Best workshop of the weekend. Thank you. Lighthearted, informative, funny, captivating, practical. - Interesting, informative & funny. More guided exercise needed rather than 5 minutes silence. Maybe pose specific questions for us to stormwriter together. - Fantastic catch phrases such as 'stormwriting' and 'heartbrain'. - She uses humor. - Extremely entertaining but too much material for the time allotted. - Good sense of humor. Better for beginners. - Sense of humor, full of information.”