Elizabeth Ducie's debut novel was RUNNER-UP in Writing Magazine's 2015 SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK OF THE YEAR Awards. In 2017, it won a CHILL WITH A BOOK award.

Two small boys grieving for lost sisters - torn between family and other loves. Can the fulfilment of one promise make up for the failure to keep an earlier one?

When Gorgito Tabatadze sees his sister run off with a soldier, he is bereft. When she disappears into Stalin's Gulag system, he is devastated. He promises their mother on her death-bed he will find the missing girl and bring her home; but it is to prove an impossible quest.

Forty years later, Gorgito, now a successful businessman in post-Soviet Russia, watches another young boy lose his sister to a love stronger than family. When a talented Russian skater gets the chance to train in America, Gorgito promises her grief-stricken brother he will build an ice-rink in Nikolevsky, their home town, to bring her home again.

With the help of a British engineer, who has fled to Russia to escape her own heartache, and hindered by the local Mayor who has his own reasons for wanting the project to fail, can Gorgito overcome bureaucracy, corruption, economic melt-down and the harsh Russian climate in his quest to build the ice-rink and bring a lost sister home? And will he finally forgive himself for breaking the promise to his mother?

I am a scientist by education and training; I actually like maths, project planning and system management. However, most writers I meet are the complete opposite. They are horrified at the thought of having to stop creating in order to do the paperwork, the administration, the boring bits of running a business.

For the past few years, I have presented workshops on the Business of Writing at the Swanwick Writers' Summer School. In 2012 and 2013, I produced a series of blog posts on the same subject and I occasionally still discuss business issues during my weekly posts.

The Business of Writing brings all that material together in one place, then expands and extends it. The aim is to provide a simple route by which writers can set up and run their own small businesses. It identifies the basic minimum standards that must be achieved, while freeing the writer to spend the maximum possible time writing.

Second edition; now covering both UK and US systems.

In addition to the print version, The Business of Writing is also available as a series of ebooks, each dealing with a different aspect of the writer's business toolbox. It provides a simple route by which writers can set up and run their own small businesses, and identifies the basic minimum standards that must be achieved, while freeing the writer to spend the maximum possible time writing.

Part One covers: business planning; objectives; thinking about finances; finding customers; doing the work; getting paid; working for nothing; business structures; tax matters; informal networks; professional networks.

Second edition: now covers UK and US systems

In addition to the print version, The Business of Writing is also available as a series of ebooks, each dealing with a different aspect of the writer's business toolbox. It provides a simple route by which writers can set up and run their own small businesses, and identifies the basic minimum standards that must be achieved, while freeing the writer to spend the maximum possible time writing.

Part Two covers keeping financial systems appropriate; income records; expenditure records; an introduction to accounting statements; profit and loss statements; cash flow planning; and risk management. There is a link to an associated website with templates and examples.

Second edition : now covering both UK and US systems

In addition to the print version shown below, The Business of Writing is also available as a series of ebooks, each dealing with a different aspect of the writer's business toolbox. It provides a simple route by which writers can set up and run their own small businesses, and identifies the basic minimum standards that must be achieved, while freeing the writer to spend the maximum possible time writing.

Part Three covers project planning and management; time management, problem solving and a variety of tools and techniques for improving productivity. There is a link to an associated website with templates and examples.

Who is the mysterious stranger who carries parcels in the rain? Why does Joey want so badly to win the story competition? Has Archie Walker met his match in the Suited Man? And is Jasmine right in her belief that it's possible to breathe under water? Elizabeth Ducie's third collection contains short stories and flash fiction drafted over a seven year period since she rediscovered creative writing in 2006.

However, the 31 pieces also include writing about two important parts of her life: her childhood and her travels as an adult. What was Christmas Eve like in the 1970s? How did the family celebrate Verdi at teatime? Why was it so difficult to leave Ukraine? And what do you do when someone is screaming "it's alright, I'm with British Airways" in your ear while you are lying on a stretcher and quite clearly NOT alright?

Running a successful barbecue party needs preparation, experience and practice. Elizabeth Ducie and her husband have been organising parties for their friends and family for nearly thirty years. During that time, they have learned from their mistakes, captured experiences and, hopefully, improved each time.

If you are planning to hold a garden party, whether for a few friends or half the neighbourhood, this little book gives you some ideas and helps you relax and enjoy the experience.

Featuring tips on: Guests: How Many Are Enough?; Food: What Should We Serve?; Drinks: It's Not About Getting Sloshed; Tableware: What Do We Need?; Furniture: Where Will Everyone Sit?; Music: To Play or Not To Play?; Those Little Extras: Making It Special; On The Day: The Party of the Year; Relax and Enjoy: It's Your Party; Countdown to the Day

It's your party; you are allowed to have a good time too!

Fake medicine kills. No-one is safe. Regulator Suzanne Jones’ mission to stop counterfeiting in Africa becomes personal when a colleague buys a bottle of fake cough syrup with tragic consequences. But her investigations bring danger ever closer. In Uganda a factory burns; Suzanne’s friend goes missing; and in Swaziland and Zambia, children die. Who is supplying the fake drugs? What is the Eastern European connection? Can Suzanne stop the counterfeiters before more people die?

Counterfeit! was awarded third prize in the Literature Works 2015 First Page Writing Prize.

It’s Mardi Gras in Rio – and danger stalks the streets. The Jones sisters are in Brazil. Former spy Charlie is on the trail of counterfeiter Michael Hawkins, hoping to make him pay for the pain and suffering he’s caused. Regulator turned investigator Suzanne Jones is looking into mysterious disappearances and outbursts of violence in the sports world. Could they be linked to a new health supplement? New Friends. An old adversary. Faces and voices from the past. Will it all be too much for the Jones sisters to handle? Deceit is a dangerous game and it seems like everyone’s playing.

Thinking of publishing your books independently? Confused and dismayed by the options open to you? The Business of Writing Part 4: Independent Publishing walks you through the questions you need to ask and helps you find the answers: Is indie publishing the right route for me? Which formats do I need for my books? Should I choose Amazon exclusivity or ‘go wide’?And much more… Elizabeth Ducie is an authorpreneur who has been publishing her own books and others since 2011. She has worked on more than twenty publishing projects, each with multiple book formats. Now she shares her considerable experience with other writers considering taking the same path. This book can help clear the confusion. Get it today!

Are you looking for a simple way to set up and run your own writing business? The Business of Writing identifies the basics you need in place while freeing you to spend the maximum possible time writing. This workbook is produced as a companion to Parts 1-3 and contains all the worked examples from Business Start-Up; Finance Matters; and Improving Effectiveness plus the templates for each of the activities. It is only available in paperback format.

Out of fear. Out of greed. Out of evil. Corruption springs from many roots. Teenagers fall prey to a deadly new drug craze sweeping across Russia. Pharmaceuticals destined for Africa turn up on the backstreets of Moscow, St Petersburg and Vladivostok. Regulator Suzanne Jones and her sister, Charlie, fight to stop the pushers before more kids die. But will their discoveries mean a friend goes to prison? And are they putting their loved ones in danger? With old adversaries and surprising new allies, the Jones sisters face their toughest challenge to date. The heart-stopping third episode in the Jones Sisters series of international thrillers.

Punish the guilty. Protect the innocent.

Framed for murder on the day of her wedding, Charlie Jones is living a nightmare. While her sister, Suzanne, and their friends search for the true killer, Charlie is forced to confront her past: a past she's kept hidden for more than three decades. Can Charlie save herself without losing everyone she loves. And who is the man in the black jacket?

The final explosive investigation for the Jones sisters.