Now Available!

Well, I finally succeeded at least a little bit!  My book is now available, at least in a small quantity, at Ink Spell Books in Half Moon Bay, CA.

Please go check out this wonderful book store if you can!  They have a great selection of new and used books and the shopkeeper is a wonderful lady.

Hard Copies

I finally got in some of the hard copies of my book that I ordered.  I only get one for free, so the rest I've bought myself.  And since I haven't gotten any bites on my marketing fliers that I've been mailing out, I'm going to try to distribute the first round of books on my own for a better price.  This is thanks to one of those discount deals I told you about.

There is one mistake in the book that is not my fault; the publisher did not listen to my request.  The photos are all numbered, but the numbers are meaningless since they decided not to print the revised text I sent along with them, indicating which photo to look at that corresponds with its matching section of text.

Other than that, the book looks pretty good.  And as soon as I can get some of the local bookstores to carry a few copies, I'll post here where you can buy my book from them.

If you would like to request a signed copy from me, please just comment on my blog or send me an email request.  You'll have to pay for the book and shipping, but my signature will be free of charge. :)

Flier Available

There is a new flier available for my Dog Training book which includes information on how retailers may order copies of the book with a normal retailer discount.  I have sent copies out to some rescue organizations and really hope some of them pick up the book.  I think it would be a great way to fund raise for the rescuing cause.

I still haven't gotten any emails from anyone wanting to be on the mailing list, and they are really missing out.  Almost every week, PublishAmerica sends me emails with special coupon codes and weekend discounts, where you can save up to 65% on a regular softcover or a pocket-sized softcover copy of my book.  It really is worth it!  I know the company is selling the book for a lot of money; that's why you have to wait for me to send you notices about special deals.  I hope I get an email from someone other than a spammer soon.

Anyway, please let me know if you want a copy of the flier.  It's saved on my computer and I can email you a copy whenever you ask.

I miss living in Washington, close to my uncle and aunt and their dog, Lilly.  She was so sweet, and was very good around my daughter.  Kinda makes me want to get a dog myself....

How to Write a Good Introductory Paragraph

Think of what you want to write about. What is your topic? What is your thesis? Is this a novel, a short story, a research paper? Once you have decided, jot down some ideas for what to talk about on a piece of paper.

Once you know your topic, do some research. Even if you are writing a fiction novel, it's always good to check out some of the concepts you want to write about online first. This is especially important when writing a science fiction novel or a research paper. You need to find trustworthy sources of information; an article database, published book, or a website ending in ".org" or ".edu" should work fine. And don't underestimate the power of the news networks either! CNN.com or msn.com can be your friend when researching a topic for your next history paper.
Once you have your sources, read through them and highlight all the important bits you want to mention in your paper. This will help you later.

Now that you know what you are writing your paper or novel about, it's time to create a hook.
A hook is a sentence or phrase that drags the reader into your world. You want it to sound exciting so your reader will be interested in reading more.
A good example for a novel would start with something like, "The moon was waxing and there were few stars in the sky on that night that changed my life."
A good example for a paper would start with your thesis statement, then move to your introduction. Something like, "Though the fate of the free world may not completely rest in 'going green', the benefits to the environment make this new social movement astronomically important to saving our planet's future."

*originally written as an eHow article by me*

How to come up with Cool Fantasy Character Names

Look around you. Good spelling skills are a must for a writer, so know how to spell things correctly. See that chair? And that photograph? What about your printer? Or that Windex under your kitchen sink? Think of random objects and brand names, and jot them down on a piece of paper.

Combine words! Look at all those letters we just found, and take parts of them mingled with portions of the other words. The last half of one with the first half of the other. What can you come up with? Names that end in a or y usually sound more feminine, while names ending in consonants tend to sound more masculine

Phordex. Teria. Chonik. Kitogra. 

See how easy it is? New, odd sounding words that are made into names. And believe me, if you start using them enough they sound just as normal as "Marie, John, Simon," etc. do.

If you are a fantasy writer I suggest typing these out and keeping them in a file on your computer for later use. Try figuring one of these out for your new WoW character and see how impressed people are with your originality!

*originally written as an eHow article by me*

The book is ready to order!

My book, Training Your Rescued or Adopted American Staffordshire Terrier, has arrived!  I am working on marketing it to local bookstores and animal shelters.  Please share this book with other Amstaff lovers!

To order, just visit www.publishamerica.com and click on the Online Bookstore tab, then search alphabetically under the "Education" section.

You may also send a simple request email to ameliaritner@yahoo.com to be put on my special mailing list.  You will receive emails from me about upcoming special discounts, coupon codes, book signings and promotions.  Don't worry, I won't spam you!

First Book being published

I, along with my consulting uncle Edward South, am now the proud author of a dog training manual.  We noticed a general lack of training materials for the American Staffordshire Terrier on store shelves, and decided to collaborate on writing one ourselves.  The book is due to be released on October 3, 2010 by PublishAmerica press.
Links to the book and reviews will be placed here as they become available.  If you have any questions or are interested in helping market my book, please contact me through this site.