Pat Ritter. Books

[patritter]

When I'm writing a book, I write whatever flows from my mind. Each day I've got to write something. For instance when I was writing 'The Drover' my mind had flashbacks of events and I needed to record those flashbacks.

For instance, in 1996 Olga (my wife) and I decided to attend the Birdsville Races. We went with a tour and enjoyed each moment. When we crossed the Thompson River she called to the bus driver to stop. He stopped. She got out of the bus and I followed.

We stood on the bridge and she pointed to a spot along the river and said, 'Pat, that is where Dad crossed those 500 head of bullocks in the flood, I was only nine years old. The dogs, in the dogbox underneath the truck almost drowned.' I included the event in the book.

Part way through writing 'The Drover' after exhausting my memory of tales told by my father-in-law, I hit a roadblock. There was a huge gap in the story. I needed help. I telephoned my father-in-law's brother to seek some answers. After a couple of days staying at his home listening to his stories I had sufficient to continue 'The Drover'.

One of the most important tasks I set myself in writing a book is to give myself a deadline to finish. I start writing a book in January and complete it by the end of November that year.

The size of the book and number of words are important. I allow twenty-five hundred words to each chapter - not exact, only thereabouts. Depending on the length of the book, normally my books are between eighty to one hundred thousand words.

'Dream Angel' was a longer book because it was my memoir.

Wait until tomorrow and I'll share with you other tips when writing a book.

[patritter]

Whilst writing 'The Drover' although I personally experienced some of the scenes from the book, there were many I needed to visualise to make it feel real. Like for instance, I'd travelled to Thargomindah in my earlier days to experience the bush with the pristine gum trees, kangaroos, lakes and properties. Without personally experiencing these scenes I doubt if I would've been able to write about them.

I wanted to write this book thirty years ago after I listened to stories told by my father-in-law about different men he worked with, also his experience with stock. How to count sheep - you may think it's easy but when you have five thousand head of sheep on the road and need to count them before handing them over to the trader, they all need to be there. I learned how to count sheep from my father-in-law.

Although he was illiterate, he never learned to read or write, he possessed a heap of common sense and honesty. Apart from these special gifts he possessed - he knew his craft backward.

I thoroughly enjoyed writing this book and dedicated it to my parents-in-law.

Harry Williams from the age of ten years wanted to become a drover, like his father and grandfather before him. This is his life story of leaving school at ten years old, operating his first droving plant at thirteen years and fully operational at twenty-one years old. Droving is now a craft past ...


TO PURCHASE THIS BOOK
Pat Ritter Books then click.... PRB

[patritter]

Each year after I've written and published a book I have twelve copies printed to give to my children, grandchildren and friends as a Christmas present. I know it's a little vain but since I've been doing this my children and friends appreciate their gift of twelve months of hard work.

As I mentioned before it is more cost effective to publish a book as an ebook rather than the cost of printing five hundred copies and trying to distribute them to make a sale. Moreso the ebook is marketed throughout the world via various ebook distributors and is on-going forever.

Shortly after publishing 'The Drover' on Smashwords website I was amazed how quickly sales started. One purchaser left a review of 'The Drover' and here it is: 'Great read! Pat Ritter's writing is so detailed and descriptive that you can really see in your mind's eye what life was like as a drover in outback Queensland many years ago. My teenager is now starting on the book as well as there is stuff in this book they will NOT learn at school. The main character, Harry, is very likable and I did develop an appreciation of our forefathers and what they went through, and the grace by which they lived while out in the rough 'n tumble. I'd love to see a movie made out of this book! Lots of good ingredients there.'

I don't know if any of you know Wendy Millgate for she was the person who purchased 'The Drover' and after reading it gave this glowing appraisal of the book. Thank you Wendy for your kind and sincere words.

Tomorrow I'll explain how I put together OMR (One Minute Read) stories and made them into a book to sell.

[patritter]

Each Tuesday morning I attend the Pomona Writers Group. On average fifteen writers gather to express their thoughts and ideas on writing. Each person is unique in that they bring with them their personal adventures and stories.

The facilitator provides a leadership to the group to share our writing within the group and not to be judgemental. This is my third year in the group and each Tuesday I look forward to attending.

Each week we have homework to do. The facilitator gives us a title he's gleened from the weekend newspapers. Our homework is to write up to five hundred words about this title. Then in-turn we read our story to the members of the group. Although there are up to fifteen members or sometimes more, each story is different. No two are the same.

At the end of our writing group for 2011, I joined each story together into a book and named it 'Amazing Stories' OMR - One Minute Read. The book is published as an ebook on the websites Smashwords and Amazon.


Wait until tomorrow and I'll share with you my latest novel - Detective Bundy Quicksilver.
Amazing Stories - OMR - One Minute Read., an Ebook by Pat Ritter
http://www.smashwords.com
This book contains Amazing Stories - OMR (One Minute Read.) Each story is less than 500 words. These stories were written by me while attending Pomona Writers Group for year 2011.

[patritter]

This has been quite a journey you've taken with me so far and I thank you all for your continued support. I thought of recapping on a few events during this career. It's not over by any strength of the imagination.

From time to time I come to a sign post and need to decide which way I turn or which sign to follow. Life's a bit like that also. Anyway, I've come to a sign post.

At the beginning of my career I wanted to write a book to help parents improve communication with their children. At the time it was a huge mountain to climb and eventually I climbed it to have a look at the promised land.

Along the way I discovered so much about myself and others. I think when you write, I've read about it, and been told at seminars, it takes ninety percent persistance and ten percent imagination.

If there is one lesson I've learned since I started and that is to go down to the hardware store and purchase gallons and gallons of 'bum glue'. Without 'bum glue' there's no hope in writing or finishing a book and have it published. It's a lonely life because no other person can write what you want only yourself.

I write everyday. It mightn't be much but I've got to keep up the habit of writing for the old saying is - if you don't use it - you lose it. Another important aspect to the craft is to set a deadline to complete a novel. Otherwise the novel will end up never being read by the readers. It could be the greatest novel that's ever been written and if it's on your computer and not being sent out to the public - you'll never know if it has a chance of success.

As I mentioned before, I'm at a sign post in the highway of writing. This new novel 'Detective Bundy Quicksilver' is started. I've written the first one thousand words and have another ninety thousand to go.

Wait until tomorrow and I'll share with you how I'm writing this latest novel.

[patritter]

Before I started writing this new novel, I researched the internet to discover an author in America writes a series of books and sells them as ebooks. This gave me an idea of going down a similar pathway.

In 2004 I wrote and published 'Confessions of an alcoholic'. In this book I introduced a character named Bundy Quicksilver. Bundy because of bundaberg rum and Quicksilver because when you drink alcohol it is quicksilver. The name stuck inside my head.

In Confessions of an alcoholic saw when Bundy first tasted alcohol at aged twelve years and fell into the habit of drinking until at twenty-eight years his wife Ada decided she'd had enough. She threatened to leave him and take his two children if he didn't do something about his drinking.

At that moment he promised her he would never drink alcohol again. It has been thirty-four years and has not touched a drop since. His life improved without alcohol but his behaviour didn't change. Over the next twenty years he was known as a 'dry drunk.'

Life went on for him. After twenty years since he had his last drink he became an alcohol and drug counsellor. His time working with people he'd once been there himself suffering a similar problem. He learned how the alcoholism caught hold of him and after studying these reasons underwent an intensive twelve month programme to identify his behaviour and alter his life.

He began to understand he needed to be a trustworthy person and honest with his dealings with other people. He succeeded.

After losing his wife Ada to cancer, some eight years before; he receives a retirement medal from the Commissioner of Police. He'd been retired from the police for twenty-one years and was astonished to receive this medal.

With respect, he personally wrote a letter to the Commissioner who on receipt of the letter telephoned Bundy.

Wait until tomorrow to read what happens after Bundy receives the telephone call.

[patritter]

Bundy accepts an invitation from the Commissioner to visit him. On his visit he experiences flashbacks of different events which happened when he was a police officer.

Standing in front of Headquarters he recognized the footpath and gutter when he was a junior detective working nightwork when he lent down to pick up a drunk from the gutter when his revolver fell from the shoulder holster and landed on the ground beside the drunk. Police headquarters wasn't the building at the time. It was the Railway Hotel which was demolished before the present building was built.

His mind returns to the present to enter the entrance to headquarters. After being received as a visitor he is ushered to the Commisioner's office. His conversation with the Commisioner takes his breathe away for the task he is offered.

Let me know if you are enjoying reading this story before I let you know what happens.

TO PURCHASE THIS BOOK
Pat Ritter Books then click.... PRB