# Rottweiler Rescue: a mystery for dog lovers



## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Probably everyone on these boards is aware of my mystery because of the references in my signature over the last weeks, but I'm finally ready to post my One Thread on my book here.  For some reason I was determined to get all my first time indie author ducks in a row before doing this, but I've finally conceded to myself that this authoring business is more like herding cats than anything to do with ducks.

So my mystery is now on Amazon for the Kindle and in a paperback edition.  It's also available on Smashwords in the other ebook formats.  The Kindle version has 12 really nice reviews, including a 5-star review from Red Adept.  I suspect I owe big thank yous to people who frequent both Kindle Boards and the Amazon forums for those reviews.

Rottweiler Rescue is the story of Dianne Brennan, a volunteer for Rottweiler Rescue.  Dianne doesn't expect the volunteer work to be easy, but she doesn't expect it to be murderously hard! Yet murder is what she faces when she takes a dog to meet an adopter, finds him dead, and sees the killer leaving the scene. Worse, although Dianne cannot identify the killer, he begins stalking her with deadly intent. The sheriff's investigators in Douglas County, Colorado, are convinced the killer is a member of the victim's family. Dianne is sure he will be found where the victim worked - in the world of dog shows and dog people. Can she keep herself and her dogs safe long enough to prove she is right? Can Dianne and her Rottweilers collar the killer?

I wrote the book some years ago, and it was the Editor's Choice in the Mystery Category of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Annual Colorado Gold Contest.  After that I joined one of the RMFW critique groups and watched 2 members of the group get traditional publishing deals.  What was necessary at that point for those people to achieve success was so Not Me I stopped writing and left Rottweiler Rescue, along with a romance and a half, sitting untouched on my computer hard drive until I heard that Amazon was allowing indies access to their DTP platform.  Some research, a lot of editing and formatting, and well, here I am, really delighted with how things are going.

Thanks to all of you for your support.


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## 3pointers (Jan 8, 2010)

Here's the link to the book:


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## kcrady (Dec 17, 2009)

Already bought it, read it, loved it and now I'm waiting for a sequel!  This IS going to be a series, right?


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## dpinmd (Dec 30, 2009)

Just one-clicked it!  As someone who loves mysteries, dogs, and is a volunteer for a breed rescue (Australian Cattle Dogs), this sounds like it's right up my alley!


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## LCEvans (Mar 29, 2009)

Ellen,
You have enabled me. I had promised myself I'd wait until the end of the month to buy more books and now I have one-clicked Rottweiler Rescue. The combination of Dogs plus mystery made it impossible for me to resist.


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## MrTsMom (Jun 13, 2009)

I just got finished with this book and absolutely loved it! I guess many issues go across breeds (rescue politics, vaccination protocols, etc), so even though I'm very much a Golden person, I found myself identifying with Dianne. Fun book!


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## Jane917 (Dec 29, 2009)

This book is on my Kindle now, waiting in the TBR line. However, I have had trouble the last few days getting interested in a book past the first 10 pages, so tonight I think I will give this a try.


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## ElaineOK (Jun 5, 2009)

One-clicked.

I burned out on the Laurien Berenson and Susan Conant series.  I've trained competition obedience, adopted rescues (5 so far) and driven a couple of legs for CanineUndergroundRailroad.

Looking forward to it.

Elaine
Norman, OK


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## SimonWood (Nov 13, 2009)

My wife and I rescue a lot of animals.  Our breed of choice dachshunds though.  We just rescued a longhair from doggy deathrow.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Thanks everyone for all the great compliments and for buying my book!  Yes, I believe rescue is pretty much rescue no matter what the breed, although different groups may vary a bit in their protocols.  I do believe the small breed people have it easier because of greater demand for small dogs and more people who are suitable homes for them.

ElaineOK, I understand what you're saying about the Berenson and Conant series.  On her blog, Laurien Berenson says she's not writing any more of her series, and Conant seems to be burned out on hers herself as she's co-authoring the food-centered books with her daughter.  Her last couple of books certainly haven't been as good as the early ones.  I don't know how others feel, but IMO in these series it seems as if once the amateur sleuth settles her romantic interest and gets married or whatever, the series is pretty much over.

Yes, my plan was if this book was successful (and it is according to my lights), it would be a series.  I have the next one outlined.  It will be "Rottweiler Railroad," as in "Rottweiler Underground Railroad," a fictional take off on the Canine Underground Railroad.

Ellen


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## kcrady (Dec 17, 2009)

ellenoc said:


> Yes, my plan was if this book was successful (and it is according to my lights), it would be a series. I have the next one outlined. It will be "Rottweiler Railroad," as in "Rottweiler Underground Railroad," a fictional take off on the Canine Underground Railroad.


Looking forward to it! Robo is awesome!


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## LCEvans (Mar 29, 2009)

> I don't know how others feel, but IMO in these series it seems as if once the amateur sleuth settles her romantic interest and gets married or whatever, the series is pretty much over.


I agree. I'm currently working on the second book in my Leigh McRae horse mystery series and I almost had Leigh to the altar when she dug in her heels last week. I realized I'll have to let her stay single for a while if I want the series to last through a few more books.

I don't know that I could do Rottweiler or other large dog rescue. I currently have 4 Chihuahuas, which seems to be my limit. Almost everyone in my family has the little yappy critters. At one holiday last year, everyone came over with their "babies" and we had 13 Chihuahuas running around my family room. You don't dare sit down because as soon as you do, they pile in your lap.


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## dpinmd (Dec 30, 2009)

Just wanted to say that I am 57% into this book and am _really_ enjoying it!! I'm finding the story to be very interesting and suspenseful enough to keep me interested, but not so "edge of your seat" that I can't relax while reading, LOL! I also just generally think it's quite well-written, and seems to be well-edited as well, which has been an issue with the last several "indy" books I've tried. (Unlike some of the other recent ones I've tried, I don't keep wishing for a red pen to mark this one up!)

I definitely recommend this book, and Ellen, I thank you for writing it!


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

I'll support about anything that puts rescue in the forefront for folks.  I work with a multi-breed rescue now and worked with a Golden rescue for many years.  Have been involved in CUR runs among other things.  Currently have a 4-5 month old chow mix I found running down the middle of the road.  Hopefully after next weekend she will be one step closer to a home... she got a very promising family interested in her.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Thanks very much for the kind words.

dpinmd - as I said on another thread, I really researched and learned a lot about html in order to format my book as well as I wanted, so when people mention that they noticed and appreciated that element, it gives me a real boost!  Of course the fact that you like the story and the writing is the big thing and the one that makes me happiest.  Still, there's a thread on another forum that only professionally edited books can be well edited, and professionally edited books ought to have some kind of seal on them.  No one did anything with my book except me, and that thread has had me sticking my lower lip out.  So it's particularly nice to have someone compliment my editing right now too.


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## KimME (Jan 4, 2010)

I read this book last weekend and loved it, glad to see there will be more  

Kim


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

I purchased and read this book all in one day, after someone recommended it on another thread.  I really liked Robo, and hope there will be more in this series...soon!  (With the beginning blurb and chapter descriptions, of course.  )

N


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I don't know about "soon," but I do already have an outline and the first few chapters of the next one - Rottweiler Railroad.


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## dpinmd (Dec 30, 2009)

Finished, loved it, definitely looking forward to the next one!!!


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## dpinmd (Dec 30, 2009)

ellenoc said:


> Still, there's a thread on another forum that only professionally edited books can be well edited, and professionally edited books ought to have some kind of seal on them. No one did anything with my book except me, and that thread has had me sticking my lower lip out. So it's particularly nice to have someone compliment my editing right now too.


Interesting. After my recent experiences with some other Indie books, I would have said that I agreed that it's necessary to have professional editing -- or at least have editing by a trusted and detail-oriented "third party" who isn't as invested in the work as the author is. So I'm surprised to hear that you didn't have someone else do the editing. That really speaks highly of you as a writer, I think, that you were able to view your own work with a critical eye and remove/change things that didn't work. (I can't imagine that it sprang from your "pen" completely perfect with no editing needed!)


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I did take the whole thing through a critique group chapter by chapter, but my guess is that doesn't help everyone.  Several of the members of the group would just argue and get defensive over any suggestions and never took any of them.  You have to wonder why they bother to be in a group like that.  So critique groups only help if they have good members and if the particular author is open to suggestions and can separate the wheat from the chaff.  However, for me the biggest thing is to let things sit and do something else for a while.  Then when I look again things leap out that I couldn't see when I was "close."  For just plain proofreading, well, most of my working career was spent as a legal secretary.  Which is to say I'm a better than average proofreader of anything.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I know this is Kindle Boards and so discussion of the paperback version of a book is not exactly on target, but this is also the friendliest of the forums to indie authors, so I'm posting this tale about the paperback edition of my also-for-Kindle mystery here.

I've mentioned here and in other forums that Rottweiler Rescue is available in paperback and that the only reason for that was that the Rottweiler National Specialty Show was held right here in Colorado this past week.  So my plan was to order copies of the paperback and sell them in person at the show for the benefit of our local Rottweiler rescue group.  (The group is also getting 1/2 of the royalties from sales of the paperback on Amazon.) I also donated a copy for each of the adopters who brought their dogs to the rescue parade held at the show (13 of them as it turned out).  Each of them got a gift basket with the book and some other gifts included.

After some thought, the head of the rescue and I decided 50 copies to sell would be a realistic number, so I went off to the show with 2 boxes of books, which actually meant 60.  I can't say this venture was a total failure, since half the books sold and sold easily, and I must confess I didn't sit at the rescue booth working at selling books, but was busy with my own dog in carting and rally obedience and left the sales up to the people who were selling show catalogs right next door.  However, it wasn't a total success either since I now have a box of 30 books that I'll need to sell one by one in other ways, something I wouldn't purposely have set out to do.

In the meantime, I never expected the paperback to sell at all through Amazon.  After all it's $9.99 and by an unknown author, a different proposition than the Kindle version at $1.99.  However, the paperback has been selling at a slow but steady rate that averages almost a copy a day through Amazon.

So my lesson learned is that I'm not going to involve myself in this kind of venture again but am going to leave selling of all versions of my books to Amazon.  Call me lazy, but I'd really rather pay Amazon their cut than peddle books in person.


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

Great book - have recommended it to a lot of other kindlers here that are doggy folks.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Anju No. 469 said:


> Great book - have recommended it to a lot of other kindlers here that are doggy folks.


Thanks a bunch. If you know any horsey romantic folks, would you mention my western historical romance?


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## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

I love a good animal story


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## daringnovelist (Apr 3, 2010)

One thing you can do with those extra paper copies is have them on hand for if you ever do a signing or go to a conference. (Or give them as prizes in other situations.)

Congratulations on selling steadily on the paper versions, too. I may well work on formatting for one of mine this summer. There are a lot of people who see our marketing efforts who don't read ebooks yet.

In the meantime, I'm considering posting one of my mystery series to Kindle rather than holding it for traditional pub. I think I want a few more books in my pocket before I do that though. I've got such a backlog to write anyway....

Camille

http://www.camillelaguire.com/


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

daringnovelist said:


> I may well work on formatting for one of mine this summer. There are a lot of people who see our marketing efforts who don't read ebooks yet.


Well, I've got to tell you, putting out a pretty book for Kindle was a piece of cake compared to formatting a printed book for Create Space. Basically, you're trying to do typesetting with a word processor, and it's TEDIOUS! Of course there are software programs that make it easier, but investing in high-end software when I wasn't sure a copy of the book would ever sell didn't seem prudent. I must also admit getting the paperback version out of the mail for the first time was a bigger thrill than I expected.


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## sierra09 (Jun 20, 2009)

Now I'm just the opposite. I find formatting for Kindle to be the hardest thing ever but can format for Createspace with no problem...well almost no problem depending on if Word wants to do page numbers correctly that night.

Ellen, as for those extra books you now have to sell, have you thought of doing a giveaway of a couple of them? Maybe on a place like Goodreads? I'm not sure if you're on there or not but it's often a good site for exposure.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

Ellen, it actually doesn't surprise me that you're selling paper copies of your book on Amazon.  The book has lots of great reviews.  In my pre-Kindle days, I would have paid $10 for a book on a subject I was very interested in that had rave reviews, even one by an indie author and available for Kindle for $2.

N


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

I second what Sierra said about Goodreads. I did a giveaway for one of my books (The Assassin) which isn't even a real popular genre (Western) and I got about 500 requests for it. I'm actually in the middle of your book now, which is great, you'd probably get at least double the participants than what I got...which would help it with exposure even further.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Hmm.  Can one of you explain how Goodreads giveaways work?  If you have 500 requests and are giving away a few copies, let's say 5, don't you end up with 495 unhappy and disappointed people?

Rye - I'm glad you're enjoying Rottweiler Rescue.  Thanks for letting me know.  My second book is a western historical romance, and while it's a lot less fluffy than most romances, I think it's still too romancey for guys.  Even so, I put it in the Western category.  No Louis L'Amour purists have come after me guns ablazing yet, and it's good for my overrated self-esteem because the book has been consistently ranking pretty high in the Western category.  I know that's because it's a small category, but it makes me feel good anyway.  Popular genre or not, some of us will stay stubborn fans.  I have The Assassin on my Kindle - it's a TBR right now.


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

ellenoc said:


> Thanks a bunch. If you know any horsey romantic folks, would you mention my western historical romance?


musta msised that - oh we got lots of horsey folks here as well, but gotta get it myself before I recommend it.


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

Basically, you determine how many books you want to give away. Can be anywhere from 1 to any amount. If people are intrigued by your book they'll sign up to try and win a free copy. I don't think anybody is really unhappy about not winning...after all, it is free...but it's good publicity and gives your book some exposure. You would just have to pay for shipping on whoever wins it. You can specifiy whether the contest is open to only U.S. or worldwide. There's really no downside to it from my point of view. The people that don't win...is potential sales.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Woo hoo!  Today I got the notice from Amazon of the first payment for Kindle sales.  Rottweiler Rescue went online at the end of the first week in February, so the payment is very much in keeping of the 60-day promise.  I love Amazon.


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## Amyshojai (May 3, 2010)

ellenoc said:


> Woo hoo! Today I got the notice from Amazon of the first payment for Kindle sales. Rottweiler Rescue went online at the end of the first week in February, so the payment is very much in keeping of the 60-day promise. I love Amazon.


I'm new here, just browsing (will post about my nonfiction book in a minute) and was delighted to find other pet book authors here! Rotties are good people *s* and I'll look into reading your book. I've a WIP thriller with a dog viewpoint character, so it's encouraging to learn that others here enjoy the same "reads" that I do. Congrats on the payment!

Oh, and I can't figure out how to do the link to my book in the sig line. *sigh* Need to go look for help.

woofs & wags,
amy


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## Neil_Plakcy (Mar 28, 2010)

Congratulations on getting that first check! I'm about a month behind you, as my book came out in early March. So it's good to know that Amazon is keeping their promises!










Neil Plakcy
IN DOG WE TRUST: A Man, a Dog and a Murder
(a humorous mystery in which a golden retriever turns detective)
www.mahubooks.com


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## JennaAnderson (Dec 25, 2009)

I agree getting paid for Amazon is great fun. I also received a payment from Smashwords and Barnes and Noble - not a ton of money but it makes things feel official. ha ha

I bought Rottweiler Rescue a day or two ago. It's in the pile - can't wait to read it. 

Jenna


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## TeresaMcCullough (Jul 21, 2009)

I read the Rottweiler Rescue a while ago and really enjoyed it. Keep writing.


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## bluefrog (Apr 6, 2010)

I read this recently and liked it. I really like that the dogs seem like real dogs; you don't try to make them into furry people, or just use them as props. I'm glad to hear that you are working on another.


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## Schnauzermom (Apr 29, 2010)

Amyshojai said:


> I'm new here, just browsing (will post about my nonfiction book in a minute) and was delighted to find other pet book authors here! Rotties are good people *s* and I'll look into reading your book. I've a WIP thriller with a dog viewpoint character, so it's encouraging to learn that others here enjoy the same "reads" that I do. Congrats on the payment!
> 
> Oh, and I can't figure out how to do the link to my book in the sig line. *sigh* Need to go look for help.
> 
> ...


Schnauzers usually wanna eat cats, so I'm not a cat person, but I saw a cat owner waiting for our vet the other day with a copy of the book in your sig, and a bunch of sticky notes inserted!!


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I'm not sure if announcing a new blog here is the best way to go, but it's been a while since I posted to this thread, so I'm going to go ahead and mention it here. Today I started a blog called The Pure Indie. It's not meant to be about my own books and writing so much as about the experience of being an indie author who has no previous publishing background at all. For those always wondering how others are doing with their venture, I plan to post my own sales figures after I get some background info up.

http://thepureindie.wordpress.com/

On the subject of Rottweiler Rescue particularly, the last post in this thread was also before the list of "50 Best Rate Indie Authors in the Kindle Store" was published at:
http://ireaderreview.com/2010/05/08/50-best-rated-indie-authors-in-the-kindle-store/
Rottweiler Rescue earned the #34 spot on the list!


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## madrye (Jan 8, 2009)

Ellen,
I just thought I'd let you know I posted a link to your book on labradorsonline.com So I'm sure you can tell it's a dog site but about labs instead of rottis I thought your book was great and the amount of things I learned in it was pretty cool as well. You had me smiling and laughing out loud. Great job!


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## keithdbz (May 19, 2010)

This looks right up my wife's alley. You said it's available in print, but I don't see it on Amazon. Is it coming? Oh, and congrats.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Hi Keith,

Yes, it's available in paperback, but because of a newbie mistake, the "official" titles are different and so Amazon hasn't linked the Kindle and paperback versions. I'm reluctant to do what it would take to fix the mistake, so I've left it. Anyway, the paperback is here:

http://www.amazon.com/Rottweiler-Rescue-Dianne-Brennan-mystery/dp/1450546102/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1274573836&sr=8-5

If because it's so long that link doesn't work properly, you can just search my name in the Books category. For reasons unknown to me, several things that look unrelated to me come up ahead of my book, but it does come up in the resulting list.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I finally got in gear and contacted both Create Space and Amazon DTP about getting the Kindle version of Rottweiler Rescue linked to the paperback version. Someone ought to smack me upside the head for not doing this sooner because Amazon got the link between the 2 done without much fuss at all. So now if you search either you see the box that shows both editions. It looks so official. It took an extra day for the reviews to all show for both versions. Now instead of 33 reviews for the Kindle edition and the paperback sitting there looking unloved with 4, you see 37 for whichever version you go to. Yes!

P.S. If you're wondering why they didn't get automatically linked the way most books do, it's because I made a newbie mistake when I set them up and put different wording in the part of the title after the colon. Supposedly Create Space is still going to change its subtitle so they match there as well.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

On my website I have signed paperback copies of Rottweiler Rescue for sale directly from me (PayPal). Was not sure I'd ever see a sale that way, but what the heck, right? I did make an investment in some book boxes, but told myself they would also be necessary for sending gifts, review copies, etc. So today, I got my first order for a signed copy! It worked! And for those of you who do POD paperbacks of your books, you know that you get a lot more royalty to keep from a direct sale than from an Amazon sale. This indie stuff is so cool.


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## tlrowley (Oct 29, 2008)

kcrady said:


> Already bought it, read it, loved it and now I'm waiting for a sequel! This IS going to be a series, right?


I'd like to second this post - it WAS the start of a series, wasn't it?

Loved it! And it was very well formatted. That was noticeable because a lot of Kindle books aren't formatted particularly well.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Yes, Rottweiler Rescue is the start of a series. And thank you very much for noticing the formatting. I spent a lot of time figuring out how to achieve what I wanted in formatting and was very pleased with my end results. The only thing I couldn't manage was the coding that would make a K2 user able to jump from chapter to chapter easily. Since I don't have a K2 to test that on, I decided not to even try.

I'm posting to this thread today because I had previously tried to put notice everywhere I could that I was raising the price for the Kindle edition from $1.99 to $2.99 at the beginning of this month. Now I'm going back to say, no, I'm not. It turns out I'm in Smashwords Purgatory. Because I gave them distribution rights to send Rottweiler Rescue to the places they distribute to, and because B&N put RR up for $1.99, I can't change my Amazon price until I can get B&N to change the price (or in my case take the book down since I revoked the distribution agreement with SW). Evidently it's going to take B&N months to do something so simple, and I'm stuck.

I won't bore anyone reading this with how really, really p.o.'d I am. Suffice it to say I won't be distributing anything through SW again. I'm going to leave both my books up for sale on SW itself so that they are available in EPUB and others formats but that's all.


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## donna callea (Dec 25, 2009)

Hi, Ellen.

Just wanted you to see my blinking avatar.  Thanks for telling me how to do one.  I couldn't do it myself.  There's very little I can do myself.  But I got someone in my family to do it.  Mine's blinking faster than yours.  It's probably going to annoy people.  But I'm so excited to have it, I had to share.

Anyway, sorry for your smashwords/B&N dilemma.  Have you tried contacting B&N directly again?  It worked for me.

Hope you sell lots of books.

Donna


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

donna callea said:


> Mine's blinking faster than yours.


Don't know if you want to bug the person who set yours up or not - there's a way to specify the time delay for the blinking and so I kicked mine up a bit. I think it's actually set for 4 seconds, but as you can see it's not anything like 4 seconds between blinks in practice.

Thanks for the info about B&N. I'll get on it.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Rottweiler Rescue has passed some milestones recently and it occurs to me that while at the beginning of this indie venture I was posting about every one the minute it happened, I've neglected to mention these anywhere.

First, more than a month ago it passed the 1,000 Kindle copies sold mark. Since it is available in paperback and on Smashwords, it had passed the 1,000 copies sold mark earlier, and I remarked on that here and there, but just paperback sales for this book are more than 10% of the total, so Kindle only are a different thing.

Second, this past week the 40th review was posted on Amazon. Thirty 5-star and ten 4-star. Maybe others think it should have 1, 2, and 3 star reviews to "legitimize" it, but needless to say I don't. Why the numbers ending in 0 seem like such big deal I don't know, but somehow 40 seems so - solid.

Oh, and one more - The Rottweiler Magazine, which is a national breed magazine, published a very nice squib on the book which included an image of the cover and all the info I sent them. My guess is this would have little effect on Kindle sales, but paperback sales have been about double last month's for the beginning of July. I had asked if they'd review it and who knows that might happen in the future. They were going to press when they got my request and published what they did in that very edition.


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## MikeD (Nov 5, 2008)

Congratulations on your milestones, Ellen.


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## wc (Jun 2, 2010)

Just came across this thread. Will give it a look as my son loves any book that features a dog.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

wc said:


> Just came across this thread. Will give it a look as my son loves any book that features a dog.


Hi WC - Thanks for considering Rott Rescue. Whether it would be suitable for your son depends on his age. There's no sex or graphic violence, but references to both that occur off stage so to speak.


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## kcmay (Jul 14, 2010)

Oh my gosh! I founded a rottweiler rescue organization and ran it for four years! I MUST read this novel!

OMW to Amazon now...


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

kcmay - I did Rottweiler rescue myself for over ten years and still help Rottie Aid, a Colorado rescue group, with transports when I can. My guess is I'll be fostering again sometime in the next year or so (had too many dogs of my own until this year when the Grim Reaper really came calling). Readers who have been involved with rescue, not just of Rotties but of several breeds, have told me they really identified with the story and main characters, so I hope you feel that way too.


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## Cammie (Nov 15, 2008)

Very good book....you have a nice writing style.  You've moved from my "I'm not Willing to Spend too Much Money on an Unknown Author" list to my "I would definitely pay above $2.99 for Books by this Author" list.  Thank you for sharing your work with us.  I wish you much future success.  I have already recommeded your book to several of my friends.


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## kcmay (Jul 14, 2010)

Just finished this book. Great story, very well written. Thanks for posting the announcement -- I enjoyed it very much!


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I've been a little slow to update this thread - in July Rottweiler Rescue received a nice review from The Cajun Book Lady, which is posted here:

http://www.thecajunbooklady.com/search/label/mystery

and another from The Rottweiler Chronicle, a online breed magazine. Between the two July was a good month, with double the usual number of paperbacks sold and of course continuing ebook sales.

For anyone who might enjoy a mystery set in the world of dog rescue, the book is available on Amazon for Kindle and as a paperback and on Smashwords in formats for other ereaders. It now has 42 great reviews, 32 five-star and 10 four-star.


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## Amyshojai (May 3, 2010)

Hey Ellen,

I hope you're going to enter this book in the Dog Writers contest -- http://www.DWAA.org Sounds like a winner to me! *s* And if you aren't already a member, you might consider joining (I'd be pleased to be a sponsor).

woofs & wags,
amy


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Hi Amy - Thanks for the suggestion. I had actually looked into joining DWAA once before and was put off by the high cost and the necessity for sponsors. I'll think about that some more. However, I notice their contest doesn't require membership, so I think I will do that, although it means shipping them quite a few books, which makes that entry a lot more expensive than just the contest entry fee. Yes, I'm cheap, but I really need the money my books are bringing in now and can't act like the government with it.

Thanks also for the offer to sponsor.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Yesterday to my surprise I found my $2.99 books selling for $2.39, a 20% discount. Upon investigation I found that Amazon is matching the discounted price of Kobo Books, and since Kobo shouldn't be selling them at all, I cannot predict how long it will be before I can get Kobo to take the books down so that Amazon will undiscount. So for any bargain hunters out there who might be interested in an amateur female sleuth mystery set in the world of dog rescue, now would be a good time to take a look at this book.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Good deal, and I liked the storyline.  Picked up a copy for the TBR pile...

Betsy


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

Finished this one today and enjoyed it.  As I said previously I am always happy to see rescue be brought to light.


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## Anne Victory (Jul 29, 2010)

Sample requested


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## thatlaurie (Sep 21, 2010)

I have not yet read RR, but I absolutely love your other novel, _Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold_. A true gem. And I cannot wait for November -- I will be looking for the promised new novel, Sing My Name.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Since my romance has been the "hot" one of my two books lately, I've been rather neglecting _Rottweiler Rescue_, my first beloved child, so to speak. So today I'm going to post to RR's threads. For anyone who enjoys dog mysteries such as those by Susan Conant and Laurien Berenson, RR would be worth sampling. It's a mystery set in the world of dog rescue and features a gutsy female amateur sleuth, Dianne Brennan.

My plan is to have a Rottweiler mystery series, of course. My second romance, _Sing My Name_, should be finished and published before the end of the year, and then I am going to turn my full attention to completing _Rottweiler Railroad_, the second Rottweiler mystery, which is already outlined and has 3 chapters completed.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

I'm really looking forward to the next book!

N


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Rottweiler Rescue got its 50th review today, and it's a truly beautiful one. The reviewer is also involved in rescue and saw the book very much as I did myself in writing it. She (I'm assuming a she but don't know for sure) even mentioned the poem I got permission to use in the book called, "Baggage." It never fails to move me also, and just because we're at that emotional time of year and because the review reminded me, I'm setting it out here for those who might feel the same.

Baggage

Now that I’m home, bathed, settled and fed,
All nicely tucked in my warm new bed,
I’d like to open my baggage lest I forget
There is so much to carry—so much to regret.

Hmm . . . Yes there it is, right on the top.
Let’s unpack Loneliness, Heartache and Loss;
And there by my leash hides Fear and Shame.
As I look on these things I tried so hard to leave—
I still have to unpack my baggage called Pain.

I loved them, the others, the ones who left me,
But I wasn’t good enough—for they didn’t want me.
Will you add to my baggage?
Will you help me unpack?

Or will you just look at my things—
And take me right back?

Do you have the time to help me unpack?
To put away my baggage, to never repack?
I pray that you do—I’m so tired you see,
But I do come with baggage—

Will you still want me?

by Evelyn Colbath, now
Phoebe Lane Scott, ©1995


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## MikeD (Nov 5, 2008)

What a wonderful poem.

A story, if you don't mind, Ellen -

Back in 1995 we rescued a female Rottie who had come from an abusive home. She had been beaten and been left without food or water. Poor little girl was only a year old and had suffered the entire first year of her life.

It took us another year to fully gain her trust. At first, she would shy away from the hand and urinate when you got near, but little by little she came to realize that her life was now different.

We found that she had one of the sweetest dispositions of any dog, of any breed that I had ever dealt with (I trained dogs for almost 40 years). After another year of work we certified her as a Therapy Dog. We've had therapy dogs before and since, but none had the touch that this little girl had. Gentle to a fault, her visits to nursing homes and children's hospitals were always highly anticipated.

The work of a therapy dog is hard. They are almost always exhausted when their day is done so a time came when she had to retire from the work. But every Saturday morning through her last years, she would go to the cabinet in the entrance foyer where we kept her service dog "uniform" and wait with her characteristic doggy grin. We would tell her, "Not today, baby" and sadly, the grin would fade and she would pout awhile.

She did get to visit on special occasions when we knew that her work and stress would not be too long and she thoroughly enjoyed that. But it didn't replace her Saturday morning routine.

Sadly, at the ripe old age of 13, my little girl passed away. She was wrought with inoperable tumors and, with the kind hand of the best vet on the planet Earth, she quietly passed away with her head on my lap.

I can't imagine those 12 years without her in our lives and often think about all the lives she touched. There are so, so many stories that I could tell. Of the little old lady who had not spoken for 6 months. Of my own Dad on his death bed. So many. The rewards of a rescue can be enormous and she gave much more than she received.

Her name? Angel. And she was.

Edit:
My apologies for the threadjack. We are coming  up on the anniversary of her passing and she has been very much on my mind today. Ellen's wonderful poem gave my heartstrings a nice hard tug and this post was the result...


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

MikeD - Thank you for the story of such a special rescue Rottie. Some of the dogs that came through rescue were pretty understandable - mostly the half-wild adolescent boys. But some of the dogs would have me standing, staring at them and thinking - how could anyone not love and keep this dog all its life? I'm glad Angel found your family to keep and cherish her. Thirteen is an enviable age for a Rottie.


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## JavaGoddess (Nov 23, 2010)

I am new here and just stumbled on this thread. I am proudly owned by two Rottweilers and have always considered this my "soul" breed. There will always be at least one at my side until the day I die. I just downloaded this and can't wait to read it!


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## JennaAnderson (Dec 25, 2009)

JavaGoddess said:


> I am new here and just stumbled on this thread. I am proudly owned by two Rottweilers and have always considered this my "soul" breed. There will always be at least one at my side until the day I die. I just downloaded this and can't wait to read it!


Wonderful book. Ellen - please release book II. Soon!


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I didn't think to mention here the day it happened - Red Adept posted first annual "best of" awards on her review blog. Rottweiler Rescue was her #1 Runner Up in the mystery category.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

February 7 was _Rottweiler Rescue's_ first birthday, and I meant to post that day, but obviously forgot. My plan was when I first pub'd _RR_ to have the second in the series out in a year, and obviously I'm behind schedule, but I'm working on the second in the mystery series, _Rottweiler Railroad_ now and will have it out in the first half of 2011.

The success of _RR_ showed me that pursuing a writing career via indie publishing had become a viable choice, thanks to Amazon. Getting it out there, having it find readers, get reviews and make me cyber friends was a life-changing experience.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

I'm really looking forward to the sequel!

N


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Today, I had an urge to look up one of my favorite authors. It's been so long since the last book in her mystery series that my belief was she had ended it, but what the heck, I checked, and there's a new book in the series! Only paperback, no Kindle, and the listing looks very new, so I'll wait and see. The author is Susan Conant and her cozy mystery series features amateur sleuth Holly Winter and her malamutes. This has long been my favorite dog mystery series, and while my own _Rottweiler Rescue_ is different in tone and approach, one of the reasons for writing a dog mystery was the hours of pleasure I have had from reading dog mysteries, not only from Ms. Conant but also from Laurien Berenson (poodles) and other authors.

And on the listing for the new Susan Conant mystery, _Rottweiler Rescue_ is shown as first among the "Customers Who Bought This Also Bought" and is offered in one of Amazon's buy these two books together deals with the new Conant book! Seeing my book linked with an author I've long admired made me feel very good.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I got an email this morning saying that Rottweiler Rescue is going to be featured on Daily Cheap Reads - http://dailycheapreads.com/ - tomorrow and will be on the site at noon Central Time. The note said it will be the "top post" for two hours but I don't know if that means right at noon.

Anyway, I'm excited. I know that's a site many readers follow.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Today is the two-year anniversary of the start of my indie publishing career, and it all started with the upload of _Rottweiler Rescue_, a finished novel that had won the mystery division of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers annual contest and attracted interest of agents and editors but had also made me realize I didn't want to pursue traditional publishing.

I did that upload without the trepidation that affects a lot of indies but without much expectation either. Selling a few copies would be better than letting the book rot on my computer hard drive.

As it turned out that was a decision that changed my whole life for the better. I'm now working on a sequel to _Rottweiler Rescue_, admittedly belatedly as I got distracted by my romance novels. But I am determined to get that sequel, _Rottweiler Railroad_, out soon and not to be diverted again.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

Looking forward to it!

N


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