My new book for Special Educational Needs

In October 2011, I published a book aimed at helping parents with SEN statementing. It's available on AmazonUK & WH Smith among others as a paperback and an ebook. Here's the press release:
A mother of two autistic boys from Farnham, Surrey has published a new book aimed at helping other parents navigate their way through the special educational needs jungle.
While there are other books about the SEN system available, this book, by the creator of the www.specialneedsjungle.com website, Tania Tirraoro, takes a parent-to-parent approach, explaining in detail how to prepare an application for a statutory assessment of special educational needs.
Tania said, "Since I started my website in 2008, it's become clear how daunting parents find the SEN process. Many parents of children with ASDs or dyslexia are affected by the conditions themselves and need help with organising and getting started on their applications. I've helped many parents with their applications and I realised that what they need is not an overview of the whole system that you find in other books, but a basic 'how-to', written in an accessible way. That is what I hope I've achieved."
The book has a foreword by SEN campaigner and former parliamentary candidate Maria Hutchings, who famously hand-bagged Tony Blair during the 2005 election over the closure of special schools. It also contains a section on what to expect if you end up at an SEN Tribunal by experienced SEN Advocate, Julie Maynard.
Maria Hutchings said, "I only wish that I when I was going through the statementing process striving to get John Paul the right education, speech therapy and respite for the family, that I had read this book. Being the mother of two children on the autistic spectrum, Tania has a deep sense of empathy for what it feels like when you have to fight for everything to ensure your child’s future. Tania captures that deep sense we all have as mothers and carers, to do the very best for our precious children."
The book takes parents through the process from a very personal viewpoint with examples from successful applications and relevant quotes from the SEN Code of Practice and Education law.
Tania said, "I've been through the process twice and my boys, who both have Asperger Syndrome, now have access to the kind of education they need to help level the playing field in their future lives. ASD is a lifelong condition and they will always battle the difficulties of their Asperger's, but because I had the ability to present their cases methodically, they got the help they need. Why should other children not have the same as my boys?"

About the Author:

Tania Tirraoro is an author and journalist and has already published two women's fiction novels, This Last Summer and Sweet Seduction, one as an ebook, the other available as ebook and in paperback. She is a former television and radio journalist, having worked as a reporter and news presenter for Meridian Television and NBC/CNBC, and BBC Radio Berkshire among others. She also works as a press consultant for three heart rhythm charities.You can find the SEN site at www.specialneedsjungle.com.

Tania's author site is at www.taniatirraoro.com

She also has a blog at http://notasadvertised.blogspot.com

Linkedin: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/taniashieldstirraoro

Twitter: @TaniaLT  @SpcialNdsJungle
Tania Tirraoro can be contacted at info@specialneedsjungle.com

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Trying out "The key to the fountain of youth"

Call me gullible but I received a marketing email the other day from Biovea, from whom I usually buy my Melantonin.
It was pushing a supplement called Hyaluronic Acid, not be be confused with Hydrochloric Acid, which is something very different...
Anyway, this Hyaluronic Acid is apparently also known as the 'Key to the fountain of youth'. Hmm, I thought, I could use a bit of that.
I read the blurb. Apparently in a Japanese village where people usually live a long time and often have perfect skin into their 80's or even into their 90's their diet is rich in a starchy vegetable which is particularly high in HA. A pharmaceutical company in Japan began R&D on a pill supplement containing HA. When they tested the pills on one thousand individuals, around half of them reported smoother skin and even improved eyesight.
Okey dokey, I thought, tell me more....Hyaluronic Acid is plentiful in our bodies when we are born, but its levels gradually recede over time, which may be a big part of the ageing process. Hyaluronic Acid occurs in the deeper layers of our skin known as the dermis and it appears to help keep the skin smooth because of its water retention qualities. It's claimed that HA appears to help maintain collagen levels.
Furthermore, the blurb went on, HA makes up about eighty percent of the human eye and is, apparently, a sort of shock absorber to the retina, which helps to prevent trauma to the eye.
That clinched it for me as I have a rare retinal disease called Punctate Inner Choroidopathy which leads to scarring on the retina and some loss of vision. Great skin and better eyesight? AND it's on sale?
But before I hit the order button, I looked it up on the internet. It's approved by the FDA and is used in other forms injected into arthritic joints and as a dermal filler. I couldn't find anything particularly bad about it, so I decided to give it a try.
Well, mine arrived this week and I have been taking it religiously. I shall update you on whether I am appearing so youthful that people are mistaking me for my sons' older sister.
If your interest is piqued, I got mine from here.
PS, I have no connection with Biovea, other than as a long-time customer.

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The World According to Leo the Labradoodle

Hello, I am Leo the Labradoodle, doing a guest post. This is the world.. according to me.
1. The human who decided kibble was the most complete nourishment for a dog, is evil. And don't think that disguising it with a meaty topper makes it any better. Cat poo tastes better. I know, I've tried it.

2. On the subject of cats, they are the spawn of the devil. No ifs or buts, the spawn of the devil, I tell you!
3. On the subject of poo, fox poopy smells better than Chanel No5, especially when I've rolled in it. I don't know why they always bath me as soon as we get home. Spoilsports!
4. The human boys in this house are very unpredictable. They insist on picking me up and hauling me around. When I hear them coming, I pretend to be asleep. Sometimes this doesn't work.
5. Wet tissue that I find on the ground is a real delicacy. I have to wolf it down quick before they wrestle if off me.
6. The only time I'm allowed upstairs is when I have to have a bath. I forget this EVERY TIME, until I'm on the landing and it's too late to escape.
7. Good things come in crunchy packets. Chocolate biscuits must be tasty too but I'm never allowed one.
8. Begging works.
9. I'm not sleeping, I'm thinking about how to get them to give me a chocolate biscuit.
10. Some other boy dogs have round things between their back legs. I'd like to know what happened to mine. Wait...you did WHAT?!!

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Communication and Kindness are the Key to Lasting Relationships

A woman I once knew was married three times, and each time she made the same mistakes. She didn't communicate, she kept secrets, she was intolerant to foibles and thus she became dissatisfied.
Now partly, she had rushed into things and probably married the wrong men, but her problem was also that her expectations were too high and when she felt they weren't being lived up to she didn't communicate her unhappiness, she just pulled away. She always thought the grass was greener, when in fact, it was just different. She was in love with the idea of being in a relationship, of being cherished and nurtured and loved and when the man of the moment didn't measure up, she became disillusioned and gradually began to look for her ideal elsewhere. She never found it.
I have learned lessons from this lady. When my husband and I married we decided that there would be no 'no go' areas for discussion, because one 'no go' area becomes two and then three and before you know it you can't talk about anything for risk of umbrage being taken.
Just as importantly, we are kind to each other, forgiving each other's weaknesses, supportive and understanding when one of us is down. I have to say that in the course of our marriage it's my husband who has had to exercise most of the 'patience and understanding' that we pledged on our wedding day. We are two individuals but we operate, especially where our boys are concerned, as one unit, pulling together and backing each other up.
He is my best friend, the handsomest man I know and he can still make me laugh with his dumb jokes. I often think of the Carly Simon song, The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of  "What if the Prince on the horse in your fairytale Is right here in disguise? And what if the stars you've been reaching so high for Are shining in his eyes?"
Now, not every marriage is built to last. People make mistakes, sometimes unforgivable ones. Sometimes the person you marry truly turns out to be someone completely different from the one you thought you'd married, and not in a good way.
At the heart of every lasting, happy relationship there has to be love and mutual respect. And if you keep talking, keep being kind, keep looking at each other with love and not mistrust, you're half way there.
I have a lot to thank that lady for. I have learned from her bad luck which, she would be the first to admit, was often of her own making. That woman was my mother and I know it brought her great happiness to know that, through her mistakes, I had learned a better way.

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My article in Hampshire Llife Magazine

I've had an article published in the July issue of Hampshire Life magazine about Hampshire Farmers' Markets and some of its producers who bring local food to various locations throughout the county. If you'd like to read it online, you can find it here: http://hampshire.greatbritishlife.co.uk/article/hampshires-farmers-market-33217/

You can also download the whole edition digitally - my article and byline is on page 83.

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Lovely 5 star review for Sweet Seduction

Had a lovely five star review from Jazzielady on Amazon.com. Thank you, I really appreciate it and it means a lot!
Here it is:
I have read quite a lot of romance books and I have to say this is by far one of my favorites. It's not the usual cheesy romance for which you already know the gist of the story by reading chapter 1. Tania is a very good author. I love the pace of the book - not too sexual from the get go and I love the characters. Livia is sweet, sensitive and not a pushover while Rufus is unlike the usual hero - not too overbearing or downright jerk. This is the first time that I've written a review about a book and this is a big deal coming from me :-) I will be buying her other book later. I hope Tania will write more romance books, she is my new favorite author :)
See the review here on Amazon

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Great Review from Good Book Alert

I had this wonderful review from Good Book Alert that  I had to share with you. Heartfelt thanks to Cindy!

Maddie Chambers reports shocking news about other people – until the emotional disturbances she normally broadcast make her a front-page story. Maddie’s mum is alive and well living in town – problem is Maddie’s mum walked out on her family ten years earlier. Maddie’s brother has Asperger Syndrome, and she fears his reaction to dear mum might devastate him. Her father’s heart has never mended, and Maddie’s heart has long since turned to stone.

On top of this explosive drama Maddie becomes involved with another journalist, one with dark unruly hair and a naughty boy air. An office affair may be just what she needs, except this naughty bloke has more than his share of problems. Maddie needs one more thing to send her over the edge – so, her dear mum gets diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

Review:

This is an emotionally packed drama that will have you turning pages faster than you can blink. Immediately, I bought into the character of Maddie, a woman with unshaken courage to move forward despite being abandoned by her mum. She is focused, and self-sacrificing. Maddie’s emotions and choices she makes in this book are completely in character, and inline with how most people might react to her situation.

However, Mum is not heroic, or easily forgiven. I often saw Maddie’s problem with her. Her father, brother, and Grandmother’s behavior doesn’t help Maddie, and her office romance becomes more complex. Maddie is her biggest antagonist, and the author, Tirraoro really pours out the inner turmoil. There are extreme moments of inner dialogue that pulled at my heartstrings. From the beginning, this story has a bittersweet solution that provokes tears and laughter.

The story telling web was woven with a careful balanced sequence that kept me on track. I never had to question my place in the book. Tirraoro did that for me. My only draw back in the book was the plausibility of the Mum’s actions. I had trouble understanding how someone could continue to make the choices she did after abandoning her family. On the flip side, the main protagonist, Maddie made up for her mum in so many other ways.

Tirraoro puts her years as a TV reporter and her experiences as the parent of sons with Asperger Syndrome into the heart of this novel. If you are looking for a tearjerker, with romance, this is your book, and it won’t disappoint.

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The Ebook Survey RESULTS!

The results of the recent ebook reader survey are in! Some are quite surprising. When asked what the most important factor was when looking for ebooks, the strength of the blurb was top. Ebook authors take note - no matter how good your book, 31% of people say if your blurb isn't up to scratch, you're likely to miss a sale! Just as important it seems and not far behind is good reviews. 29% of respondents said a review was a key indicator in their ebook buying process. Readers pay attention to reviews, especially if by an unfamiliar author, it seems. Price and genre are not too far behind.
Conversely, what actively puts people off buying an ebook? Price here is key again followed hard on the heels by poor reviews. Not far behind is a blurb that doesn't grab the attention.
So at what price should you pitch your ebook? A third said it needed to be under £1 or $1.50 with another third saying they would pay up to £3 or $3.50 for an ebook by an unfamiliar author. 15% said it just needed to be under £5/$6 while 12% said price wasn't a leading decision maker for them.
When it comes to genre, crime and thrillers were way ahead in this category, followed by Sci-Fi/Fantasy. There was a reasonably even spread of people who cited women's fiction/romance, literary fiction, action/adventure and paranormal with other genres less popular. This surprises me as I read that romance was the biggest selling genre but maybe that is due to the profile of the survey respondents. Respondents could pick more than one genre but it is still a good indication of what people are prepared to read.
Is a price of 99c/70p off putting? A third say they would buy at this price as it seems like a bargain but more people - 40% say they would use the same critieria whatever the price. More than a quarter of people would download a sample first - so those opening chapters are crucial!
So, what does this all tell us? Firstly that reviews are key and price is just as important. And while crime and thrillers seem to stand a greater chance of big sales, genre isn't everything - individual blurb is more important.-So make your book blurb sparkle to stand a chance of that all-important sale!

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Asparagus, haddock and smokey bacon fishcakes with herby mayonnaise

It's Asparagus season and this recipe from British Asparagus is sure to tickle the tastebuds. Enjoy it as a Bank holiday lunch or supper and then kick back and relax while reading This Last Summer or Sweet Seduction. Read sample chapters here

Serves 2 adults and 2 children

You’ll need:

1 bunch British asparagus
25g butter
2 rashers streaky smoked bacon, diced
500g mashed potato
500g cooked haddock, flaked
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp chopped chives
Sea salt & black pepper
Pinch nutmeg
Flour and 2 beaten eggs
200g fresh breadcrumbs
Vegetable oil

Herby mayonnaise
4 tbsp mayonnaise
4 tbsp chopped fresh herbs e.g. parsley, chives, basil, tarragon
Juice of ½ lemon
Sea salt and black pepper

What to do:

1. Clean the asparagus and trim any white ends or peel with a vegetable peeler. Cut the tip off each spear and reserve. Chop the rest of the spear into small pieces.

2. Melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the asparagus and bacon for 2 minutes, allow to cool slightly and remove with a slotted spoon. Add to the mashed potato and haddock. Add the egg yolks, mayonnaise, parsley, chives, seasoning and nutmeg and combine together.

3. Divide the mixture into 6, shaping it into patties with your hands. Dust each cake with flour, dip in beaten egg and roll in breadcrumbs, re-shaping if necessary. Refrigerate for 1 hour, 2 if possible.

4. Mix the mayonnaise ingredients and set aside.

5. Pour ½ inch of vegetable oil into a heavy based frying pan and place over a moderately high heat. When the oil is hot, add the fishcakes and cook for 4 minutes each side until golden brown, basting with oil to brown the sides.

6. Remove the fishcakes from the pan and place on a warm plate. Add the asparagus tips to the hot pan and fry for 1 minute.

7. Serve the fishcakes with the pan fried asparagus, a little wilted spinach and the herby mayonnaise.

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Sample Sunday Cookoff - Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Pate

This is a recipe for a dip that our friends Sharon and Andrew served up as a starter at dinner a couple of weeks ago. It was so fab even my husband, who hates fish, liked it so much he made it himself the next day.

Have some of this with some tortilla chips while you lounge around and read This Last Summer or Sweet Seduction on your kindle- scroll down for the links in US and UK.

Ingredients:
-One pack (120-200g) of smoked salmon. (If in the UK buy Sainsbury's Basics Smoked Salmon Trimmings - it's going in the food processor so it doesn't need to be pretty, just tasty.)
-1 medium tub of cream cheese with chives - you can use low fat version
-Juice of half a lemon
-Salt and black pepper to taste

The method is easy peasy - bung it all in the food processor and whizz around. I prefer it not too smooth but with chunks of salmon still visible so don't get overexcited with the blender.

Serve  on blinis or in a dish with chunks of bread or tortilla chips or bread sticks. I'm feeling hungry just typing this it's so good.
Read Excerpts of This Last Summer and Sweet Seduction at http://www.tirraoro.com/preview.html
Buy This Last Summer ($2.99/£1.71) and Sweet Seduction (99c/70p):
or buy this book in other formats from  Smashwords

Or buy in other formats from Smashwords

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Ebook Reader Survey

Thanks for visiting - the survey is now closed while the data received is analysed. Check back for an update of the results in a couple of days!

Update: See the results here: http://notasadvertised.blogspot.com/2011/05/ebook-survey-results.html

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Another supper recipe for a spring evening

When I'm not writing, I work in PR and at Hampshire Farmers' Market we've been working with local environmental group, Greening Petersfield on developing great recipes made with farmers' market produce. This month's recipe is another spring/summer supper special is Goat's Cheese and Swiss Chard Tart. Visit the site for lots more recipes, market dates and great offers as well as for a PDF download of this recipe.
Goat's Cheese and Swiss Chard Tart 
Shortcrust pastry
150 gm plain flour
75gm butter
Filling
350 gm shallots
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp cooking oil
500 gm swiss chard
1 roll soft goats cheese (can use your favourite) from Nutknowle
Salt and Pepper
Method:
1. Light oven gas Mk 4,180 C
2. Make pastry. Rub together flour and fat until resemble breadcrumbs. Add a little water and gathe into a ball.
Roll out thinly (1/2 cm) on floured sur-face. Line a 10 inch flan tin. Put aside.
3. Chop shallots & garlic,. Pull chard leaves from stalks, chop stalks into 1cm lengths.
4. Fry onions until they go golden.
Add shallots, chard stalks & garlic. finish frying on gentle heat. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove from heat and allow to cool.
5. Add chard leaves and place in pastry case. Cut the goat’s cheese into chunks and place these on top of the vegetables, pushing them in slightly.
6. Cook for 30mins until golden
 Visit the HFM recipe page for a full colour pdf download with photo of this recipe.
Read Excerpts of This Last Summer and Sweet Seduction at http://www.tirraoro.com/preview.html

or buy this book in other formats from  Smashwords

Or buy in other formats from Smashwords

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Romantic Recipe for a spring evening...

We're coming up to Asparagus and Watercress season in the next couple of months so, while you're peckish after reading This Last Summer or Sweet Seduction, why not gather together some yummy ingredients and cook up a storm? It's the perfect dish for a romantic summer evening.
See links for my books below. The recipe is courtesy of Hampshire Farmers' Markets, the home of great local food and the holder of the UK Urban Farmers' Market of the Year award. Check out the link for more great recipes and, if you're in the area, market dates.
Asparagus, Watercress and Pan Roasted Cherry Tomato Risotto

Serves 4 -

Ingredients:

4 tbsp olive oil or Pratt’s Rapeseed oil

4 shallots finely chopped

2 garlic cloves sliced

2 bundles of asparagus trimmed and cut into 3cm lengths

100g red and yellow cherry tomatoes cut in half

200g  risotto rice

1 small glass of white wine

1 ltr hot chicken or vegetable stock,

2 bunches of watercress roughly chopped

50g lightly salted butter, cut into cubes

50g grated Parmesan

Salt and cracked black pepper

Method:

1. In a large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil and then add the shallots and garlic. Sweat for 10 minutes until the shallots and garlic turn translucent without any colour.
2. While the shallots and garlic are cooking, heat a medium sized frying pan, add the rest of the oil. When the oil stars to smoke add the asparagus and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper, cook for a 30 seconds or until the tomatoes start to wilt slightly, then remove from the heat and set aside.
3. By now the onions should be ready, stir in the rice and keep cooking and stirring until the rice has also turned translucent, then add the wine and simmer until it has reduced by half.
4. Now start to add the hot stock, stirring the rice every now and then. Keep adding the stock a little at a time until the rice is cooked with a slight bite to it. About 20 minutes.
5. When the rice is cooked, stir in the watercress, asparagus and tomatoes. Remove from the heat and add the butter and half of the Parmesan, season with salt and pepper.

Buy This Last Summer
or buy this book in other formats from  Smashwords

Or buy in other formats from Smashwords

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New Video for Sweet Seduction

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New cover for Sweet Seduction

I was't happy with my cover for Sweet Seduction, my new romance.. so I looked out a better image and I've radically redesigned it. I much prefer this one and the characters look like I imaged them to. The scene is also reminiscent of the pivotal scene in the book.
You can buy it at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk & Smashwords

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My Veg Box Experiment

At the beginning of the year I started ordering a weekly organic veg box. Just a medium one to start with - I didn't want to be overwhelmed by an array of strange, but seasonal vegetables.
I informed the children that from now on, we would be eating more vegetables and they would just have to try them. They took it rather well, with minimum of groaning.
It worked! We ate a lot more veg than usual - they tried broccoli, cabbage, hated courgettes, ate more carrots, leeks, potatoes and swede. I was filling my darlings with goodness! Receiving my box made me feel happy and virtuous.
But to my dismay, even if stored in the fridge, a Friday delivery of broccoli was soft by the following Tuesday. Tomatoes were furry before the end of the week. Potatoes had sprouts by Wednesday.
This put me under pressure to use all the veg before the end of the weekend rather than spreading it out over the week. This was not good - if we went out to eat on Saturday that meant I had less time to use the veg.
Eventually, after two months, I got fed up with feeling rushed. It made it difficult to plan meals for the week if your veg might not make it to cooking day. Organic veg, and from an expensive source (because these veg vox schemes aren't as cheap as the supermarket) were going in the compost. This made me gnash my teeth in annoyance.
So, much to my regret, I cancelled the delivery and now get my organic veg from the supermarket because I know it will last more than a couple of days. This does not make me happy. My local farmers' market is only monthly, so this is not an option on the weeks when it's not in town.
Why does the veg not last? I have no idea and I'm not naming them to save them blushes. It's a great idea and if I could use a whole veg box within three days, that would be fine. But who wants to have their life ruled by a carrot's life span? I want it to last at least seven days till my next delivery. I get that this veg is just picked and has no chemicals. But how does Sainsbury's organic veg last seven days and the beg box doesn't? What do they do it it? (Now there's a question).
Maybe I've just been repeatedly unlucky, but if it happens to me it must happen to others. It wasn't all the veg and maybe I'm expecting too much from my delivery - that's entirely possible - but I can't hope that my kids will go for more than two items of veg per meal.
I'm not giving up totally - I'm going to wait until there new season of more appealing veg is ready before I try it again. Will let you know how that goes!

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Interview on writer's blog

I have an interview on a blog by writer Sibel Hodge. You can find it here

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Getting Back to Work

After eleven years as a stay-at-home mum to two sons, I never thought I would be able to get back into work. My old glamorous career as a television producer and newsreader seemed far behind me.
I’d stopped work aged thirty, after I had two babies in quick succession. My younger son had health problems; he was diagnosed at 13 months with Reflex Anoxic Seizures – a heart rhythm problem that results in severe fainting. There was just no way I could leave him with anyone else as he could have up to three seizures a day.
I joined a patient support group – STARS (www.stars.org.uk) and began to help them out with their publicity and newsletters on a voluntary basis. This led to me learning new skills in web design as I assisted with their website as well. In 2004, I worked with the charity as a volunteer on a campaign to change a key health policy about heart rhythm disorders and felt like I was getting back into my stride.
Then disaster struck. Within the space of a year, both my sons, who had always been difficult to handle, were diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. I focused my attention on finding the right educational solution for them and getting them statemented. I wrote long documents for the Education Authority in support of my application and I was successful both times. We even moved house to be closer to their new special school.
I was exhausted, but I still need an outlet for my creativity and to stimulate my brain. I completed a novel, now released in print and as an ebook, This Last Summer, and started doing some low-level freelancing using the skills I had learned volunteering.
Then one day, I was walking down the street in town when I passed a recruitment agency board looking for a one day a week PR. I passed it by and went into a shop. But as I rifled though the racks, I couldn’t get it out of my head. I could do that, I thought. But, another voice said, who would hire you after all these years?
I ignored the second voice, marched out of the store and into the recruitment agency. I signed up and applied, listing my voluntary work, my work experience before I had children, my post-graduate journalism qualification and my undergraduate business and publicity qualification. As I wrote them down, it dawned on me that I was more than just a mother, I was an experienced professional as well who just happened to have been doing something else important for the past decade.
Reader, I got the job! And to cap it off, when I asked the charity I volunteered for, for a reference, they offered me another one day a week paid job as their Public Relations Officer as well. The other days, when my boys are at school, I spend writing and have now published a new romance ebook, Sweet Seduction.
The truth is, when you’ve been out of work for a while, your confidence is knocked. You spend so much time in jeans that wearing smart clothes seems like it’s not really you. But my experience shows that if you make the effort while at home to keep up your skills and even learn new ones, there is hope that you can back into the workforce doing something that you have a talent for. Volunteering is a great way to do this as well and looks good on your CV.

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New Children's Books by Julie Fison

Two new books from my friend Julie Fison - Bat Attack and Tiger Terror
Bat Attack

It’s New Year’s Eve and Jack Wilde and his friends are getting ready for a night of fun at the local disco. But when a mad driver almost runs them over, things start to go very badly wrong. Will New Year’s Eve be the best night of their lives or the very worst? As the clock ticks towards midnight, only time will tell.

 Tiger Terror

Tigers are on the verge of extinction. Everyone knows that. So why does Jack Wilde think he’s seen a tiger paw in a medicine shop in Chinatown? To find out the truth Jack and his friends must become junior spies. But they soon realize that their mission is anything but child’s play.

The books join two earlier Hazard River tales, Snake Surprise and Shark Frenzy. Well done, Julie!

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YouTube Advert for This Last Summer

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YouTube video for Sweet Seduction

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Like Romance? Love Sweet Seduction by Tania Tirraoro

Surrey author, Tania Tirraoro, has just published her second novel, a romance, entitled "Sweet Seduction".
When multi-millionaire Entrepreneur, Rufus Knightly offers to finance Livia Rosetti's artisan cake business, he doesn't expect to have a fight on his hands. Despite sharing a kiss under the mistletoe a decade before, Livia is now reluctant to mix business with romance—but the strong attraction between them is proving difficult to resist.
Like Tania's first book, "This Last Summer", currently selling well in ebook and paperback, "Sweet Seduction" is set in the county of Surrey, where the author lives.
Tania Tirraoro said, "Surrey is such a picturesque backdrop, it's nice to be able to set books on my own doorstep. I'm really pleased with Sweet Seduction—I wanted to write a feel-good romance because in this climate we all need something to make us feel better."
Sweet Seduction is available on Amazon UK, Amazon.com and Smashwords. It will soon be available on Apple for ibooks, Kobo & Barnes & Noble in the US.
If you love to sample the delectable taste of pure romance, Sweet Seduction is one not to miss!

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Second novel launched as Ebook for author Mel Comley

21 February 2011, London: British Author, Mel Comley, has published her second novel, Final Justice, as an ebook.
Ms Comley's first novel, Impeding Justice, is currently still selling well in the Amazon thriller charts. Final Justice is a sequel, again featuring Lorne Simpkins, a feisty former policewoman with the Met.
Emotionally battered after a bruising encounter with notorious criminal Robert Baldwin, also known as The Unicorn, former DI Simpkins is reluctantly drafted into the continuing hunt for him.
She teams up with MI6 agent, Tony Warner, as they race through France to catch up with Baldwin, who continues his quest to become the world's richest man through criminal methods.
Mel Comley, who lives in Normandy, said, "In Final Justice we get to see more of Lorne's vulnerabilities as she battles with her demons. She doesn't want to be involved, but she's driven to continue her pursuit of the man who caused havoc with her family. I feel very close to Lorne and I'm pleased she's proved so popular in Impeding Justice. I hope readers will be just as happy with Final Justice."
As well as being an author, Mel Comley also writes a column on gardening in French ex-pat newsletter, N4Normandy Magazine
She is now working on a Lorne Simpkins prequel, Cruel Intent which will be released later this year.
Final Justice is available on Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk in Kindle and  Smashwords in all ebook formats.

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Publishing Workshop - and my sales pass 300!

I'm feeling inspired. Just attended a publishing workshop run by Legend Press. The energetic young chap in charge of Legend, Tom Chalmers, brought together a panel of experts including Literary Agent, Darin Jewell of The Inspira Group and marketing guru Gareth Howard of Authoright
Cramped in a cave-like room on bum-solidifying chairs beneath the Phoenix Theatre, 75 aspiring writers gathered to hear how best to approach an agent, how to market your literary wares for best effect and why getting your work published will be a bloody hard slog.
My writer friend, Mel Comley, had come all the way from France to join me at the seminar and we both thought it was an informative session. There were two Commissioning Editors from major publishing houses on the panel as well so it was interesting to hear from both sides of the industry.
I've been a bit of a writing slacker lately but the workshop got me back in gear for the final edit of a romance novel I've been working on and I'm heartened to have passed 300 sales - 200 this month alone - of This Last Summer on Kindle. According to some figures, this makes the book a success. I can't quite think of myself as an author - it's easier just to be a jobbing PR/ general Mumsbody (like a dogsbody but not quite as high in the pecking order). However, if sales keep going like this, I may have to reassess!

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Buy This Last Summer in Paperback!

You can now buy the paperback of This Last Summer for just £8.99 plus £1.50 UK postage. I have a limited amount of copies to sell direct and hopefully it should be available soon to buy from Amazon and Waterstones as well.
Just click on the paypal buy now button and it should take you through to the payment option.
For more information about the book, visit my website www.tirraoro.com

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All about epublisher, Smashwords

This Last Summer is published on Amazon and at Smashwords. Smashwords, run by Mark Coker, is a powerhouse of epublishing. If you want to publish your own work there, have a look at the presentation below.Introduction to Smashwords - Ebook Publishing and Distribution Made Easy

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Great Photographer - Keep him in mind

Got the kids' school photos back the other week. Grim is not the word. One looked like he was about to kill himself, the other was mid-sentence when his photo was taken. So I didn't buy them. But that left me without photos to send to relatives at Christmas. What to do?
I suddenly remembered that the Dad of one of my children's former schoolmates was a photographer, Grant Pritchard, so I got in touch and today he came over and took some shot of the boys and also of me for publicity for my book,This Last Summer.
Even though I've only seen them only on the camera screen, I can already see they're looking good and I can;t wait to get the CD next week. However I wanted to tell you about Grant's website in case anyone needs a good photographer for any reason. Have a look at his work at http://www.grantpritchard.co.uk and give him a call or pass it on to your friends. Will put up my pix when I get them!

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This Last Summer moving up Amazon charts

This Last Summer has gone up to number 11 in Women's popular fiction chart on Amazon! Get yours at £1.45 from here on Amazon.co.uk or on here on Amazon.com. 
The blurb:
Who said working in TV was glamorous? It’s shocking - and it can break your heart...
It's not easy keeping an office romance secret in a newsroom full of the treacherous and the lecherous and local TV reporter Maddie Chamber's life is about to get even more complicated.
While out filming she stumbles across a family bombshell - her long lost mother, whose reappearance is set to wreak havoc on her father and autistic brother. Then there's an even more shocking discovery that threatens to pull the family apart.
Set in the south of England and the sunflower fields of France, travel with Maddie Chambers on her emotional journey in This Last Summer.
 

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So who is Madeleine Chambers?

Madeleine Rebecca Chambers is a twenty-something television journalist whose dream was always to be a reporter.

She worked hard at college, did a post graduate in broadcast journalism and ended up at a local radio station where she learned how to make even the dullest items news-worthy.

Fast forward a couple of years and Maddie is hired by NewsNet South, a local TV news programme, as their most junior reporter. She’s been there, finding her feet ever since, despite having a producer who wants to see her fail and trying to resist the advances of a handsome colleague.

Maddie lives in a flat in Guildford and regularly visits her father, brother and Grandma, usually for free meals. Her brother, Ben, has Asperger Syndrome but is ferociously clever and is constantly battling against people’s misconceptions of what a young man with AS is actually like.

But where is Maddie’s mother in all this? She walked out on the family long ago but as you will find out, that’s not the last they’re to see of her...

View sample of This Last Summer in PDF

Download From Amazon.co.uk

Download from Amazon.com

Download in all formats from Smashwords

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Local author publishes ebook on Amazon

FARNHAM, SURREY Nov 8th 2010: Farnham-based author, Tania Tirraoro, has published her first novel, entitled “This Last Summer” as an ebook, available on Amazon Kindle and the multi-format ebook seller, Smashwords.
The women’s fiction book is mainly set in Surrey and Hampshire, featuring a young local TV reporter, Maddie Chambers, who is struggling to make her way in a newsroom full of the treacherous and the lecherous.
While out covering a story one day, she makes a discovery that sends shockwaves through her family – the reappearance of her long lost mother. Her father, grandmother and autistic brother all have a different reaction as they struggle to come to terms with the news. Maddie’s life is made more complicated by a secret office romance and the realisation that all is far from well with her mother.
Tania Tirraoro previously worked for Meridian Television as a journalist and the updated research for the novel was done at Meridian’s south coast headquarters.
She now works as a press officer for Hampshire Farmers’ Markets and several health charities, as well as raising her two sons who have Asperger Syndrome.
Tania Tirraoro said, “The new world of digital publishing is fantastic news for authors who can now bring their work to market much more easily. I think with Amazon’s Kindle and other e-readers, ebooks are really starting to take off and I expect they’ll be on many people’s Christmas wish list”
She is currently completing her second novel, a romance, which she hopes will be out in 2011.
Tania has a website at www.tirraoro.com, a blog at http://notasadvertised.blogspot.com and a site helping parents with SEN at www.specialneedsjungle.co.uk.
For those who haven’t gone digital, a paperback version of This Last Summer will be be available early next year.
Editor’s Notes:
1. Find This Last Summer on Amazon at http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004774N6E
and Smashwords at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/27911

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