You can get
GParted as a bootable disk and create a partition that way.
Our Linux FAQ has a section on
installing. Since you are new, I'd recommend using VirtualBox or VMWare and a virtual machine. You run much less risk with a VM than changing your disk partitions, plus you can experiment with different flavors of Linux without multiple partitions.
It's also polite to mention when you have posted the same question on
another forum