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Wednesday, February 4, 2015

5 Ways to Make Time Slow Down!

I can't believe a whole month of 2015 has already blown by!

And I only wrote 2 posts!
At least I wrote... ha ha. So, I'll fill you in on how I spent the little free time I had in January outside my new job...

I revamped and wrote a bunch more of Cradle Rock. I actually have fans clamoring to get the sequel of BBF. AND my plea on FB bumped my reviews for BBF to 20! Yay! I also drew some ROUGH sketches for my anti-princess story, JOLISSA. I crack myself up, hopefully you too! Here's a taste:
Jolissa & Ziggy her faithful dog
the princess entourage
A low point for Jolissa
Jolissa & Humphrey meet a talking goat

Look out Disney! (hahahaha)
Anyway, on to my IWSG post! As always, thanks to Alex & his hosts this month - the IWSG is now an institution! I'm so glad to be a part of it!

Time is today's issue. I don't have time for insecurities lately, so I will keep posting to encourage anyone who has time to stop by! What I need is a way to make time slow down. I feel like a whiny three-year-old, pulling on her mom's coat tails, trying to get her to listen. "But TIME! I need you to stop so I can write more!" She never slows down, she just says, "Come along, dear. We have to keep moving." So I just pout and carry on. Hmph!

Here are 5 Great Ways to Slow Time, but they're not very productive, just some comic relief. Take time to laugh at least once a day - you'll live longer, hence adding time to write!
  1. Stare at your inbox - whether waiting for a query response or edits, time will stand still as you lose your mind.
  2. Forget to preheat the oven - the food is ready to go in, but the oven is cold - argh!
  3. Ask your husband to change a light bulb - he will wait until a few more go out and save time by doing them all at once and you'll go blind.
  4. Choose the shortest checkout line - there may be only one person in front of you but inevitably she has the most items in her basket, there was a reason no one got behind her (sometimes it's me)... oh, and the register just ran out of paper... 
  5. Mark a special day on your calendar - a cover reveal - it's so pretty, you want to share it now! or a book release - it's so far away! (Simulation in September!) It's like birthdays and Christmas to a kid, or a Mom's due date - the best days take forever to arrive!
In conclusion, make the most of your time, it's so precious!

Lastly, here are a few quick announcements before you go...
artwork by http://www.matusic.com/
  • Signups have begun for the annual A to Z blogging challenge - yes, I succumbed. And this year I'm working for C. Lee McKenzie as a MUFFIN COMMANDO!!
  • I'm also very excited to have Broken Branch Falls posted on BookBub this weekend (2/6 & 2/7)!
  • More excited that one of my students spotted BBF in Barnes and Noble!!
  • And super duper excited to offer you all this giveaway for February! (No live events scheduled, so online it is!!)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

27 comments:

  1. So exciting that you saw your book in B&N! That's awesome! :)

    Love the point about staring at your inbox. It definitely makes time pass slower! :P

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  2. I'm going to try the 5 techniques!

    Entered to win and have just started Chronology. Congrats on all that's happening for you and so glad you are a Muffin.

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  3. Yeah for the cool stuff you have going on. One of my favorites to lose time is watch videos on YouTube, lol.

    Juneta at Writer's Gambit

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  4. I love the comedy regarding slowing time! Thanks for the well needed laugh this morning, Tara!! PS--hi! Long time no blog! :)

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  5. I also posted about time today, but yours is much funnier! I am definitely one of those men who put off changing lightbulbs. Lol.

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  6. Ha! The checkout line bait-and-switch always gets me.

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  7. Yay for placing your book! Rock on.

    I don't think I could slow time, even if I wanted to. I thought late pregnancy would do the trick, but nope. What day is it? It's Wednesday already? Feels like Monday. Yikes! I just lost half a week.

    Just finished Chronology. Man! That was a long anthology. No one warned me...but I loved your entry. Fun, fun piece. (Review coming soon!)

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  8. Laughing is so important and such a wonderful stress reliever. Good luck being a Muffin Commando - see, now that phrase made me laugh. :)

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  9. Books on the shelf are so wonderful, congratulations!

    Time, what is time? I don't have any, is it expensive?

    Have a wonderful February!

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  10. Lots of exciting things going on! And oh man, #4. Every. Time. I can never get in the right line.

    February IWSG Co-host

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  11. Hi Tara!! I can't remember the last time I saw you on here - you don't show up on my dash anymore so I manually went to your blog today :) I really thought you had stopped blogging! Love the sketches :)

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  12. Great ideas to slow time. I'm waiting for an email now.
    Congrats on the B&N. Every writer's dream.

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  13. That shortest checkout line gets me every time! I gave up trying to guess which one will be fastest.

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  14. It is so true that time flies fast and we have to make the best of it. I constantly wish I had more of it to work with, and energy too, lol :)

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  15. BBF for life!!!!! And your time is driving me nutz!! Kidding ;)

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  16. Love those sketches! *LOL* And with a talking goat, you can't lose! If I ask my husband to do anything, that slows time. I took off the tiles in our small half bathroom in July. He wants to put in the new ones... which still hasn't happened yet!

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  17. You know I love your sketches - especially the goat!
    Congrats on seeing BBF in B&N! Awesome!

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  18. Congrats on everything - your hard work, the book at B & N, and all the awesomesauce stuff you do! Way to go, Tara.

    Love your humorous post on time. It's even worse when you accidentally put food into a cold oven, wait for three hours until dinner time and then . . . well, the microwave is suddenly the most important tool in the kitchen.

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  19. Spotted BBF in B&N? Awesome.

    (You think time moves quickly now? Wait till you're my age.)

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  20. Funny post. #4 is me. Always pick the wrong lane.

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  21. ha! isn't that always the case about the check out line?! love it, here's hoping we all find more time :)

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  22. HAHAHA. I stare at my inbox a lot. Definitely slows down time. :)

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  23. Oh yeah, for me it's the inbox and the shortest line at the grocery store. Now if I could only turn those times into productive working on my story time.

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  24. Fun sketches! I can't help but be curious about that talking goat, LOL. And I know what you mean about time. I'm always wishing it'd slow down, too!

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  25. Your tips for slowing down time remind me of the saying, "A watched pot never boils."

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  26. I tried making a cup of tea the other day, and forgot to turn the burner on. That slowed things down. Best of luck to you and finding more time.

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Thanks for stopping by!