Marian Scadden, author
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JUST DON'T ANSWER IT!

12/19/2012

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I was watching a YouTube nature video and right in the middle of it, the film-maker answers his cell phone to tell the person he can't talk, but he'll call back.
If your cell phone rings and you can't talk right then, don't answer it in the first place!
If you answer the phone just to say, "I can't talk right now; I'll call you back," DON'T ANSWER IT!

If you let voice mail answer, the caller will know that you can't talk at that moment.
The cool thing about cell phones is they have voice mail, caller ID and texting as well.
Just to be clear, if your cell phone rings and you are going to say any of the following, train yourself to turn off the ringer and not answer instead:
  • "I can't talk but I'll call you back in a minute."
  • "I'm right in the middle of something; can I call you back?"
  • "Hi. Can I call you later?"
  • "Let me call you back."
To be even clearer, just don't answer your phone in the following situations:
  • you're at a theater watching a movie.
  • you're in a class.
  • you're at a concert or other live performance (music, dance, drama, etc.)
  • you're in the foyer of a restaurant waiting to be seated.
  • you're at a friend's house.
  • your friend is at your house.
  • you're at a party.
  • you're hosting a party.
  • you're in a car with a friend.
  • you're in a meeting.
  • you're with your family for Thanksgiving (or Christmas, special dinner, Mom and Dad's anniversary party, just watching a movie at home, etc.)
  • you're in the bathroom.
Obviously, there may be exceptions but there are ways to avoid that as well. For instance, if you're waiting to find out how your good friend's heart surgery went, then don't go to the movies (or wherever) until after the event. If all your calls are so important that you cannot shut off the cell for a couple of hours, or you will answer it regardless of the circumstance, then stay home "waiting by the phone"...but do you really want to do that?
The solution? Just don't answer it!

And most of the above goes for texting as well.


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why I hate nanowrimo & why i still love it

12/3/2012

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NaNoWriMo is over and I am so glad! Why? Because it was intensive making up a new story, because it absorbed most of my waking thoughts, because I almost didn't want to see a computer again for as long as I could stand it. (I actually shut down my computer for all the Thanksgiving weekend.)

But I still love NaNoWriMo. Why? Because I did it! Because I did make up a story even when it was hard to do; because more than anything, I noticed that a little work goes a long way. Today, even though I didn't have a word count to fulfill, I sat down at my computer for several hours and edited two picture book stories, reworked my website (slightly) and wrote this blog. And it didn't feel like work.

The hardest thing to overcome when being a writer are distractions. During NaNoWriMo, I learned to ignore distractions. I think I can carry that over and start working consistently on my writing. (Key word is consistent). I have 5 more short scripts to prep before I ebook them. Now that I know I can put my "butt in the chair and just write," I will get those scripts done by the end of December, without breaking a sweat.
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    Marian, that's me!

    I love stories! I love to read fairy tales, fables, stories from around the world. I especially love scifi and fantasy. And I like to write. And watch movies. And play board games. And do theatre things.

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Marian Scadden, author of stage plays, fiction for young people, and other stuff