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The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Rejuvenate!

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon September 6, 2012
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By Tamela Hancock Murray

Of late, several popular Christian and secular bloggers have posted about unplugging for a time. I have enjoyed reading their ideas because I realize the importance of rebooting every once in awhile.

Years ago I read an article that said if being laid up with a broken ankle for six weeks sounded good to you, then you are too stressed out. At that moment, I knew I had to change my life. And I did.

Today, my work doesn’t feel like work to me. I greet each day eager to see what each email will bring. Nor do I dread vacations, because I love spending time with my husband and family. But since vacations are brief and rare, I try to unplug a little each day. I don’t say my ideas and routines are perfect, nor will they work for everyone. They are a mix of determination and time management:

Protect your time with the Lord.

I have a place set aside in a room where I cannot see a clock. I read the Bible, and keep on hand a book of my choice that I find challenging and edifying enough that I look forward to reading it. I have just started a book on personal godliness by Puritan writer John Owen, edited by James Houston (acquired by Steve Laube when he was an editor at Bethany House Publishers). When I’m too busy, it’s tempting to make this time quick. To force myself to slow down, I light a candle and say special prayers, including the Jesus Prayer, which is, Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me, a sinner. I also say the Lord’s prayer, The Apostle’s Creed, sometimes other prayers, and my own prayers.

Protect your leisure time with your husband and family.

You’ve read that you should make a date with your husband each week. I say make a date with him each night by putting aside quality time for each other. On a related note, make a few minutes for your children each day as well. Sit down to dinner every evening. Yes, this can be a challenge with active kids and teens. But our family has always made this a consistent practice as much as possible. We enjoy those precious times of conversation and interaction.

Protect your weekends.

I usually engage very little with email on Saturdays. I have budgeted that day for routine errands. By the same token, I run only unusual or emergency errands on weekdays so I can concentrate on work during normal business hours. On Sundays, I try to avoid email altogether. The Lord did not make the Sabbath for Himself, but for us.

Protect your breaks during each business day.

Insist on taking a half hour for lunch. You need this break. If you are feeling stressed, take an extra break. Walk around the block or drink a cup of tea. Better to take a breather than write an email or make a phone call you later regret.

I have found that when I protect special times, I don’t feel an overarching need to unplug in a big way.

Not that I would mind the occasional trip to the mountains or beach!

Your turn:

What is your favorite daily way to unplug?
What is your favorite way to unplug in a big way?

Leave a Comment
Category: Book Business, Career, Creativity, Personal, TamelaTag: Career, Rejuvenate

News You Can Use – September 4, 2012

By Steve Laubeon September 4, 2012
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Amazon Buys 1,000 Backlist titles from Dorchester - As expected Amazon won the bid for defunct publisher Dorchester. Add these to the 3,000 titles they bought from Avalon in July and you have a serious number of romance backlist titles to offer.

Jonah Lehrer's Plagarism Worse than Originally Thought - Charles Seife analyzes numerous "Wired" articles and the Lehrer's blog and discovers a …

Read moreNews You Can Use – September 4, 2012
Category: News You Can Use, Steve

Paid Book Reviews?

By Steve Laubeon September 3, 2012
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by Steve Laube You may have read or heard of the NY Times article where an author admitted to using a now-defunct service that wrote positive online reviews for a fee. Unfortunately I was not surprised. There have been many attempts to game the system over the years. One man bought thousands of his books in various locations to launch it onto the NY Times bestseller list (Read a report about it …

Read morePaid Book Reviews?
Category: Book Business, Marketing, SteveTag: bestseller lists, Book reviews, reviews

Covering the Cover Letter

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon August 30, 2012
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This is the last installment of my proposal series. You may think it strange to write about the cover letter last, but usually, it's the last part of the proposal an author writes. Our own Steve Laube has already written about the cover letter here.

His tips are so wonderful that I asked him if I should even attempt this post, but he encouraged me to write from my perspective. So here are key …

Read moreCovering the Cover Letter
Category: Book Proposals, Get Published, TamelaTag: book proposal, Cover Letter, Get Published

What is Your Catalyst?

By Karen Ballon August 29, 2012
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I loved reading your responses about your catalyst for writing. So may wonderful motivations and stories in the making. Now what I want you to do, is take a look at what you listed as your catalyst and go deeper. And then deeper. Peel back the layers until you find the heartbeat of what is driving you to write. Sometimes its what drives you to write one particular book. Sometimes you’ll find that …

Read moreWhat is Your Catalyst?
Category: Craft, Creativity, Karen, Writing CraftTag: Catalyst, Writing Craft

News You Can Use – August 28, 2012

By Steve Laubeon August 28, 2012
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The Beloit College Mindset List for 2016 - Read it and weep. You are getting old. Admit it. For example, for the incoming college freshman (born in 1994), - "History has always had its own channel" and "Simba has always had trouble waiting to be King."

How to Create a Perfect Title - Calvin Miller and Rick Warren discussed this issue as it related to their sermons in this article from 1998's …

Read moreNews You Can Use – August 28, 2012
Category: News You Can Use, Steve

Fun Fridays – August 24, 2012

By Steve Laubeon August 24, 2012
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Poor Snoopy. He seems to always be rejected. I think I figured out why. See below.

 What Snoopy didn't realize is that he was sending his material to this editor:

Read moreFun Fridays – August 24, 2012
Category: Fun Fridays

Read All About It! – The Back Cover Copy

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon August 23, 2012
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When you consider purchasing a book, either in a store or online, what do you notice first? The front cover grabs your attention. Right? After that, you might flip inside to read the first few sentences of the book, and then venture to the back cover (online the back cover is displayed as the “Description”). Or you may go to the back cover before opening the book. Regardless, the back cover copy …

Read moreRead All About It! – The Back Cover Copy
Category: Book Business, Book Proposals, Get Published, Tamela, Writing CraftTag: back cover copy, book proposals

Some Days….You Gotta Laugh

By Karen Ballon August 22, 2012
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Karen Ball

Some days…you just gotta let go of any hope of accomplishing what you want and laugh!

I’ve had a week and a half of days like that. I promise we’ll get back to catalyst next week, but today, let’s laugh together. I received the following from a writer friend, and all I can say is, “See why it’s so important to edit what you write??”

These sentences appeared in church …

Read moreSome Days….You Gotta Laugh
Category: Humor, KarenTag: Humor, Laugh

News You Can Use – August 21, 2012

By Steve Laubeon August 21, 2012
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Thomas Nelson Publishers citing "loss of confidence" pulls a book about Thomas Jefferson from circulation - What a mess. People are taking sides and calling this an issue of free speech while others applaud the move and call it smart. More from World Magazine on the issue and a quote from the VP of editorial at the publisher can be found here. Bottom line? The book is no longer available from the …

Read moreNews You Can Use – August 21, 2012
Category: Get Published, News You Can Use, Steve
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