A Day in the Life of Dyan Garris

5:00 A.M. – The raucous blast of a telephone ring breaks startlingly into the quiet reverence of a peaceful desert morning, where a fiery sun emanating a heat that seeps deeply into your very bones has not quite yet shown its cheery face over the mountains. I fumble around for my voice which apparently is still slumbering in some undiscovered dimension. “Hello?” I manage somewhat imperceptibly. The caller is from the east coast where the day has perhaps already reached a particular level of civility.

“Did I wake you?” The caller seems completely astounded that I am still in the twilight zone.

“No,” I squeak out. “I’m just not in my body yet. Can I call you later?”

“Well, yes. . . I’m having a spiritual crisis. I need a reading. What time will you call me?”

“You know I retired from readings a year ago. You can still get a free card reading on my website.”

“Yes, but I really need to talk to you and it’s just one question. . .”

And so the day begins. I am not just promoting my Voice of the Angels Cookbook. I am in the middle of promoting my line of CDs, cards, and other books as well.

5:15 A.M. – A mixture of green tea and herbal tea gently enters my body and caresses my very soul. I absorb its warm peacefulness with a substantial twist of gratitude.

6:00 A.M. – I’m in the pool. Every day begins with a one hour swim. The water is a comforting and silky embrace and we joyfully become one. It is meditation, deliberate mindfulness and euphoric bliss.

8:00 A.M. – Another call from the east coast. My meditation basket and relaxation basket are going to be featured on a TV episode. They are calling for script approval and they need it soon. There is a production deadline. I review the script. It needs a rewrite. I rewrite it and send it on its way through the ethers of cyberspace.

9:00 A.M. - I attempt to write the Daily Channeled Message. I actually channel this message, which means I must go into a light trance. Husband with seemingly fine-tuned Daily Channeled Message radar pops into the room like a cannonball. “Honey,” I admonish him. “I’m trying to do the channeled message.”

“I know, but the graphic artist is on the phone and wants to go over the revisions for ‘The Book of Daily Channeled Messages.’”

“Please tell her I’ll call her back.”

10:00 A.M. – I signed up for a Virtual Book Tour. Dorothy Thompson of “Pump Up Your Online Book Promotion” has e-mailed me several interviews that need to be answered. My other e-mail is like a Pacific Ocean of correspondence and orders that need fulfilling. We’ll get to it. Everything gets done in its own time. I follow my own incessant advice to everyone and breathe deeply.

11:00 A.M. – I am sending out a press release through PRWeb for the cookbook. They call and request some revisions. They are very thorough. We examine every detail and every paragraph like we’re having an MRI. I am grateful. They are the best. I rewrite and e-mail it back to them. They call again. We’re good to go. Whew!

12:00 P.M. – I hear bells. Lunch is calling. I make time to talk to my food.

1:00 P.M. – Phone again. This time it’s the fax. The radio promoter is faxing over the contracts for the CD radio promotion which I need to read, sign, and fax back. They also want me to ship them 200 “Release” CDs. I promise they will go out today.

2:00 P.M. – I am revamping my press kit into a little booklet, rather than twenty sheets of paper that I send out with orders and other correspondence. The printer has e-mailed and tells me they cannot locate the cover photos and they also need me to read the proof and send them the revisions, if any. They need it today if they are to meet my deadline.

3:30 P.M. – My friend calls. She tells me she had an interview with a newspaper reporter and they would like to give me some ink. Can I send over my press kit? Soon. She mentions that she just heard one of my songs on the Soundscapes cable TV music channel. I am thrilled!

4:00 P.M. – The distributor needs one-sheets with descriptions, UPCs, and catalog numbers for the CDs. They also need signed contracts and demos. This I cannot do today. Another distributor has placed a large order for inventory. This can go out tomorrow.

5:00 P.M. – Another friend calls. She is representing my product line. “You know those greeting cards we wrote years ago?”

“Yes….”

“We should polish those up and add them to the line.” OK, it is on the list. “Oh, and I was reviewing the line and I think something is missing.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, you need to have a meditation journal for use with the CDs along with the journal that you already have for use with the cards. It makes everything complete.” It makes sense to me. I put it on the list.

7:30 P.M. – Back to computer things. I need to update my Amazon.com account and my CDbaby.com account because I’ve added new products. I upload product images and write descriptions. And I wade through a sea of all the other e-mail that requires response. In there I discover a request for interview from a magazine I’ve been waiting a year to hear from. Do I want to do it? Absolutely! I also find a request to be a guest on a radio show. That’s exciting. Count me in.

8:30 PM – I visit my two MySpace pages and my other networking sites. I answer friend requests, comments, and reciprocate with a few of my own.

9:00 PM – I remind myself that we are all responsible for our choices and I hold myself fully accountable for what I’ve created. At this point in the day, I can’t resist a little humor. I smile my sweetest smile. “Honey, will you take me to Barbados? No? Can we go to Fiji then? I flash a bigger and more engaging smile. No? Hawaii? No? Florida it is. I will make the reservations.” Soon.

Dyan Garris is the author of VOICE OF THE ANGELS COOKBOOK. You can visit her website at www.voiceoftheangels.com.

Tags: Dyan Garris, Voice of the Angels Cookbook, recipes for entertaining, Greek Cooking