Since the introduction of the Kindle, the topic of eBooks and digital content has dominated the publishing world. As it should, because our livelihood depends on getting the big decisions right. The key question everyone is wrestling with is the when of the shift, because the if is now a foregone conclusion. It’s already happening.

I’ve been in a lot of discussions about this and, frankly, I think a good many people are looking at it sideways. They’re narrowly focused on today’s book consumer (primarily middle-aged females, statistically) and how to get them to migrate to a digital format either via the Kindle or iPad (or any of the bazillion other devices coming soon to a store near you). I think there will be a lot of migration, especially from the Millenials and Gen Xer’s, but we won’t be the tipping point.

My daughter’s kindergarten class will be.

When I first started writing, my biggest complaint was the chronic shortage of time during my day. I mean, come on, who has time to torch brain cells all day at work, be a dad and husband (or mom/wife, student, fill in the blank), pay the bills, do all the normal things that “normal” people do and still have time to slog through creating something from nothing one agonizing word at a time?

I used to think there wasn’t enough time. Truth is, I still think that on most days until I remind myself that I’m wrong. Actually, I just look at my friends who have proved me wrong time and again–people who live much “busier” lives than I do, but somehow found ways to outproduce me.

When I drilled down to how they did it, the answer became clear: they just had a better handle on their time than I did. Somehow, they squeezed more out of their 24 hours (the same 24 that I had) than I did. And it drove me crazy. I mean crazy crazy. Like, I began to suspect my friends were cyborgs crazy. Then I figured out that they weren’t and began experimenting with how to do it for myself. And I’m going to share some of these tricks with you because they just might help you reclaim hours of your day.

So, here we go. Here are a few ways to recapture your time and make it work for you instead of the other way around:

“If you want to write for yourself, get a diary. If you want to write for a few friends, get a blog. But if you want to write for a lot of people, think about them a little bit. What do they like? What are their needs? A lot of people in this country go through their days numb. They need to be entertained. They need to feel something.” – James Patterson, in a recent article on NYTimes.com.

This is the official promo video for the iPad on Apple’s website. It’s worth the 8 minutes it takes to watch it if you haven’t already. I’m planning to record a video blog with designer and friend Chris Wilcox in the next couple of days to talk about the iPad and what it means to us as artists, but I wanted to get my initial thoughts out while they’re as fresh as can be. Here we go:

Today’s the day. The music industry had theirs’ when Apple unveiled iTunes; now the publishing industry’s turn is up and there’s LOTS of debate about what the Apple tablet means for authors, publishers, and consumers. For all of the buzz and debate I can’t help but think that most of the naysayers are getting it wrong. They remind us that tablets have been tried before…and failed. They remind us how Bill Gates tried to revolutionize personal computing with a switch to tablets…and failed. But all of that misses the point in my opinion. Why?

Because the introduction of an Apple tablet isn’t about revolutionizing hardware (though I think it will certainly fuel innovation and do that just like the iPod did); it’s about revolutionizing content. I, too, love the feel and smell of paper. I like having books on a shelf in my office. We like book covers as much as we do the words they wrap around. They’re iconic and evoke a sort of nostalgia. Just last night my writer’s group talked about our favorite stories, some of which were published in the 1800’s. We like stuff we can touch.

From Geekdom to Wall Street, all eyes will focus on Cupertino, CA on Wednesday when Steve Jobs steps on stage to, presumably, unveil the long rumored Mac tablet (aka “The iUnicorn” because many have said it doesn’t exist). Whether or not you believe the digital publishing shake-up is imminent doesn’t matter. At all. It’s already underway and if you’re an author, either professional or aspiring, you need to pay attention.

The way we engage story has evolved over time and we’re on the cusp of the next cycle. And that cycle can be described with one word: convergence. CSI creator Anthony Zuiker tried it with his digi-novel, the over the top Level 26. Others have tried producing vooks, digital books with bonus video elements (most have which are…meh). Sooner rather than later we will have to figure out how to inventively tell stories by layering all of the techno-capabilities that devices like Apple’s tablet supposedly provide. Soon, writing the manuscript of a novel won’t even be the bare minimum. The new baseline will include interactivity, which you’ll have to plan for before you type the first word.

What will that look like? Who knows. But I do know we’ve got to start experimenting now. True, the publishing industry can learn from the mistakes the music industry made. In fact, I’ve heard that for awhile as well as something to the effect of “The good news is we still have time to figure it out.” My response is “maybe.” My opinion is that the speed of the shift will catch most authors and publishers off-guard. It’s the nature of things.

So, my advice…use your imagination to dream new ways to tell your story. The limits are being removed so take advantage of the time we live in.

Being a poser is one of life’s great temptations. I should know. I’m so well versed in its siren song that I deserve a Grammy.

We want other people to like us and spend a lot of time, money, and effort trying to be what we think others want. Others who don’t really think about us as much as we think they do. Others whose affection is conditional. Others whose true commitment comes with a price tag and expiration date, which is no commitment at all.

The best we can do, the best we should do, is be authentically us. I was reminded of this as I was looking through Brad Meltzer’s website this week. In the Q&A Section, there’s a photo of him sitting for a photo that ended up in Entertainment Weekly. Here’s the caption:

“Entertainment Weekly took one look at me and said, ‘Want to look like yourself, or you want us to make you look cool?’ I said, “Myself.” They gave me the trenchcoat and said to put it on even though it was 102 degrees in Washington.”

Ask yourself: What would my day look like if, for a full 24 hours, I was 100% me? A lesson (and a dare, really) from Brad Meltzer for all of us, folks.