So another question in our series of basics, 
When you cast your spells, how much time does it typically take? Do you take 10-20 minutes, or spend an hour in meditation, wringing out every unit of intention? Yeah, yeah, I know, it depends on the spell. But what is your usual practice?
[This came up in a discussion I had with someone about whether or not a birthday candle burns long enough to do a spell versus having to wait for a larger candle to burn itself out, for spells that specify that].
Usually Iām in and out in no more than 20 minutes 
sometimes it depends, like if the entire candle needs to burn down, then itās obviously longer but I donāt sit there and meditate with it the entire time. Iām a busy witch and I have things to do!
Great topic! I think how long it takes to cast a spell depends not just on the spell but also on the person and each personal style.
Just like some people can say a lot with few words and others need more time/space to get to the same point. If I feel that my willpower is already flowing in a certain direction, then I just put that same energy into words (a spell) or an image (like a sigil) and it wonāt take more than 10 minutes.
However if the intent is not there yet or there are other things going on inside my head, I may sit by candlelight and incense and meditate for 20 minutes or longer. Or start writing down thoughts, emotions, until I get into the āzoneā. But I donāt have a fixed structure.
I am some what new to all of this but canāt wait to do my 1st spell
Oh boy oh boy another class of Spell Theory 101! 
Gotta get out my quill and take notesā¦ 
But seriously, this is an awesome question @anon87969570- thank you for asking it! 
For me personally, most spells I do probably last from 5-15 minutes (with prayers/blessings on the shorter side and candle spells on the longer side). This doesnāt include cooking magick, which is a bit trickier to measure (1-ish hour of cooking with intent, but not all of it is active casting). There are also some āspecial occasionā spells that take longer, but these days with all the moving and traveling Iāve been doing, Iām not doing too many big spells 
For meditations, well, back in the day when I lived at the temple we would meditate for up to 2 hours at a time (and I canāt say I recommend that for most folks- 2 hours is a really long time to sit still and focus). An ideal meditation for me now would probably be around 20-30 minutes, but itās rare that I can do that without interruptions haha.
It is really interesting to hear how long others are casting for- thanks again for opening up this discussion, Ron!
Welcome! @BryWisteria and I have a running joke about asking questions so basic to spells that we forget to ask them, hence my little tag in the title. But the Spells8 courses are the best place to start, with lots of info about spells, casting and tons more. The Forum is full of great folks who are always around to try to answer questions.
There is a consensus to 10-20 minutes, and I set the limit to about 10-20 minutes too. But before I start a spell or calling the quarters, I lightly meditate for as long as I feel is needed, depending on what Iām returning from to that point. If it is a bustling day, dealing with others negativity, spend more time meditating, but before I even start, get myself in the mood (even the day before I try to keep my mood and self in order). Then I start with the spell, and at some point, usually after saying the last verse I meditate for 20 minutes, it was good enough for me. Spells that require the burning of candles straight through. I will choose a 4-5 hour burning candle. Still after 20 minutes of meditating, I sit with the candle until it burns, but Iām not meditating for the whole time, still keep it at the 20 minute mark. Before I start, I bring some spiritual, craft, personal development type books/material, if I have paper work - try not to do this too much - but sometimes need to follow up - so I bring that in as well, or my journals to work, organize, but ultimately my time with the candle, keep my activities near it and for that time high energy (edit:sometimes I take a nap too). Thatās for the initial spell, but if I have to carry it through on other times. For the other times, I go through the spell, mediate on it for 10-20 minutes, and just let the candle run on its own. The motions have already been set.
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