My new ebook? Lots of research, not much writing.
Somehow my tramping experiences over the last few summers haven’t seemed substantial enough to warrant another book.
I spent two months in Kahurangi a few years ago that seems an obvious contender. But other than my MOW Hut little adventures everything else seems somewhat straightforward. I guess with some hindsight I could whip something coherent up.
The next summer was bookended by failure, that also doesn’t sound too promising.
My initial plan to walk east to west across the middle of the South Island was watered down, initially by the Kaikoura earthquake a month before departure, and then by some intense rainfall episodes that left me on the second night of summer in soaked sleeping bag, and later sitting in a hut for three nights with the rain teaming down.
In the end I gave up on my initial objective and just walked home to Nelson.
Perhaps my new ebook could be a narrative about aging, or be dealing with making difficult decisions.
My latest summer expedition started with a walk from Blenheim railway station to Hanmer that was caught short by more rain, and truncated only as far as the Kaikoura Inland Road due to flooding of the upper Clarence River.
Later my attempt to walk from Jackson Bay to the Hollyford track ended almost before it began, due to the first of the summer cyclones’ predicted onslaught, and instead I scurried home.
That could yet end in triumph if I scoot through in the winter months, which is the most settled weather on the West Coast surprisingly.
Any book needs some sort of structure, and I’m only now working out what each of these periods could be about.
At least there’s plenty of raw material. I have done the research.
Just need to formulate the thread to tie into a narrative.