A number of friends have told me that I need to write a book about my travels. They remind me of all the places I've seen, and encourage me to write a book about it all. So, after hearing enough of it, I've finally got the ball rolling and am about halfway through the story - something I've found to be much more difficult than I had initially anticipated.

I knew writing a book would be a lot of work, but you just pour so much of yourself into it that it's difficult not to fuss over every word, all the while wondering what the reader will think of you and your experience as they turn the pages. I've spent days upon days becoming blinded by computer screens as I wring my hands over the opinions of my prospective reader(s) - especially my family and close friends. I fully expect not everyone will enjoy the finished product, that's only natural and I'm not going to be hoodwinked into believing otherwise, but I want to give those that mean the most to me their money's worth.

I'm enjoying the experience of writing a book, finding it very rewarding, and I'm gaining a greater appreciation for all of those authors who I've given a bad review to in the past. There are only a couple of books I've reviewed negatively, but from now on I shall only write about the ones that I do like. After all, as my mother said, "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all." So, from now on, I shall keep my big yap shut on the books I don't find interesting and instead concentrate on those I enjoy.
There's a lot I'd like to say about my book, which is making it impossible to eat dinner at the table as it's covered in notes and books, but since it's not finished yet I can only speak in the vaguest of terms. I know this is frustrating for those that consistently ask me where I'm going next, but everything is given away if I say more than that I'm traveling within the United States. And so that's all I shall say here too, although noting that my past travels, from my childhood and beyond, will be incorporated to varying degrees and detail. Any promises beyond that could easily be broken as I don't know how the last half of the book will wrap up as the pages still need to be written.

If all goes well, and the publisher can turn it in time, I'll have the book on shelves and electronic by Christmas. All indications are promising for this to happen, but it's just impossible to say definitively as there's still so much to do. I believe all will go well though and that I'll sell that one copy that will make me feel like the king of the world - just don't expect me to stand up on the bow of a ship and shout it out to the oceans.