Edmonton Retreat
Thanks to an old sewer line that must be replaced, I'm off on a retreat to my in-law's house. Very strange to try to work in another person's home. All my creature comforts are gone and unlike a hotel, there's no room service or house cleaning. The toughest thing though is that there's no wi-fi, and I have to run to their computer to check e-mail. Although, this might be a good thing as it will mean less time wasted on the internet. I'm going to try to finish writing five chapters of the China non-fiction book while I'm here. If I'm lucky, I'll have the first draft done by the weekend, and I can spend the next week revising and polishing. The publisher had asked to see two sample chapters before deciding whether or not to hire me, but I figure the book is so short (5,000 words), I'll just send him the first draft and save time if he says yes. If he says no, then I'll just have lost two weeks of work, which I don't mind. My rationale is that it's very tough to rebuild momentum for a project after I've stopped. I'd rather work to the end of the book and get rejected than have to find the spark again if I get the nod.