A return to scheduled programming

Yes, I'm back. It was really weird being in a place with so little internet. I realized how much of my life I live on-line. It's a lot! But now I'm back and can settle back into my regular routines and projects. I've done a lot of thinking about my new book while away, and am now ready to dive into the much-needed revisions.

But first, what did I do on this vacation? Well, very little actually. I spent a lot of time at the beach, swimming and making sand castles for my 3 yo to smash. One day we went on a walk in the National Park, 15 km which I thought was pretty good going for the 6 yo. We played mini-golf once, and I got a hole in one (and stung by a bee). Heavy rain one day sent us scurrying to the nearest town where we holed up at the library for a while. I managed to quench my internet thirst while there too... What else? Um.... I read a lot. I finished 4 books over the 9 days, something I don't think I've done since my oldest child was born.

One of the books I read was most inspiring. It was a novel told in short stories and made me realize something like that can get published. I feel more inspired now to finish my collection of beach house stories, and now have an idea of how to introduce each one in sequence. I was interested too in the way these stories were written, in present tense but with the perspective of someone looking back on his life. I meant he could mention things that happened in the future to him, while keeping it in the context of the story. In The Raft I did just that, and all the critiques I got said you couldn't do that, but now I've seen it done, and well too!

If you're looking for something fun to read, check out the book. It's called The Chester Chronicles and is by Kermit Moyer. Lovely writing and engaging stories of one boy's coming of age. Of the four books I read, this was the one I plowed through fastest and is the one that will stay with me.

Have you read anything good recently? With 326 work emails waiting for me in my in-box, I suspect this is the last fun reading I'm going to be doing in a while...