Fits and Starts in a Wind Tunnel

I have a terrible problem at times with lack of focus.

In a sustained burst. I can get huge quantities of work done. But if something interesting happens whilst I’m trying to do it, or I get a sudden inspiration, then I can just skip away.

Projects that are delayed might never happen, as I get involved in too much other stuff.

One such issue is my writing efforts. Having published a book a few years ago – 2007 to be exact – I assumed I’d be cranking others out.

What happened there?

The first one in what I considered to be ‘my genre’ – wise business advice delivered by wrapping the information up in fiction – was presented along the lines of the format of the ancient classic ‘1001 nights’. Although one critic found it to be “constrained by its literary device” it got a great reception. Still does.

With the follow up, I attempted to vaguely use the premise of Ray Bradbury’s The Illustrated Man.

After three chapters I felt had a turkey on my hands, so I just stopped. For a few years.

I got re-energised when Pete from Tea Trade suggested that my blogs could form a book.

I thought about that and decided that since those blogs are already publicly available, I would not just collect them and release them. But it did inspire a book to incorporate some blogs but with 80% new material, and that project is continuing.

The book – The Heart of Tea – had a few false starts and suggestions but I knuckled down a while back, hoping to finish it ahead of our European escapades. Sadly, that will not happen.

I gave the first half to Lady Devotea to read. This is actually the scariest moment in any book for me. What if she doesn’t like it? What if she has a massive problem with it?

She had a massive problem with it.

And the very worst thing about the problem concerned was that she was totally correct.

Whilst writing it, I concentrated on each little nugget by itself. When she read it a linear fashion, chapter after chapter, the book jarred in a very unfortunate way.

So. a few weeks ago. I lost the plot. I have written nothing at all on this project whilst I tossed and turned it around in my head, trying to recover from what was a necessary but unpleasant reality check.

I worked out how to fix it, sure. But I did not like the look of the ‘fix’. So I did nothing

And two days ago, I got the material out again, turned it and teased it, looking for an answer.

And I found one.

So, re-energised, I have decided that this book will be completed before I return home. Really. No excuses.

My plan to blog on Tea Trade every day for the next ten weeks will take a back seat. I will scale it back.

And by October 14th, The Heart of Tea will be born.

Unless I get distra… hey, is that a shiny thing? What is that shiny thing? So shiny!