I wanted to be done with my Queens River Loop guide book by June 4th. I guess whether I succeeded or not depends on the definition of the word done. The writing is complete. All the pictures have been captioned and placed into the template document. The cover has been designed. The files were submitted for review and accepted.
I could have been done by June 4th, but I decided to order a proof copy instead. This is only the second guide book that I’ve done and I want to make sure it looks good and has minimal typos before I release it into the world. So it’s done. Mostly. There’s just the final review to complete (and any little fixes to implement).
I feel accomplished.
Not only that, but I finished drafting out my solo trip book. I’m still working on transcribing my handwritten notes, and I might add to the draft if I discover that I forgot something vital, but the bulk of the work is done faster than I thought possible.
While I had been thinking to combine the write up of this trip with the write up of the segment I’m going to complete later in the season that will bring me as close as possible to the Frank Church wilderness, now I’m leaning the other way. Rather than one huge book, why not make one medium and one small? They will be on totally different segments of the ICT. Hiked in different months. Written in different months.
And if I do a Hike with Me book for our July trip to the Washington Coast, then I could be releasing three Hike with Me books in one year. I kind of like that idea.