There was a plan

Friday 23rd July

Once upon a time, there was a plan.

See, thing was, I got asked if I'd be interested in doing this year's karmoy trip. You know, the thing to Norway that takes two weeks out every year. Well, I've done it a few times over and I wasn't sure about returning again. It's cold and windy and often wet and there are times when killing everybody seems like the only sensible option.

I'm not saying there's not a lot of fun attached as well, but if anyone tells you that it's not a trial on body and soul is lying through their teeth. Probably because they're trying to get you to go.

So I was a little reluctant to go, especially since it would involve driving the long way round since the short way round is closed to us since that ferry line shut down.

But on the other hand, it would be a massive adventure, and I like going on adventures, you never know what will happen. And then two things in a row finished the deal. One was an offer from my darling Aliss to help me pay for it with me not having a steady (or any, now) income. And the other was who I would be travelling with.

My travelling companion, and indeed the only other person in the car with me for the majority of the trip would be the author. For those of you that don't know, it's Robert Low, author of the oathsworn series of Viking novels and you can find his website here. I really like the bloke and he's a really good laugh and maybe I can get inspiration from him while we drive for my own book. Hell, maybe we could even collaborate and come back with a novel between us.

That was the plan.

It didn't end up like that.

See, I had to be careful about how I approached my plan, since I would be spending two weeks sitting next to the man, instantly going all fanboy at him and bothering him with questions every twenty seconds wouldn't help the trip at all. As well as we had got on in the past it might be very different living in that close a proximity for too long.

So I had two backup plans for writing on the trip.

Firstly I would take the book I've been working on for a good long while now, and on off periods I would tackle the next part and maybe tap Bob's brain for ideas as I went if I got stuck.

Secondly, the notebook I had for the collaboration between me and Bob, well I could intersperse it with a bit of travelogue of the journey, that way I might be able to sell the story of my trip to something like the Sunday papers for their travel section or something. So what did I come home with?

A couple of pages added to my novel, a page or so of notes on a collaborative effort I'll be working with Bob on, maybe. And a travelogue. A huge travelogue.

It's taken me a while to type it in, what with dodgy voice recognition software and a busted hand it's taken far longer than expected just to type in the words from the page, that although are prose, it's merely in note form. That note form also didn't include the Sunday of the festival and the Monday we left since we were just too tired, my hand was busted properly that day and I wasn't up to writing much during the show.

So with two of the days missing (with a lot happening in those two days) I've finished typing out my notes. Which comes to a grand total of 17,000 words over 42 pages.

Which even I have to admit is a lot. And when I get it rewritten into story form, add in those two days, add in some stories of years gone past and possibly some photos with commentary then we should be onto a winner.

You never know, I might have come home with a book after all.