Putting it out there- Sunday Snippet

I had a whizzy idea to enter the Northern Writer's Awards just two weeks before the deadline. Actually I had hummed and haaa'd about it for ages -  I took til then to make my mind up. I had two potential pieces I thought would just need some editing work on that I could put forward. So I got distracted from my main WIP, the Machu Picchu trek book, and spent time on two possible submissions, doing more editing than writing, which also threw out my 100K challenge word count.

Then I decided the day before the deadline I couldn't possibly enter the submissions, that they needed much more work, I didn't feel they were worthy of being read by others. Dear Reader, I bottled it. 

Still, I do now have two pretty much ready to go pieces to submit next year - or to put forward as entries into something else or possibly as a pitch. If I just dare...

In the meantime, here's a snippet from my Duff Guide to Prague, Budpest and Vienna - maybe by posting snippets I'll get over my coyness...!   

I peered at the grubby window which had just closed, incredulous. "They can't have closed it. It's lunchtime, we're in an ariport, there's a queue, there are lost tourists all around. How on earth can the tourist information booth just close?" I peered at it again. Maybe they were just swapping over staff or something. But no, behind the fading postcards stuck to the glass and pens and maps that nobody could buy now even if they wanted to, there was no sign of life.

I sighed. This wasn't in the plan, the guide book or the app.

Sunday snippet

Snippet from my WIP, which is back to progressing steadily thanks to the encouragement/ prodding of the 100k words in 100 days challenge!

An incense aroma filled the room, big enough for two not quite double beds and  basic but clean enough. After a quick glance around I flopped down on the bed, feeling exhausted and starting to privately object to being on someone else's itinerary. Would it be bad manners and unsociable if I said I was skipping whatever they had planned for the rest of the day and actually just stay here on my own? I was starting to crave time alone nearly as much as sleep.

Sunday Snippet

Sunday snippet time - a little taster from the WIP (or WISP - Work In Slow Progress!) - my e-book about this year's trek to Machu Picchu...

Walking through the tiny airport to collect our bags we speculated on whether it was unfinished, under repair, or just was always this way. Looking around we decided that it probably 'just was'. A much needed trip to the toilets also gave us our first taste of what to expect in the bathroom department. The fact that there was no toilet paper and no toilet seat were the least of the problems - there were no lights and no ceiling either. Welcome to Cusco...

Sunday Snippet

Forgive me dear Reader (if you're still with me) for I have neglected my blog recently. Life, the universe and everything has been distracting me. But I have also been writing offline. So to get back into the blogging and get me into sharing which I'm bad at - at least when it comes to writing (other people read what I've written....•screams• :-O) I'm going to start posting a bit of the WIP as a Sunday Snippet. First snippet below (and am very happy for any/ all feedback...)

Oh, bit of context - it's about my trek earlier this year to Machu Picchu...

The doctor entered the room without knocking. I got ready to answer his enquiries about my health but, instead, he said gruffly, “Your insurance company – no word from them.” He then left the room. A tiny lady with a weather-beaten face topped with jet black hair came in. She smiled a gap toothed smile and we exchanged 'Buenos dias'. She proceeded to clean the room, gloveless, using the same cloth to wipe everything from the toilet to the bedside cabinet, then departed with a cheery 'Adios'.