Laelaps

It was slow going, but I was able to write the first three pages of the new iteration of the dinosaur/birds chapter. (It is called, for good reason, "Footprints (and Feathers) in the Sands of Time." At least for now, anyway.) Although it contains some of the same points as my previous attempt, I have added a lot of new material. The mythological introduction is a little circuitous, but I think it works.

I had planned on working on a number of other, smaller projects over the next few months, but I think I am going to primarily concentrate on getting my proposal for this book together. I'll still have an article out in December and possibly a peer-reviewed paper in 2010, but with work, school, and my regular writing online I want to make sure I can devote a substantial part of my energy to the book.

I think the most common question I am asked is "How do you find the time to write so much?" I plan on writing a dedicated post about the question this week, but the short answer is "I'm always on." In all honesty I am not particularly exciting. I don't go out and party all night, I don't watch much TV (other than keeping up with The Daily Show online), and I spend most of my free time reading and writing. It's not something added on top of everything else; it is how I have fun.

Although I will be using many of the same lines of evidence, I have learned so much this summer that the dinosaurs/birds chapter is probably going to end up differently than I originally intended. That is a good thing, but striving for accuracy definitely draws out the process. No matter. I would rather have delays than put out a work pockmarked with errors that is more of an embarrassment than source of pride.

Here is the first Wordle for the new version of the chapter. I bet you can't guess which famous mythological figure is the focus of the first few paragraphs...

For previous book progress checkpoints, see the "Books" archive.