Is there no end to this writing trip?

Actually, there is. I have one more week to go before I fly home to settle back at my desk in Amsterdam, where – I hope – the line edits for my new Dutch middle grade Boreas en de duizend eilanden (Boreas and the Thousand Island) will be waiting for me.

Am I excited to go back home?

I have mixed feelings. It’ll be great to wander around in my own house again, to sleep in my own bed, to eat the delicious spelt bread from the store around the corner, and above all it will be absolutely fabulous to see my favorite curly-headed boy in real life again. Skyping and texting is an excellent way to keep in touch but it isn’t the same as the real face-to-face thing. I’m looking forward to hugging him.

So, where do the mixed feelings come in?

I haven’t finished the manuscript. I know I still have one week to go but that might not be enough and I have my beta readers lined up. Don’t want to disappoint them. Or myself. So, I’ll be writing my fingers blue this coming week. The story ending has formed in my head and it’ll be just a matter of pounding out the words. Tricky thing is, when I pound out words, my characters sometimes surprise me by changing direction, as if their true North suddenly moved. I will need all my navigation skills to hold a steady course and not let the story divert.

And should I stray, I will call upon my muse to whip up a good storm to blow me back on course.