The Mystery Dance

Besides being a good song by Elvis Costello, the title is a nice summary of my life at the moment. Some of that I'll fill you in on now, and some I (probably) will later. I've made mention a few times lately about the "other project" I'm working on, apart from my classes. This week will, I think, be the true test of whether or not I can take on anything else. I have had three phone interviews, the most recent today, regarding being a lead author on a textbook. There! I said it. I was worried about jinxing myself at first, which is why I didn't mention it. Now, that's the least of my concerns! I have a lot else going on with my new classes (which I didn't know about when I first interviewed for the book position) and the "other project" will involve around twenty hours of work per week. The "do-more" side of me says, "No problem!" The more practical side, one I've been trying to listen to more lately, says that's an awful lot of work on top of teaching five classes.

I will meet again by phone with the publisher next Thursday; she has asked that by then I have completed 50% of the proposal (a ridiculously lengthy document) and a proposal chapter outline. I do have an idea of what I'll write my sample chapter on. That will likely by the easy part -- other than that I will be doing it while writing syllabi for four different courses. Maybe I'll continue to pursue it. I have been talking about it for years, and I think there is a real need for the type of book I would be putting together. However, I have already committed to these other jobs. It may turn out that now just isn't the right time for me to work on this particular project. I'm past the days of working myself to death (at least, I do it less than I used to); I need to decide how much I want it and whether it will be worth what I would have to put into it. That decision should resolve itself fairly quickly. I'll know by Thursday.