Hugh Howey

Bestselling author of Wool and other books. Currently sailing around the world.

Learn more

A Life at Sea

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
St. Francis 50 – Guinevere

I just spent a week aboard the sister ship to my future catamaran. This was hull #18 of the St. Francis 50 line. I helped sail the boat to the Miami Boat Show a few weeks ago, where I put a deposit down on hull #19. The next day, a lovely couple purchased Guinevere, the boat I helped deliver. The owner then invited me back to the Bahamas to spend a week on the boat, discussing its systems and plans.

I will take delivery of hull #19, Wayfinder, in July. We will sail it from South Africa to the U.S., and I’ll live permanently aboard. I’ll have a separate blog to detail the build process and travels. There will be some changes to this website to aid in navigation and to reflect a near future of far more writing, less blogging about books, and more blogging about life. It’s amazing that I have found something even less exciting to write about than the book trade, but I have.

www.the-wayfinder.com

 

23 replies to “A Life at Sea”

Amazing! Congrats on living the dream.

Be careful to not run over any Seelies on your travels. I finally finished my kids book about tiny people living in the shoreline. :) I should include a tribe o them living aboard a catamaran.

Bit of a beat going north from SA but you probably already knew that. Other than that pretty boring trip across the sea. Spent days in the doldrums on my trip in a 41′ back in 82.

Hugh,
“some changes to this website to aid in navigation” Pun intended? Congrats. Always wanted a cat myself. She’s lovely. And Wayfinder was the chosen name of a fantasy character I wrote! Cheers.
Rob

A well deserved ‘Congratulations !’ and many, many thanks for all the encouraging help you’ve given to the rest of us ! When we follow our dreams we can achieve our goals . . . into the ‘ever after’. Thanks & all the best !

I’m intersted that you’re going with a cat. I’m planning to head out in three years or so to liveaboard/circumnavigate. I’ve always heard people say they prefer monohulls for crossings, but I know the cats are great for room, etc. Are you worried about heavy weather with your cat?

Hi Mr. Howey
My name is John Kim, and I’m a aspiring writer.
I’m very sorry but can you do me a favor?
I really need a mentor…. so would you please read my short novel and be my mentor?

ps. I’m very sorry about to ask you like this. I hope you don’t feel this is so rude.

Hi, Hugh. I was very interested to read this post. Right on. It seems you and I have very similar dreams on this front, particularly with the catamarans. Once you go cat, you never go back. ;) I love the idea of being able to write from a sailboat, but the big question you haven’t answered yet…is where you think you’ll be cruising or hanging out?

Michael

Nice of you to show off your material wealth to the less fortunate hugh. While most writers cannot earn enough to buy a cup of coffee. Materialism is alive and well in the US of A.

I lived in a 750 square foot house for 5 years, and then a 900 square foot house for 3 years to be able to afford to do this. Once I’m on the boat, I’ll generate my own power, make my own water, live at anchor for free, and have yearly living expenses below $30,000. I won’t own a car. My carbon footprint will be close to zero.

My previous boat, which I lived on for 5 years off the grid, cost me $10,000.

Frugality is alive and well. So is misplaced bitterness, it seems.

By Post Author

Struggling, this is simple – it’s not about you. And that’s some heck of a broad definition of ‘less fortunate’…anyone that can’t buy a catamaran and cast off. Perhaps check your own materialism.

Comments are closed.