 Following his departure from Edinburgh , Chatwin decided to pursue a career as a writer , successfully pitching a book proposal on nomads to Tom Maschler , publisher at Jonathan Cape . Chatwin tentatively titled the book The Nomadic Alternative and sought to answer the question " Why do men wander rather than stand still ? " Chatwin delivered the manuscript in 1972 , and Maschler declined to publish it , calling it a " chore to read . " 
