I just finished a proposal for another narrative nonfiction book.  What does a writer do while waiting to learn its fate?  If you're driven and crazy, you start writing another book.

Yep, that's what I'm doing now.  I'm jumping headlong into a new work of fiction.  It's not Rachel Porter this time but a story I've been thinking about for years.  Still, it's one thing to brood over a plot and quite another to actually sit down and start working on the book.  It's exciting, frustrating, and the most terrifying feeling in the world.

What if people think that what I'm writing about is silly?  What if no one likes the tale?  There's always the chance that readers will find the prose to be filled with cliches and the characters too wooden and one-dimensional.  Writers put themselves on the chopping block every time they begin to create.  Yet, that never stops us from taking a leap of faith.  Then why are we so fearful of criticism?  The answer is simple.

We're publicly revealing the most personal things about ourselves in each of our characters and stories – our innermost fears, our secret loves, our dreams, hurtful humiliations and betrayals.

I recently caught a George Clooney interview on "Inside the Actors Studio."  He made the comment that celebrities are so highly acclaimed and well paid because they have the courage to do what few others will – strip away the curtain and bare their souls for all to see.

Okay, I love George Clooney but we're about to have our first public spat.  Excuse me, George, but exactly who do you think creates the dialogue, the emotions, and the complex characters that actors portray?  Actors may be the public face but writers power the engine.

I love actors.  Heck, I used to be one.  But let's give writers their due.  We risk publicly humiliating ourselves with every single one of our books.

By the way, I'm hoping George Clooney sees this and takes the time to drop me a line.  I can't tell you how much I'd love to meet a movie star.