I've spent days, off and on, trying to get a handle on my next book proposal. I know the subject matter but how best to express it? This one doesn't seem to be like the others I've done. It doesn't quite have a life of its own but it's telling me to write, stream-of-consciousness, and then work up a formal proposal. Oh, I don't mean that I'm just writing the usual introduction and sample chapters but I keep writing, pouring out thoughts and at some point, I guess I'll see if it makes sense, if I can turn it into a proposal, if I can pull together the pieces, or pull them apart, examine them and then do the work necessary to create an acceptable formal proposal.

It's an interesting process. It's always an interesting process, if somewhat daunting. To create something from nothing, put down words and try to make an impact, change people's way of thinking, how they view things. There's tremendous responsibility in that and tremendous satisfaction when it works.

The entire book publishing process is something of an enigma. From the writer's point of view it means finding a topic and getting it through the book proposal stage, having an agent who cares about your career and is as interested in the topic as you are, thinks it will sell and then goes out and sells it for you. It seems a miracle that we find an agent, find ideas -- or ideas find us -- that a publisher is interested and willing to put money behind it and then there's the process of writing, working with an editor, a copy editor, pouring over galleys and ultimately holding the finished book in your hands. So many variables along the way, so many potential stumbling blocks. Each book takes on a life of its own and someone else, several someones in fact, must share the author's enthusiasm for the project.

Yes, I'm feeling a little introspective tonight. Maybe a lot introspective. Why do I write? Why do any of us do it? I believe the answer to that is different for each of us and for that we must each search within ourselves.