Am I A Book Licker?

Last Thursday I completed the draft of my newest novel, Hollyweird. I've been working on this novel for a long, long, long time. July of 08, Bob Gleason, from my publisher, Tor, was in LA and asked me if I would write a teen urban fantasy series--sort of like Laurel K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series (Click here: Laurell K. Hamilton Official Site ) or Kim Harrison (Click here: Kim Harrison). But instead of being for adults, mine would be aimed at teens. I jumped at the opportunity.

Bob wanted me to do something with vampires. But let's face it, there are more than enough vampire series out there. Right? So, instead I created Hollyweird. A series about a 15 1/2 year old, bi-racial necromancer who lives in Hollywood California. Kris Golden has a relationship with all things dead. She can raise the dead, spot the dead walking among us, but her main goal in life is to help lay the risen dead back to rest. In a sense she's something like a teenage The Ghost Whisperer. That's kind of a cool idea, isn't it? And guess what? No vampires... although zombies do make an appearance in the first book.

I have been editing the book since I finished. Actually, since before I finished, which is one of the reasons it took me so long to finish. And then this evening I read this post (http://www.megcabot.com/dia) on Meg Cabot's blog entitled: Don't Be A Book Licker. A book licker is someone who’s writing a novel, but instead of just finishing it and turning it in, they keep going back and re-reading it over and over, finding tiny things wrong with it, and revising it. They never actually send it in.

Have I become a book licker? I have to be honest, since this is not exactly what my publisher asked for, I am terrified to turn it in and discover they don't want it. That means I'm back to where I was three years ago--trying to get published. Oh, the horror!

I did not lick Hollyweird at all today, thank you very much. Although I thought about it. My anxiety over the book has made me a bit of a wreck. My friends have noticed. I keep saying there's nothing wrong. Do you want me to tell the truth and admit I'm a.... book licker?

Next week I have a small reading scheduled where my agent, manager and some friends will hear the first several chapters. Will I go back to book licking after that, or finally face the music and send it in?

I'm not sure. For now I am going to try and bury myself in my new project, I Want You Back, and not lick Hollyweird for an entire week.

Hello, my name is E, and I am a book-lickaholic.