Like many writers today, Cheryl Brooks leads a busy life. She’s wife, mother, caretaker of an assortment of critters, and works full time as a Critical Care Nurse. Did I happen to mention she has five cats? I think she likes felines, a lot. Cheryl has also written a wonderful series called The Cat Star Chronicles.Busy lives means juggling and juggling means we’re going to forget something along the way; I figure that’s why sticky notes were invented. Today Cheryl talks a bit about forgetfulness.
I used to have a nearly photographic memory. I didn't forget anything, not the details of a lecture in school, not directions on how to do a procedure, not what time I was supposed to be somewhere, or what I was supposed to bring. Taking tests was easy because I could picture in my mind the page and paragraph where the answers to specific questions were located. Oh, how I wish those days were here again! It's just my luck that my writing career seems to have taken off just when my mind has decided to leave town.
I'm not alone. Meryl Streep once said she never had any trouble remembering her lines until she hit menopause. All of my friends who are about my age are having similar difficulties—walking into a room and not knowing what you went in there for, being in the shower and washing your feet twice because you don't remember washing them the first time, and forgetting to write that blog you promised to send to Sia. . .
Fortunately, the written word is there to remind us of what we've forgotten; little nudges to help avoid looking stupid. Looking back through blog comments, I found one from Sia on Wickedly Romantic that I hadn't seen, which mentioned this particular contribution. If it hadn't been for that, I probably would have felt really dumb when Sia said, at some point: “So, what about that blog you promised me?”
My husband and eldest son are tickled to death with the loss of my memory because now I'm no different from them. My youngest son has taken over as the memory vault for the family. He never forgets anything, and being mildly autistic, he has very few qualms in pointing out to you just what you've neglected. Unfortunately, he only remembers things that I remember to tell him.
This can cause problems for a writer because you have to constantly look back to see if you've already described the hero's startling green eyes or the heroine's long, silky tresses. Sometimes those details can be very difficult to find, too—mainly because they usually aren't where you remember putting them. The “find & replace” function is quite useful—if you can remember a key word. Thank heaven for email providers with unlimited storage capacities. If I had to shuffle through actual letters, I'd never make it. As it is, I'm so pleased I can point out that, yes, in the email dated such-and-such, I told you about. . .
A few days ago, I recalled (amazingly enough) the old adage that “Rosemary is for Remembrance.” Desperate to recover that which I had lost, I made some rosemary tea, which I drank a few sips of off and on throughout the day—and, yes, it tastes just as bad as you think it would. I believe it helped some, but obviously, I should have made more of it today when I went to the bank and forgot to bring along the checks that needed cashing.
Some days, it just doesn't pay to leave the house.
I'm not alone. Meryl Streep once said she never had any trouble remembering her lines until she hit menopause. All of my friends who are about my age are having similar difficulties—walking into a room and not knowing what you went in there for, being in the shower and washing your feet twice because you don't remember washing them the first time, and forgetting to write that blog you promised to send to Sia. . .
Fortunately, the written word is there to remind us of what we've forgotten; little nudges to help avoid looking stupid. Looking back through blog comments, I found one from Sia on Wickedly Romantic that I hadn't seen, which mentioned this particular contribution. If it hadn't been for that, I probably would have felt really dumb when Sia said, at some point: “So, what about that blog you promised me?”
My husband and eldest son are tickled to death with the loss of my memory because now I'm no different from them. My youngest son has taken over as the memory vault for the family. He never forgets anything, and being mildly autistic, he has very few qualms in pointing out to you just what you've neglected. Unfortunately, he only remembers things that I remember to tell him.
This can cause problems for a writer because you have to constantly look back to see if you've already described the hero's startling green eyes or the heroine's long, silky tresses. Sometimes those details can be very difficult to find, too—mainly because they usually aren't where you remember putting them. The “find & replace” function is quite useful—if you can remember a key word. Thank heaven for email providers with unlimited storage capacities. If I had to shuffle through actual letters, I'd never make it. As it is, I'm so pleased I can point out that, yes, in the email dated such-and-such, I told you about. . .
A few days ago, I recalled (amazingly enough) the old adage that “Rosemary is for Remembrance.” Desperate to recover that which I had lost, I made some rosemary tea, which I drank a few sips of off and on throughout the day—and, yes, it tastes just as bad as you think it would. I believe it helped some, but obviously, I should have made more of it today when I went to the bank and forgot to bring along the checks that needed cashing.
Some days, it just doesn't pay to leave the house.
***
Cheryl Brooks is the author of The Cat Star Chronicles. This series of erotic science fiction novels explores the lives of the last of a race of feline lovers captured in war and sold into slavery. Discover how the men of Zetith could make an entire galaxy of men jealous enough to destroy their race... Slave was the first of Cheryl's books to be published with Sourcebooks Casablanca. What makes it even more exciting is that they have asked for five more novels in this series!
Cheryl is a native of Louisville, KY, and graduated from the Kentucky Baptist Hospital School of Nursing and then went on to earn a BSN from Indiana University. Horse crazy from the time she knew what a horse was, her family moved to rural Indiana in 1989. Since then, she's managed to accumulate four horses and five cats. Cheryl has been working full-time as a critical care nurse for more than thirty years, which can be exciting, but she's itching for a different kind of excitement!
Cheryl's other interests include cooking, gardening, singing and guitar playing. "I'm really hurt that The Eagles got back together without me!"
You can visit Cheryl at her website: http://cherylbrooksonline.com/index.html . And catch her blogs at Wickedly Romantic http://wickedlyromantic.blogspot.com/ andn Cheryl Brooks Erotic Blogspot
You can visit Cheryl at her website: http://cherylbrooksonline.com/index.html . And catch her blogs at Wickedly Romantic http://wickedlyromantic.blogspot.com/ andn Cheryl Brooks Erotic Blogspot
Available in June 2009
