I spent so much time reading about writing that I decided it was time to stop prepping and get to the task.

Some memories did diminish over time and I relied on my journal to recollect. For example, there is a section in my book about drug abuse. I would like to forget that I was ever involved with drugs. But it is an essential part of a story about abusive childhoods because it is common for the abused child to choose drugs as a means of escape. I had notes stuck in an old journal about what it was like to use drugs, and I was able to use those notes. I remember the day I wrote those notes about 30 years ago! It was very painful to write that I’d done drugs, and how I did them, and with whom. Other prompts to my memory were songs and pictures, dreams and meditations.

Other memories did not diminish over time. In fact, some memories became clear, and yes, sometimes I had flashbacks, but not necessarily when I chose. Some flashbacks were so extreme I had to have emergency counseling sessions.

The discipline came in NOT letting anything get away. No more could I tell myself that I would save this scene to write about later, or I’ll jot down this thought tomorrow. I recall being in the movie theater seeing “Good Will Hunting” when a thought surfaced, and I pulled out my notebook to write it down. Good thing I did, because I would have forgotten it by the time I got out of the movies. Same thing with dreams, turning on the light to write about what I’d just dreamt.

I have no children, and my husband does not expect dinner. Therefore, I had no interruptions. In fact, sometimes he brought me dinner because I was so possessed with writing. I had so much stored up that wanted to get out, and the fact that I was writing a book was always on my mind.