I Let My Thoughts Wander, and They Didn't Come Back.

Oh brother...

I always said that I'd be a lot more successful, and a lot sooner, if only I had a better memory. Oh, I've tried memory enhancers, but I could never remember to take them. It's taken me this long to train my brain to visualize properly, a trait that any good artist should be born with, but this memory thing? Just ain't happening.

So what am I blabbing about this blog, and what's it got to do with Cartooning? Well, one of the many projects on my drawing table is a bunch of short graphic stories, all humorous, and dealing with different characters and different themes... a way to stretch the abilities, a bit, and have some fun as well. I'm also still working on that Inquiring Minds kid's book, and a great big Freelance project, and that new comic strip I keep hinting about, but these short stories would give website visitors something to look at while those other projects get done, so...
I wrote out a complete outline for a really great story, complete with dialog and scenes for each page. Or.. I thought I did. The problem is, I KNOW I wrote the entire thing out, but I can't remember if I actually put it down on paper. You see, the problem with this visualization thing is, is that I remember things quite clearly... even if they never happened. Maybe I Visualised myself writing out this story, and never actually did. It's like having a dream that seems to be so realistic, and you just can't shake it off. Of course, maybe I did write it down,and just can't find it?

The problem with that is that I usually write stuff down in spiral notebooks, so that I DON'T forget things, but my notebooks have no trace of this story!

So what, you say. Stop blogging, and write it all down before you forget it!

Oops. Too late.

It's gone.

Oh, I remember bits and pieces of it, but hey... I've got two kids, and two businesses, and all kinds of stuff going on! That's why I write things down! And I could have sworn I wrote this stuff down already, so went about my business, secure in the misassumption that it was there, waiting for me to find the precious time to illustrate it.

So what, you say again.

So... I remember that the story was brilliant. I remember getting the narration just right, and the dialog, and even all of the imagery. It was perfect. Now, I'm trying to write it all down again, and my heart is breaking at the gaps that need filling, and I know that in this case, it just won't be the same. It really was the best it could be.

So let this be a lesson to you. Keep pen and paper with you at all times, and write down those brilliant thoughts, before your brain flushes them out to make room for useless trivia.

Meanwhile, what's a boy to do? Should I keep searching for notes that I'm not even sure exist, or go back to the drawing board, and hope it all comes back to me?


Hmmm... maybe I should see a hypnotist, who can try to drag the story out of my dusty memories?

The problem with that is that I'm one of those people who isn't susceptible to hynopsis.

Hmph... does'nt that just figure?