The Cure for Book Amnesia: Why We Forget What We Read with Lisa Zawrotny

Have you ever opened a book only for your tracking app to tell you that you’ve already read it? This week on We Read Smut, Alesia is joined by productivity coach and host of the Positively Living podcast, Lisa Zawrotny, to discuss book amnesia. We dive into the science of why our brains filter out repetitive plot patterns, how to use "active recall" to remember your favorite stories, and why rereading a book is actually a productive form of self-care.

Lisa Zawrotny is the founder of Positively Productive Systems and the host of the Positively Living Podcast. As a productivity coach, she specializes in shame-free systems for multi-passionate creatives, caregivers, and individuals navigating life transitions or ADHD. Lisa believes that doing fun things—like reading romance—is a vital part of a productive, joy-filled life.

In this episode, we're discussing:

• The Filtering Brain: Why the "Reticular Activating System" helps us avoid sensory overload by filtering out repeat patterns in the tropes we binge-read.
• The 4 D’s of Reading: Lisa’s framework for managing your TBR: Delete what doesn't belong, Delay/Defer (the soft DNF), Delegate (audiobooks), and Do (the actual reading).
• Active Recall Strategies: Tips for remembering standout moments, from specific tagging in Story Graph to picking out "key plot points" that differentiate similar stories.
• The Power of the Reread: Why returning to a "comfort book" provides reassurance and allows distracted readers to catch details they missed the first time.
• Palate Cleansers: How switching sub-genres, spice levels, or formats can break a reading fog and make your next book more memorable.

CONNECT WITH Lisa:

Website

Instagram

BOOKS/AUTHORS MENTIONED:

• Debt by Nina G. Jones (Dark Romance/High Heat)
• All Superheroes Need PR by Elizabeth Stephens | Episode (Superhero/Monster Romance)
• Huntsman by Naima Simone | Episode (Diverse Snow White Retelling)
• Far From Neverland by River Hale (Dark Peter Pan Retelling)
• Sunny Disposition by Deanna Grey | Episode (Amnesia/Hockey Romance)

Running list of books mentioned (Doc)

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Connect with Alesia:
Storygraph

Instagram

This podcast was produced by Galati Media.
Proud member of the Feminist Podcasters Collective.