Author Name:
Cheryl Landes
Book Title:
The Best I Can Do: A True Story of Navigating the Complexities of Mental Illness and Homelessness
Website Link:
Social Media Links:
Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/clandes.bsky.social
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheryllandes
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clandes
Publication Date:
March 8, 2024
Publisher:
Tabby Cat Communications (self-published)
What is your book about?
The Best I Can Do is a memoir about my navigating and surviving mental illness as a caregiver. My late husband had symptoms of a mental illness the last 20 years of his life. The symptoms were never diagnosed because he didn’t trust anyone, and he didn’t believe he needed help. This book describes my experiences during his decline, which resulted in increased financial problems and both of us becoming homeless at different times and in different locations. I was homeless four times from 2005 through 2009—three times in Massachusetts and once in Seattle—and my husband was homeless the last 11 years of his life in New York City.
What inspired you to write your book?
I wanted to show a different side of mental illness and homelessness. The media portrays mentally ill and homeless people as violent and addicted to drugs. In reality, most people who are struggling with their mental health are not violent, and those who might be harmful tend to hurt themselves instead of others. According to Mental Health America, 95-97% of homicidal violence using guns is not carried out by people with a mental illness.
People 65 and older are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population because they can’t afford housing on their fixed incomes. The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates by 2030, homelessness in this age group will triple.
Many people who are homeless are working one or more jobs. According to the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, 40-60% of people who are homeless are working. Minimum-wage earners would need to work at least 86 hours a week to afford a one-bedroom apartment (data from 2022).
My husband and I were middle-class, and his symptoms began when the stress at his sales job increased. Later, I learned from one of his brothers that he had some problems in high school, but everyone who knew him assumed he was “going through a phase.” The symptoms stopped after he entered college, where we met, and didn’t resurface until the ninth year of our marriage.
Can you describe your writing process? How did you get your book written and how long did it take?
I started writing this book in 2006 but mostly procrastinated for 14 years. It’s because writing a memoir means the author is reliving her experiences, and I was still recovering from these experiences. Then, when the COVID pandemic struck in 2020, something deep inside started nagging me to finish this story. I hired a book coach to support me and keep me accountable. Then I told my business coach what I was doing, and she also held me accountable to finishing this project.
What was your publishing process like? How did you publish your book and how long did it take?
I self-published this book using Lulu after Stephanie Chandler recommended it during some of her book marketing presentations. I hired a designer to create my book cover and finished the manuscript layout myself. I have a lot of experience in desktop publishing because of my background as a technical writer.
The process of publishing on Lulu was easy. I set up an account, created a project, added the details about the book, and uploaded the files to publish.
How do you hope your book impacts the world?
I hope it helps readers who haven’t been affected by mental illness and homelessness understand that mental illness affects people in different ways, and homelessness can happen to anyone. By learning more about mental illness and homelessness, we can reduce the stigma surrounding these topics.
I also hope my book brings hope to other caregivers by letting them know they are not alone.
Are there any people and/or books that have inspired you along your journey?
In addition to my book and business coaches, I attended two local online writing groups regularly and finished a lot of writing during those sessions. In one group, we could choose to write to prompts the facilitator provided or write whatever we wanted. We took turns sharing what we wrote and the others in the group would tell us what worked well in the piece. We didn’t offer suggestions for improvement because the writing was considered in draft form, so we hadn’t had a chance to edit it. There weren’t any prompts in the other writing group. We logged in at a scheduled time, wrote for 45 minutes, took a 15-minute break, and repeated the cycle one or two more times.
What’s next for you?
I’m working on a “cat memoir” titled Misty: An Angel with Four Paws. In 2011, while recovering from my experiences in The Best I Can Do, a close friend and I found a stray Siamese cat behind a restaurant after dinner one night and rescued her. The cat and I bonded, I named her Misty, and we traveled coast to coast while I freelanced onsite for my technical communication clients.
Like many Siamese cats, Misty knew exactly what she wanted and had creative ways of communicating it to me. Throughout our six years together, I learned a lot from her self-confidence and having her as a companion helped me heal from many of the scars brought on by my husband’s mental illness and being homeless.
My goal is to publish Misty: An Angel with Four Paws in the spring of 2026.
What advice would you offer fellow authors who are just getting started?
Don’t give up. It can be easy to become discouraged, but you have stories to tell, and the world needs to receive them. Find people who understand what you’re doing and will genuinely support you throughout your journey.
Did you know we host a year-round Nonfiction Book Awards program? Check it out!
