Like a lot of things in my life, this all started because I was avoiding something I somehow convinced myself I should be doing. In this particular case, from a young age, I have told myself I should be the kind of person that journals. I love to write. I have big feelings. Therefore, I should like putting them down on paper regularly, right?

The problem is—in classic autistic/perfectionist/eldest daughter form—journaling in reality gives me massive anxiety. I am perpetually convinced that I am doing it wrong. Which is unbelievably neurotic, but also means I have purchased so many journals over the years that I will put a single journal entry in and never touch again. It’s wasteful and it never managed to scratch that itch of wanting to put something down on paper. That is until I stumbled across the idea of a commonplace book.

what is a commonplace book?

First of all, I have to thank this video for introducing me to the idea originally. I may not be a journal-keeper, but I am a life-long magpie, who has always loved collecting things like quotes and pictures wherever I might find them. Enter: the commonplace book. Apparently, this is a centuries old concept. The idea is that you keep a notebook solely for the purpose of collecting. What you collect is really up to you; it could be anything from book quotes to recipes to newspaper clippings. The point is everything is in one place for you to be able to reference later. Which I have to say is a much better and neater system than my sporadic Notes app ramblings + decade old Tumblr blog + random notebooks. With the rise of the “thought daughter” and critical thinking discourse, it’s a practice that’s getting a bit of a resurgence at the moment.

what’s in my commonplace book?

In my last Substack, I talked about leaning into and falling into curiosity rabbit holes, and my commonplace book is where I’ve been collecting a lot of my favorite nuggets. I bought a ridiculously large notebook for this purpose and have been assigning each page a theme as the need arises. From there I add any quotes I like, but also artwork I find and enjoy. (For the art I’ve been using my HP Sprocket Printer, since it prints little compact stickers.) On some pages I write thoughts and musings, but for the most part, I’ve purely been embracing my inner magpie and filling the pages with things I’ve loved and found inspiring from other people. It makes for great inspiration when I get a bit creatively stuck or just want a chill way to get my morning going. In a delightful turn of events, this practice has also led me to digital gardening.

what on earth is digital gardening?

Now I fully have to credit Anna Howard’s two part series on digital gardening for introducing me to this concept in the first place. The idea is essentially maintaining an evolving collection of exploratory notes on topics of interest. This could be done in a variety of ways, but the way Anna presents it, and the way I’ve really connected with it, is essentially using it as a means to ensure that you are truly learning from and engaging with what you’re consuming.

Say for instance, you’re reading a book. You’d take casual notes throughout—things like quotes, observations, brief takeaways. Then after reading, take the time to go deeper, pull out any themes you think the author is addressing and how, but also write out what you think about those themes. Now, this is a very simplified explanation of the process, but the overall idea is that it is a strategy for building better engagement and attention span, but also for discovery and inspiration as a creative. Obviously it’s just for you, so nothing about it needs to be perfect, and the focus can simply be on what feels relevant for you. This can just be for your own delight and mental stimulation.

why do all of this?

As someone who consumes an absurd amount of media (125+ books this year so far, not to mention podcasts, essays, movies, etc.), I had recently started to worry how much I was actually getting out of it all. Was I actually engaging with the concepts I was being introduced to? Or was it all in one ear and out the other? Combining these two practices has not only forced me to slow down (and avoid multi-tasking so much!), but also endeavor to learn and retain more from what I consume. Instead of doomscrolling and feeling wired all the time, I feel mentally engaged, excited to learn, and not overwhelmed by it all.

As far as reading and writing specifically go, these practices have been a total game-changer. I write articles about books for two different websites, ARC reviews for soon-to-be-released books, and essays on here. Having notes about everything I read as a standard practice makes my life so much easier.

resources

my commonplace notebook: Leuchtturm Hardcover A4+

starting a commonplace book:

what I use for my digital garden: milanote

anna howard’s digital gardening series:

as always, thank you for reading!

xoxo,

bri