Soon after leaving the full-time work world early in 2010, I made two resolutions connected to my reading life. The first was to start keeping a book journal and the next was to join my first-ever book club. In turn, implementing those two resolutions led me to begin - almost immediately - a new practice of taking notes on most of the books I read. I hoped that doing this might help my journal entries be more cogent and also ensure any comments I made at book club meetings would remain grounded in the texts. In addition, from my years as an adult educator I knew that writing things down enhanced my chances of remembering them.
What I didn't realize when beginning that new practice was how handy those book notes would end up being when I decided to kick off my blog about a year later. In a textbook case demonstrating how the law of unintended consequences plays out, both my notes and my book journal helped me immeasurably in the nascent days of my blog, providing ideas for some early posts. But that benefit was just the beginning.
After almost thirteen years writing down the words of others, I have a treasure chest of adjectives, nouns, and verbs. My collection of startling sentences, fresh metaphors, and rich insights helps me every time I write a blog post, a song, or work on the full-length book I hope to finish. I'm only about halfway through Maggie O'Farrell's 2017 memoir - I am, I am, I am - and look at what I've already uncovered: "...a tiny rhomboid of a garden...", "...inert as argon...", "The town lies across the bay, a necklace of lights strung along the sand."
Will I remember any of O'Farrell's beautiful language? Doesn't matter. How can it do anything but help me to write down her words? I'm far enough along in Act Three to recognize any acclaim as a writer is not in my future. But I can continue to steadily improve if I keep up this practice I began in 2010. What steps could you take to help you steadily improve at something as important to you as being a better writer is to me?
Love the way you share ideas about a process of becoming. I also have kept a book journal started in the 90’s. It used to be detailed and full of epiphanies that were summoned up by passage's. As the years passed, it became less detailed and more proof that I read the book. Sometimes it’s reduced to the title, author, and date with a promise to return and finish the entry.
ReplyDeleteNice the way you share your writer’s way of knowing how improve write by reading. These little tricks welcome readers to the best of clubs - becoming a writer. Time to reevaluate my journal. Instead of just dog earring pages while reading, I’ll write the lines that are too good to leave behind.
Anonymous; Thanks for the gracious and honest comment. Glad to hear you are "re-evaluating" and I especially like your phrase about writing down "...the lines that are too good to leave behind."
DeleteGood morning, Pat. Back when I was a full time student - a little in HS and mostly when I started college, I was much more inclined to keep track of things. Things I read. Things I heard. Things that I felt were worth making note of. And this was in the early to mid 70's so making notes on my smart phone, tablet, or computer were many, many, years away. When I started working full time I stopped keeping track of things. Although there were easier, cleaner (my handwriting is quite bad so typing is so much cleaner for me) and faster ways of doing this, I didn't. Either because of the work I was doing, lack of time, or because it simply fell by the wayside. Being back in a classroom - albeit short, 3 or 4 week, term classes - I have begun to take notes again. It may be the high points that an instructor is making, or maybe a comment that they, or someone else in the class, has made, but I'm writing these things down ... again. Not for any long range plans, or specific purpose, but because I found what was said, read, or learned, to be interesting and worth making note of. I didn't always appreciate it when I was going through it, but I've often said that I miss being a full time student. This is one of the reasons.
ReplyDeleteBe well,
Bob
ob; Thanks for two comments in one day, again. Glad to hear you've gotten back in the habit of writing things down even if it's not for "...long-range plans, etc". At minimum, doing this will enhance your chances of remembering some of what you write down. How can that be bad thing?
DeleteHi there, I've known for many years that you collect sentences and phrases from the books you read, while my book journal contains more plot synopsis-style entries. But this post has inspired me. Reading your beautiful O'Farrell quotes is the inspiration to start dressing up my journal entries with a few memorable phrases. Thanks for always helping me move forward.
ReplyDelete"Anonymous" Kim; You're welcome. I'm humbled by you saying I "inspired" you and that I "...help you move forward." Made my day.
DeleteOops...that anonymous above was from me!
ReplyDelete