One thing has remained consistent about my approach to writing, from a seven-year-old in love with stories and Care Bears to a 32-year old full-time writer with publishing contracts in 18 languages—I always, always carry a notebook. Spiral-bound flipbooks in my back pocket. A jotter in the glove box of my car. One of my kids’ discarded drawing pads in my bathroom (yes, my bathroom). And, where possible, beautiful hardback notebooks in my office, handbag, and bedside table.
Carolyn is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 1 week;
winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. (Update: Michelle M. won.)
the award-winning poetry collection Inroads (Seren,
Wales: 2010) and four academic books on Shakespeare
and film. Her debut novel, The Guardian Angel’s Journal,
came out April 1, 2011, and is being translated in 17
languages. She was born in 1978 in Northern Ireland
and currently lives in England. See her website here.
These notebooks are not used as diaries, nor do I tend to write more than a page at a time—these are for “lightbulb” moments, scribbles of dialogue, hastily composed plotlines, factual information or a headline that interests me, or just fragments of something-or-other that strikes me as interesting. If my house was on fire, I would fight tooth and nail to retrieve these notebooks. Why? Because they contain pure gold.
I return to these notebooks constantly, sometimes over a decade after first writing an idea. When I was eighteen or so I had an incredible idea for a title, though I had no clue what the story was or whether the title was for a poem, novel, or even a screenplay. Fourteen years later, I’m working on the novel that bears that title. Similarly—going back a bit further—I had an idea sometime around the age of seventeen for a screenplay which remains unfinished due to the fatal combination of lack of confidence and no clue how to get past the first plot point. The idea has stuck with me—a sign that there is clearly something working there—and so I plan to develop the initial idea as a novel in the future.
My notebooks serve as a very practical toolbox, too—on many occasions I’ve been asked to produce a piece of work within a crazily tight deadline, and I find that, most often, coming up with the idea for a commissioned work can take more time than actually writing it. Hence, notebooks—packed with ideas that can be developed to fit the bill, the random, undeveloped ideas I had many years ago have fished me out of deep water more times than I care to admit.
And while I’m selling the act of carrying a notebook at all times, let me divulge the most important benefit: notebooks can counter writer’s block. Whether you feel you have nothing to say or have something to say but are afraid of writing it, writer’s block is a vicious, draining, and highly inconvenient experience that all of us will encounter at one time or another. Dipping into past ideas can provide an imaginary ladder over the obstacle of writer’s block. The “a-ha!” moment that writer’s block ultimately prohibits is achieved by simply flicking through your own notes—after all, it was precisely an ‘aha!’ moment that made you write it down in the first place. Even if your ideas seem a little dumb, a little callow, or even a little silly on second reading, you can take them somewhere, give them some muscle, trim the flab, or even alter the tone to suit your purpose. At the very least, re-reading your notes should spark some new ideas—and so the notebooks flow.
The reason I believe that $1 might make you a bestselling author is down to the simple fact that continually writing down ideas is the only way to keep drilling down to the good stuff that agents and publishers will leap at. A notebook needn’t be expensive—especially if, like me, you want to pepper your house and car with them—and, if need be, you can always use your hand, a ticket stub or a napkin to write on until you can transcribe your ideas into your notebook later in.
There are many pathways to becoming a writer that will put you out of pocket—degree programs, mentoring schemes, online tutoring—and, for sure, some of these may be grand. But the quickest, cheapest, and most perennial way to “become” a writer is pen and paper—done often enough it will, as they say, reap the benefits.
Carolyn is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 1 week;
winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. (Update: Michelle M. won.)
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That’s a wonderful idea. I find that once I have an idea, I can run with it – but it often takes me longer than anticipated to come up with that idea!
I do the same thing although my nightstand is also ridden with a bunch of tiny scraps of paper where I scribble down thoughts that come to me in the middle of the night.
Much agreed! I have notebooks all over my apartment and I love finding notebooks that I haven’t seen in years and reading some of the fantastical ideas that I was thinking at the time. While most of my writing revolves around fanfiction (nerd alert!) it’s all the same: writing is the best way to keep the juices flowing. My favorite part is that I’m constantly surrounded by sticky notes whenver I don’t have my notebook (most often at work because I forget them at home – d’oh!) and it’s colorful fun. Thanks for the encouragement that I’m not the only one with 15 notebooks all around me!
The notebook is vital– because the alternative is scribbling ideas on used store receipts at a red light, scrambling for a pen and ending up using a lipliner pencil.
Er… not that I have EVER done that.
Yes, very important to capture those "Eureka!" moments. Still have to surmount the belief that what lurks within would not interest enough folks to make it publishable. In 2007, I returned from military service in Afghanistan, convinced that I could tell a good story about my time there; even fleshed out and outline and wrote almost two chapters. Then I stopped, probably because there just wasn’t enough flash in the tale. My deployment was ordinary — no heroic moments, no near-death experiences, no shooting at the bad guys. But I am grateful that I kept a hand-written diary; in 11 months, I missed a daily entry only rarely. Best wishes to you, Miss Jess-Cooke.
I find dating notebook entries work.
Now, if only I can blog consistenly to also help with the manuscript …
Great advice! One of my notebook ideas recently pulled me through a terrible case of writers block.
I love to buy new notebooks! Just like a fresh pack of crayons for kids….
I awoke at 3am the other morning and had two lightbulb moments in which I grabbed my iPhone and used the notes features to scribble down my thoughts. It worked even better than a notebook because it is inherently illuminated. No need to fuss with the bedside light and my fingers fly faster than my hand writes.
I love writing down ideas on scraps or my different notebooks too. I’ll start writing about anything to get in the creative mood. Since I work on the computer all day, I also type ideas into my idea file. All these notes actually save me time because soemthing will seem like a developed novel idea in my head, but then I realize it’s more of a writing practice. Thanks for the great blog post!
Love this idea so much. I get so many ideas, I do try to jot down when I can but find that I lose my papers or worse, forget the A Ha by the time I get to write it down. I will be implementing this idea rather quickly. Thanks for sharing!
I do this very same thing, and I encourage as many people as possible to do so as well because the benefits can not be ignored.
I have a pocket sized notebook, three notepads, and various binders all throughout my home. Because of these notebooks, I have sifted through the good and the ugly and found some pure gold ideas. One recently, if I must say so myself, is so brilliant it sent shivers down my spine.
Anyway, thank you for sharing with everyone your idea!
Checked! The notebook is on my backpack now!
I can´t count how many times I have had an idea and forgot it because I haven´t write it down.
Thank you for the advice.
It is so refreshing to read about someone else who has a "thing" for notebooks too. I love them and have them all over my house and car. My husband just doesn’t understand. I think I shall forward this blog to him so that he knows I am not the only one. Thanks!
What a good idea. I keep random ideas in my computer, but it seems like it would be easier to look back or shuffle through a book instead of trying to locate something on my hard drive. Thanks!
I absolutely agree. I keep a notebook with me at all times. One of the things that has been helpful for me has been to routinely transfer those notes to a document on my computer. Being forced to read over them, compile them in an organized manner and think about them anew often helps me move from that first spark of an idea to a full blown story. Not to mention that it makes them much easier to search through later.
I have notebooks everywhere. Now and then I will stumble across one that I forgot about and rediscover ideas as though they were written by someone else. It’s like a treasure hunt!
If I don’t write down those sudden "lightbulb" ideas as they strike, it never fails they slip away. I keep notebooks and index cards everywhere. I even recycle outdated notes from my kids’ school into notepads.
Reading your post was enough for me to jump in my car and head off to purchase one of those little spiral notebooks. I have been having a rough time lately thinking of what to write for my next book. Perhaps having that little thing in my purse will give me an "ah-ha" moment! Thank you for the advice.
Patti
I always think that I’ll remember my great ideas but less than an hour later, it is often forgotten. I’ll try out the notebooks.
After all my years of writing, I still need the reminder that some of the best tools (and advice!) are the simplest things.
Note the self: don’t complicate stuff. Grab a notebook and run with it.
What a great idea for a book. A second look with a unique premise. I have a shoebox with ideas in it. The really good ideas, the ones that hang on the fringe of your consciousness when you’re waking up or when you’re in the shower or walking and an idea pops in your head: carry an index card aroun dwith you if you don’t want a notebook. Write down not only rhe idea but the context of the idea you had in mind. An idea with no context is just that: an idea. You would be surprised how often I go to the shoebox for inspiration when I suddenly draw a blank. Doing a "card-flip" can take your writing to strange and wonderful places.
Thank you for the wonderful reminder
Rich Snyder
I was concerned about the handbag, Chuck until I realized it was an interview for Carolyn Jess Cooke and not one of your tips. Great post. Thanks for sharing.
Ann
cozyintexas@yahoo.com
I already have notebooks going. I couldn’t function without them. I would love to read this book. The cover art is super!
I carry a spiral whereever I go.
Debbie
Always be prepared! (Not just for boy scouts.)
Good idea! I have many notebooks, too. My problem is getting back to the notebook and using what is inside!! I will make that my challenge: to look through all the pages and start writing!
I totally agree! I read somewhere that writers are a different breed, that no one understands, as their brains are constantly thinking, putting words together during the oddest times, and always looking for scraps of paper to write these strokes of genius down.
Kudos to you if you always had a journal. They sell at Walmart for less than $1 around back-to-school time – stack up! But, when I TRY to think of a title for my make your child smarter using sensory integration book, I am completely FAILING! Use keyword search, they say – HA! Anyhow, as a former claims adjuster, I am trained to write down everything, whenever I am talking on the phone, so I do have notes on everything from wedding invitations to report cards! Thanks for the article. Now, if I can only find where to store it so I can remember where to find it……
I’ll admit – I’m a big geek when it comes to technology. And since it always seems my phone is at hand, I take the notebook to a technological solution.
Most phones have some form of voice recording feature. When I want to record an idea, but don’t have a pen or notebook or scrap of paper handy, I just grab the phone and record my thoughts. They’re there until I delete them, and they carry the mood of the moment as captured in my voice. Combine it with a hands free set-up in the car, and I can self-dictate!
I always keep a notebook with me. You never know when the muse might strike whether it be something you see or hear on the radio.
Good idea, I often think about an idea, planning to write it down later. When later comes, I’ve forgotten it.
Heather
As the years roll by, I find myself relying more and more on having paper and pen nearby because that wonderful conversation between two elderly gentlemen I overheard, or that bush beside the road that inspires me, must be written down straight away before I lose that thought.
In Walt Whitman’s "Leaves of Grass" he said, “In the faces of men and women I see God, and in my own face in the glass, I find letters from God dropped in the street, and every one is signed by God’s name. And I leave them where they are, for I know that wherever I go, others will punctually come for ever and ever." Like Whitman, I am always looking for those letters dropped in the street.
This is so true! I’ve lost count of the number of notebooks I have around my home. I’ve never thought to put one in my glovebox though! Thank you for the great article!
Enjoyed the confirmation of jotting ideas down for future use, however fragmented or strange. Notebooks are true saviors for all writers; never let those cerebral gems float out into oblivion. – RW:)
This is awesome. I think I need to get a little notebook to fit in my purse. I’m often struck with an idea while I’m out, but have no where to write it down.
I have been using scrap paper and notebooks for those "aha!" moments for many years. I have as often as not had a single line to a poem, written down months or years ago, turn into a salable poem. I wrote the following poem about this very syndrome in 2003:
The Poet’s Curse
by Betty Houle
Little bits of paper
lying here and there
with a word, a phrase or two,
a poem if I dare.
Ideas come at will;
I lose myself in thought;
I think and write and doodle
and don’t do what I ought.
They haunt me day and night;
they commandeer my mind.
I write instead of working
and quickly fall behind.
As the guardian of dozens of writing notebooks that live in a storage tub in the basement, you make me feel as if I’m doing something right. Thanks for the validation!
I too keep notepads everywhere. I once got an idea while waiting for my order at a Dairy Queen. and grabbed my notepad to jot it down before I forgot. The girl at the drive-thru window greeted me with, "Well, aren’t WE the queen of multi-taskers!"
Those scrawlings have worked their way into my WIPs more often than I can recount here. In fact, it was a scene from a 25-year-old notebook I found while cleaning out my closet that became the basis for the book I am currently querying. I scribble down dreams, overheard snippets of conversation, funny or novel situations I encounter, tag lines, titles, quotations, story ideas — you name it. They’re fun to review from time to time.
Good blog. I’ll read your book whether I win it or not.
I love (and live) the notebook idea. I use my iPhone "Notes" since I’m never more than 2 feet away from my phone, in or out of the house, at any time. It didn’t help me last night, though, falling asleep during a Seinfeld rerun, when I GREAT idea popped into my head. My phone was right there, but I was too exhausted to reach for it. The idea was SO AWESOME that I was positive that I would remember it as soon as I woke up. You already know the end of this story. When I woke up, I remembered how amazing the idea was, but …. beyond the wonderful-ness of it, ….NOTHING!
There is nothing worse than having a great thought light upon your brain only to fly away before you can jot it down. One time I was so desperate I grabbed toilet paper from a public bathroom and penned a scene. It was a little difficult to read but served its purpose. Thanks for the reminder. I have a weakness for notebooks, journals anything made from paper so it isn’t difficult to plant them strategically around me.
Lots of great ideas. I like the idea of carrying around little notebooks, because I often forget the idea before I find a place to write it. The idea of using the voice recorder on my phone is intriguing as well. I may have to check that out.
I am so encouraged by your article. I thought the art of writing on paper was dead. With all of the technology devices out now I felt compelled ( to be in the 21 st century) to use my iPhone or iPad notes to document my ideas. I must say it’s great but there’s nothing like the actual pen to paper to spark the brain. That tactile sensation that only a pen or pencil can bring may be old fashion but still obviously is felt by more people than I thought. Yea! I’m on my way out the door to buy some new notebooks to match my personality and mood. Look out stationary department!!
I always carry around paper in my pocket and a pen at the very least….especially to the movie theater. I used to put all my notes into the computer…either type them there or type up my handwritten notes, but, really, I’m starting to think that I work best with paper. So, I’m handwriting notes more now. It seems to help me focus too. So, it’s funny I read this right now when I seem to be making the switch to writing by hand rather than typing my plethora of notes and even first drafts. Thanks for your article!
If I get an idea at night I absolutely can not fall asleep until I’ve written it down. Of course these ideas sometimes inspire others, but that’s another story for another day. If I didn’t have paper and something to writes with (something, anything) there will be no sleep until I can hunt those items down. I’ve also texted ideas to myself before, as my phone has no voice recorder or memo pad. You’ll be surprised where you can find some form of paper when the muse strikes (paper towels, receipts, checkbook…). Keeping notebooks around is a novel saver (and a sleep saver) Your article was spot on!
The article makes a lot of sense. When I began journal-writing as a kid, I knew that I wanted to become a writer. I wrote every day. Reading the article has reminded me that, to have a writing career, all I have to do is to keep writing.
I love this idea and have been doing this for a while now. i have notebooks all over the place as well. I have several steno size note book with different colored paper, that helps me keep my thoughts organized. Great idea for any new writer!!
Thats amazing, I have about a million notebooks and I am in the middle of writing a book right now!
An inspiring article with lots of food for thought. The invaluable notebook. Wasn’t Harry Potter first blotted onto a tiny napkin served up with an inflight snack? Thank you, Carolyn, for reminding me to reattach myself to one of our most valuable tools of the trade – a simple notebook.
I have notebooks everywhere. They lay on the basement stairs. Scraps of paper, jotterings of nonsense stuck to walls and parked under flower pots. Nonsense to everyone but me. My girlfriend threatens, yet i persist.
All that note taking and not one book on a shelf… Why? maybe I write in to many notebooks.
I have a ton of ideas and notebooks, I just haven’t gotten through them all to write them yet. I come up with ideas with out too much problem…its just a matter of…do I want to stop the plot line I”m currently working on to write on this one I just thought of. That is the hardest part…deciding to stop one to pick up the new one. But I did finish two kids stories and sent them to a friend to see if she can do the drawings for them. I am hoping that if she can do them, that I can get them put up on Amazon in a year or so.
But yes, I do have a lot of notebooks and a lot of binders.
Chuck,
Thanks so much for having Carolyn as a guest on your blog.
Carolyn,
I appreciate your dedication to keeping notebooks in every place possible for your writing endeavors. That really shows how much you honor yourself as a writer. I think keeping notebooks is a fabulous idea; it’s a great way to capture what matters to you, what you notice. And you can never know what it will lead to. I’m a huge fan of journaling, so your post resonated with me.
So, I have chosen your post, How $1 Could Make You a Best Selling Author, as the #JournalChat Pick of the Day for all things journaling on Twitter.
I will post a link on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, my blog and website Refresh with Dawn Herring, and in Refresh Journal, my weekly e-journal:http://www.refreshwithdawnherring.blogspot.com/ .
I host a weekly chat on journaling called #JournalChat Live on Thursdays at 5 EST/2 PST on Twitter; you’re welcome to join us. This week’s topic is Journaling: Your Approach and Intent.
Thanks again for sharing the importance of keeping a notebook, actually many!, for writing success. It was an inspiring read.
Be refreshed,
Dawn Herring
JournalWriter Freelance
Host of #JournalChat Live and Links Edition on Twitter
In an age of electronics, paper notebooks are often overlooked. They keep notes together. I often use scraps of paper as well, and then hope the cats don’t knock them off my desk before I get back to them.
Malcolm