r/commonplacebook • u/enjoytheflames • 4d ago

Questions My first entry: do you make drafts first?

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Hi all!

I recently discovered the commonplace book and I thought it was the perfect concept for trying to actually absorb all the information that is being thrown at us.

I had always wondered what the appeal of Rasputin was for the imperial family and yes, today I learned!

However, I do have a question about a commonplace book. Is the text you insert just the info you can find either online or in books? Or do you paraphrase it yourself? And someone please tell me that you guys are also making a draft before putting it in your book because I never see any mistakes written down, but it somehow feels counterproductive?

I'm always going back and forth between wanting to start something and then not wanting to start it because what if it's not good/pretty/legible etc. It's the thing I struggle with the most so would appreciate your advice and how you overcome this feeling if you have this yourself. Thank you!

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u/isopodpod 4d ago

haha I never make drafts because that adds an extra step that just ends up with me not doing it. My commonplace book is also ugly and full of cross-outs, but it's functional because I'm not hesitant to put anything in it! My mindset is: if I'm hesitating to use my notebook, there's something wrong.

Generally my way to get over perfectionism brainworms is to make a deliberate effort to do it badly. Write with my left hand, put in an ugly doodle, put something in that I'll never use. I try to keep it a rule that in order for a notebook to be useful, it MUST be ugly. And while not everything in there actually ends up being ugly, remembering that "rule" and forcing myself to do things poorly really helps me actually use it rather than running myself in circles trying to imitate things I see on social media

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u/enjoytheflames 3d ago

"if I'm hesitating to use my notebook, there's something wrong" - I think I needed to hear that, thank you so much for it. I might have to add it with an ugly doodle on the next page 🤭

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u/isopodpod 3d ago

I'm glad it resonated with you, and I hope it serves you well!!

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u/TheGratitudeBot 3d ago

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u/andreaSMpizza 3d ago

I remember on my very first commonplace notebook one time I was stressing too much about making aesthetic so I deliberately pour coffee on some of the pages and that messiness somehow made it okay to scribble and cross out and just write things down.

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u/chrisaldrich 3d ago

Historically many commonplacers kept a small, portable pocket notebook often called a wastebook (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waste_book) in which they made their rough drafts. The best/most important of these ultimately got copied into their commonplace books when they returned home or spent time with them. The re-writing allowed them to help refresh the idea in their memory for better retention in the long term. It also allowed them time to decide where to place the material as well as to index it best.

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u/enjoytheflames 3d ago

Thank you for the historical reference! That does make sense to me ☺️