How Does a Commonplace Book Benefit Writers?

An easy and fun way to keep up with what you’ve been reading, a commonplace book is simply a place to store quotes and information. It’s so exciting to keep this notebook next to you while reading and jotting down impactful passages.

Besides just storing quotes, you can also place pictures in your commonplace book. You could even clip images out of junk mail, old magazines or newspapers, wrapping paper, cardboard grocery packaging, and more. As you choose images for this knowledge receptacle, infinite possibilities await you.

If you’re artsy, you might also paint, draw, or do calligraphy in your commonplace book. For example, you might match a quote about peace with your own painting of a sunset representing tranquility.

Now that I’ve explained what a commonplace book is and how to use it, you might wonder how it’s relevant for writers. This thrilling tool provides you with infinite inspiration and encourages good habits.

While it may sound like a cliche, writing skillfully demands that you read avidly. Some writers neglect reading which lowers the quality of their writings. What better way is there to have a thrilling, immersive reading experience than to combine it with another entertaining pursuit? Moments you spend using a commonplace book require you to think carefully about what you’re reading, and it allows you to make reading an opportunity to exercise your own creative expression alongside it. As a writer, you must maintain this passion for reading.

The ideas the commonplace book exposes you to benefit you. If you’re looking for an article idea, you could write a reaction to one of the quotes. Those notes may also remind you about the material you’ve been reading so that you can cite it as research in your writings.

If you’ve incorporated a visual element into your commonplace book, that feature may provide you with even more writing ideas. A picture you drew of a woman holding a diploma to accompany a quote about success may compel you to write about unfair admission processes in Ivy League colleges, or it may lead you to explore the subjective ways people measure success. You never know what stunning ideas you’ll come up with looking at your images.

At the same time, you also practice slowing down by taking the time to add to a commonplace book. As a writer, this skill is vital because writing demands patience. It can feel like a long process to take all the time necessary to formulate your thoughts and communicate them clearly. Rushed writing is usually a disaster.

We can all benefit from commonplace books. All writers need to engage carefully with their reading materials, generate ideas, and slow down to produce high quality writing. A commonplace book is a particularly exciting way to accomplish these tasks.