Commonplace book
A commonplace book helps you process, understand, and retain anything that’s valuable to you.[1]
“a central resource or depository for ideas, quotes, anecdotes, observations and information you come across during your life and didactic pursuits.” In other words, a “thinker’s journal.”[2]
Cognitive scientists say creative thinking can come from connecting disparate ideas that wouldn’t otherwise cross paths.[1:1]
Peter Beal, leading expert on English manuscript studies, defines a commonplace book as
“a manuscript book in which quotations or passages from reading matter, precepts, proverbs and aphorisms, useful rhetorical figures or exemplary phrasing, words and ideas, or other notes and memoranda are entered for ready reference under general subject headings.”
~ A Dictionary of English Manuscript Terminology 1450-2000
A commonplace book is as much about making connections between various ideas as anything else in personal knowledge management. It's not just about collecting interesting quotes and passages. Though that can be useful too, it's easy to fall into the the collector's fallacy.
See: zibaldone for the Italian renaissance style of commonplacing
See Zettelkasten for the index card based successor to the Commonplace book
Commonplace Book thoughts
Been thinking about my Commonplace Book and how I can start to use it more. Because i have a fairly large backlog of quotes and things to add to it.
The first thing I thought about it's adding an index to it, which I've done for the quotes already in it.
My second thought is about how I might be being too precious with it. Maybe a messier, lower pressure Commonplace Book would suit me more, and get me to use it more. I'd course that lead to me thinking about buying a new notebook, but I think I can adapt my current book to be a little looser. Maybe use something other than my fountain pens for a while.
Planted: Tuesday 22 October 2024
Last tended: Monday 21 July 2025