Category Archives: Writing Notebooks

Susie Boyt’s Notebooks

Some notebooks belonging to writer Susie Boyt: I have always kept notebooks – messy little attics of the mind, an odd assortment of shapes and colours stuffed into drawers next to defunct phones and balls of string. They feel private and tender, a bit like night clothes; or embarrassing, like over-eager little sisters. From an … Continue reading Susie Boyt’s Notebooks

Irving Greenwald’s World War I Diary

Earlier this year, actor Douglas Taurel presented a one-man show based on the World War I diary of a soldier named Irving Greenwald, which is part of a collection at the Library of Congress. The diary itself is quite amazing: look at the tiny print squeezing all that text into pocket size pages! Read more … Continue reading Irving Greenwald’s World War I Diary

Terry Pratchett’s School Notebooks 

For fans of the Discworld series and Terry Pratchett‘s other books: Doodle-covered exercise books that belonged to a schoolboy Sir Terry Pratchett have come to light and reveal he already had many ideas for his early stories.They provide a fascinating, rare insight into the legendary late author’s creative process as he allowed his mind to … Continue reading Terry Pratchett’s School Notebooks 

Notebook Addict of the Week: Joanna Penn

I found this week’s addict via Pinterest, which linked back to her Flickr photos. As J. F. Penn, Joanna is a thriller writer. (Her books are described by readers as “Dan Brown meets Lara Croft.” Sounds fun!) As Joanna Penn, she has also published several how-to books about how to self-publish and market books, public … Continue reading Notebook Addict of the Week: Joanna Penn

Notebook Entries from French and Vietnamese Soldiers

Some very intriguing notebook pages were sent to me by a reader named Khang, with this background information: A friend of mine recently sent me several notebooks entries written by Vietnamese and French soldiers aboard the Kilinski, a Polish cargoship. Following the end of fighting in 1954, the ship made trips between North and South … Continue reading Notebook Entries from French and Vietnamese Soldiers

Eric Gardiner’s World War I Diary

A poignant artifact from the Cambridgeshire Community Archive: an amazingly well-preserved World War I diary. Eric Gardiner was the youngest son of F J Gardiner, owner and editor of the Wisbech Advertiser (now the Fenland Citizen).  Eric joined up when war was declared and from the moment of his arrival in France up to his death in 1915 he … Continue reading Eric Gardiner’s World War I Diary

Notebook Addict of the Week: Shari

This week’s addict blogs about writing and art journaling at Islands of My Soul, where she posted this photo of her journals: I have at least 30 or 40 notebooks and journals filled with my writing.  They are all over the place.  This is a photo of some of the notebooks that would show up … Continue reading Notebook Addict of the Week: Shari

Choosing a Notebook for Journaling

The Daily Beast takes a look at some favorite notebook brands and how to use them, with links to some other interesting resources, such as an article from Forbes about how to keep a leadership journal. Their top picks, all good ones: Leuchtturm Dotted Journal Maruman Mnemosyne Grid Notebooks Midori MD Lined Notebook Rite in … Continue reading Choosing a Notebook for Journaling

Larry David’s notebook

I recently came across a 2005 post from Orange Crate Art, where he recognizes a description of a familiar notebook in a New Yorker article: From a New Yorker piece on Larry David and Curb Your Enthusiasm: Like many comedians, Larry David carries a pocket notebook for writing down ideas. “You’re in a parking garage, and Larry’s wallet … Continue reading Larry David’s notebook