how i annotate my books 🌻✨ guide to annotating, essentials, annotating evolution, and a q&a!

[@nailahhuq1238]

I've accepted that I don't enjoy annotating much myself but I love watching you do it :)

[@cupsandthoughts]

i love that you can still appreciate it 🥰

[@sorhaniri]

I started to annotate this year after watching your videos and it made my reading processes so much more enjoyable. Every book I annotate feels so special because it has my memory I spent with. So thank you for your beautiful videos and giving inspiration all the time ❤🌟

[@cupsandthoughts]

oh i’m sooo happy to hear that! 🥰 annotating truly does make a book more special! you are very welcome, i am always happy to share my annotating journey 🤍

[@cosmosdaughter]

You inspire me so much, this is an art, an active meditation (it makes you feel present) and makes me enjoy the story much more. Thank you for making us feel that we are doing a right thing and not a "crime"! For people with ADHD is so useful to keep the focus on the book!

[@cupsandthoughts]

thank you for the lovely comment 🤍 i can understand people’s sentiments on marking up books, but annotating should really get more credit! 🥰 i’m glad you enjoyed the video ✨

[@counting1234]

i love how you emphasize process over outcome. this kind of thinking has significantly changed my life - such as not getting overly attached to things as they first are (the printed copy of the book,) but returning to it over and over and continuing to reflect deeply each time, trusting and following your own inner observations over someone else's ideas/systems/rubric. thank you!

[@sherriewhite5348]

Omg I’m so excited to see your process! I really want to annotate my special books, have even went as far as getting supplies, but just haven’t taken the leap…. Your annotated books are just GORGEOUS 💜💜💜

[@cupsandthoughts]

ahhh i hope you find this video helpful!!! all the best and have fun 🥰🥰🥰

[@BellasCreativeLife]

I absolutely love to annotate my books, and I basically do it just like you. All about the feels and vibes. It just makes it so much more fun to read. I love it.

[@qianliow4421]

ive slowly starting to annotate my books using just a pen and highlighter and I've been loving the process :) I've also been doing an extra thing by writing book quotes which i love in a separate notebook which is long and tedious! overall that's the joy of reading:) btw the annotation i learned it from you HAHAHA ❤❤ so thank you for giving me the courage to go in for it Cath 😊

[@cupsandthoughts]

i’m sooo happy to hear that, qian qing! 🥰 haha truly it is! the journey of reading a book matters more than the destination ☺️ i’m so happy you’re enjoying your time annotating 🤍🤍

[@Jojo77-z1n]

I've been waiting on this one!! So glad it's finally here

[@cupsandthoughts]

yayyy!! i hope you enjoy it 🥰

[@mango.delphi]

My most favorite part in annotating books is when I reopen my books and read my thoughts and highlighted fave texts all over again.

[@cupsandthoughts]

exactly this!!! i love the feeling so much 🥰 it’s so special and heartwarming 🤍 i’m sooo happy you’re getting back into reading! i hope you enjoy r.f.kuang’s books! 🥹🫶🏼

[@ink-stained_realms]

Ok so this will be a forever favorite video, that I'll rewatch many times! 😍 Watching you annotating your books is just so relaxing and aesthetically pleasing!! 😍 Thank you Cath for this treat!

[@cupsandthoughts]

ahhh kat!!! you’re so kind, thank you so much!! 🥰🥰 i ‘m glad you enjoyed it 🤍

[@celesterodriguez6777]

You inspired me to annotate in my books! I love journaling and I’m pretty sure it correlates with annotating, I also love putting all my feelings and thoughts on the books I’m reading, it adds something special and extra personal to the experience and makes it fun and memorable. Also, for a while it was embarrassing for me because I always had this thought of “what if I lend this book to someone and they read this, it’s too personal” but now I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m keeping the books to my self just as my journals hahahah.

[@olivia_vermast]

Finally have the time to watch this video! I was waiting for the right moment. But I’m enjoying it so much

[@nicodiangelo1417]

Im so happy u made this video:D ive always wanted to annotate books(at least since ive been watching i was inspired instantly 😭) thank you!

[@aliceinavalon]

Ahhh thanks so much for the wonderful video and showing your process! I'm a game writer and love the story researching process as a whole, but since watching your videos, I've really also come to love annotating and really absorbing the books I read in a whole new way. It lets me engage with my research material and get inspired more, and has just made the process so rewarding and personal too. Annotating really does feel like an art form, and it's such a beautiful experience to fall in love with a book's story, characters, or ideas. Just finished a research book on alchemy and seeing how much I adored making connections to it for my next game has really made this writing season so worth it, and I'm grateful to you for sharing such a wonderful art with everyone. Hope you have a wonderful December!

[@victorialeann7529]

Loved this annotating video my sister-in-law and I are going to start annotating our books this year... So much inspiration in your video!! I also ordered the book "Sweet Bean Paste "I have been persuaded to read it since I have seen it in your videos and it sounds like a heart warming story about unlikely friendships and overcoming ones past mistakes :)

[@amyofhearthridge]

Loooooove this, Cath! I love how it’s just led by what you love. 💕

[@morganlikesstationery]

I tend to keep my annotating incredibly simple - I either use a pen or a highlighter; sometimes both. I think having beautiful & aesthetic annotations for social media is kind of like that boom in bullet journaling a little while ago where people were making their bujos super artistic & beautiful - if it sparks joy, go for it! But it can be easy for us Casual Observers to fall into the trap where it feels like the "only" way to do things. I tried to be The Guy who had multi-colored page flags & matching highlighters for various themes et al - and I gave up within a chapter because it was just too much for my ADHD to keep track of, lol. And sometimes I legit don't have a lot to say! I used to be super down on that very aesthetic style, but I've mellowed out since honestly it's really not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things. We're all here to read and to engage further with the text; isn't that what matters most? (Not to mention, it's very fun to look at, of course, lol)

[@rhongomiant]

one day I found your instagram and then discovered u on youtube and your annotations inspired me to do the same. I find that doing this really relaxes me, I feel like I can express myself, also I remember the stories better!! I can never turn back! who knew it would be so much fun. I used to be scared of “tainting” 😂 my books too, but now I find it’s all well worth it💙

[@mandiconnell3311]

So this is now my favorite video EVER haha thanks for sharing!

[@desireeclark1503]

Wow your books are so beautiful and loved! Thank you for sharing with us.

[@cupsandthoughts]

thank you! it’s my pleasure 🥰

[@mapletea3296]

I’ve watched your channel for awhile and wanted to get into annotating, especially now that I am on break from university. I was searching to see if you had an annotation guide video a few days ago, and this popping into my feed quite literally made my morning !! Thank you for all of your calming videos ☺️💕 edit: i also just got my wisdom teeth removed, so this is the perfect time for me to pick up a calm and stationary hobby :D

[@TheBeeesKnees]

yay!! so excited to watch this 🥰🥰

[@cupsandthoughts]

ahh yay!! i hope you enjoy it 🥹🤍

[@TheBeeesKnees]

@@cupsandthoughts i did!! it's nice to see someone who annotates for the joy of reading i do something similar! ♥

[@Alana-Thorn_n_thistle_reads]

Love this video! Im super intrigued that 2nd hand shops love to be given annotated books

[@Mr.AshleyGriffiths]

I really enjoyed watching this video! As always, it is very aesthetically pleasing and it was very useful with all of the advice you shared.

[@cupsandthoughts]

i’m sooo glad you enjoyed it!! 🥰🥰

[@annemotha4534]

Early squad, I have never been so early. Love your video

[@cupsandthoughts]

yay! thank you so much 🥹🤍

[@sanbi4903]

YAY I've been so looking forward to this video!! I was TERRIFIED to annotate at first, but nowadays when I am reading a borrowed book or dont anticipate annotating I find myself reaching for the pen and highlighters out of habit! I MISS annotating when I'm not doing it!! I've found though that if I'm reading a borrowed book, I'll make note of the pages I'd want to annotate/remember and when I eventually buy my own copy, I go back through it an annotate from there!

[@cupsandthoughts]

ahhh i love to hear that!! we all start out so similarly, i’m glad you can enjoy the experience of annotating a borrowed book by making separate notes to annotate for later!! 🥰🥰

[@dawnnicholson9675]

Love this Kath... My goal is to annoint at least one book just as you do..totally packed with tabs and notes etc.. To see your book piles all bursting at the seams with tabs is just extremely satisfying.. 😉 ✨✨

[@wendyhoward2699]

I was excited to watch this! I would love a series on annotating. Many blessings and.

[@cupsandthoughts]

what else would you like to see in the series? ☺️

[@bellsbooklover]

I’ve started annotating a little this year as I was “scared” I’d ruin my books 😅 but with your videos I’ve learnt not too so thankyou. What better way to fully immerse in the story……❤

[@Amz11_13]

I have SO MANY THOUGHTS I've wanted to share in regards to annotating but knew that this was the perfect video to share them on so I've waited until this came out 🙌❤ 1. I love annotated books! If I ever found an annotated book I'd buy it right away because I feel like reading someone else's annotations would almost be a story in and of itself! There's literally a book out there (I sadly can't remember what it's called) where the annotations ARE the story. Such a cool idea for a book. I don't think annotations ruin a book at all, its a way of journalling and engaging with the book/story/characters on another level 2. I love the idea of annotating my own books but truthfully because I've never done it before, im scared to do it. Scared I won't like my own annotations or my own handwriting. I've definitely highlighted books so I've dipped my toes into making marks in my books but haven't gone as far as actually writing in them....yet 😏 3. I love the different ways you tried to annotate and I love that it turns out the colors and markings you use don't particularly mean anything, they are simply the marks you make in the moment as you read and I love that. I feel like it would be so fun to go back and read your old annotated books to see what you think of your old annotations now. Thanks for another awesome video ❤❤

[@KMort]

I would never do this, because I am a massive rereader and it would annoy me, but I do use tabs and have done for years. It works well for me to be able to have colour coded markers for scenes or quotes I want to find quickly. I have written a few things on clear sticky notes recently though, and while I don't do it a lot, for very specific books it IS funny to see what I wrote afterwards.

[@cupsandthoughts]

i’m glad you’ve found your own way of annotating! i’ve been meaning to try using transparent sticky notes :) i love being able to look back at what i’ve written!

[@vaibhaviasolkar]

🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍this was very soothing

[@justynajusty]

Thank you so much for this video. It was very helpful. Thanks for sharing! There are transparent notepads and such that people can use if they are afraid to write in the book itself, that way people can still annotate and remove it if they are starting off or not sure.

[@paintchips90]

I call my annotating "chaos annotating" ... no rhyme or reason to what I annotate besides feelings, LOLs, and theories ... my tab colors are all aesthetics and vibes ... but I do try to keep my annotations unobtrusive enough that reading the book is easy to do, so I don't highlight and I only use pencil or black pen (I'm a huge rereader)

[@cupsandthoughts]

chaos annotating!! that is a wonderful way of describing it 😍😍 love that for you! i’ll keep that in mind and try it out if i’m rereading my books in the future!

[@pollys6192]

Weird thing... I only annotate when I read in English. You know I'm from Spain so of course Spanish is my mother language. I find books in English much cheaper and thanks to years and years of practicing and reading and listening, I am bilingual at this stage of my life. But sometimes a book tells me that it is something that not only me, but also my mum, my dad or my aunts would enjoy and they only speak Spanish, so I buy some books in my language which I don't annotate, I never annotate books in Spanish because those are "books for the family" even if I buy them myself or they stay amongst my books... my mum could very well choose to read any book one day. I was the one who got my dad into Murakami, for example. Now he's a bigger fan than I am :)

[@Teheran-180]

After a long time we gotta see ur new video❤ and the fascinating part is it’s an annotating one 🎉while annotating a book I believe that what’s the point of reading a book if I can’t grab the emotions I went thru right at that moment

[@cupsandthoughts]

i’m so excited to get back to posting 🤍🤍 i totally agree :) that’s how i like to go about annotating too!

[@ChantelleArts]

This is fascinating, thats really detailed ☺

[@Amelieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee]

I love seeing you annotate your books because they are so pretty! Does it ever feel like it slows you down because when i did it that was how it was for me, which is sad because i would simply love to have a book annotated as beautifully as yours are ♥

[@bella619]

This video was a lot of work to create, I would guess. Thank you for taking the time to do it❤

[@chloetrouilloud4034]

You make me want to anotate liké you! I tried a few month ago but I stopped, and since I don't re read my books, I lost certain moments and feelings that I would like to capture ! Love this video ❤

[@cupsandthoughts]

anyone can annotate like me! 🥰 just go with the flow and write whatever you please! i’m glad you enjoyed the video 🤍

[@bibbis71]

i love it.

[@blubuttafly]

OMG i jst wanna say thx u sooooo much for this vid! I know how long you spent on it

[@cupsandthoughts]

ahhh you are very welcome!! 🥹🤍🤍

[@btxt235]

Thank you so much for this beautiful detailed video!!

[@cupsandthoughts]

you are very welcome! 🥰🥰

[@lwiener67]

the only down side to doing this is if you want to resell your books I guess. But this is cool for the ones to keep!!

[@cupsandthoughts]

secondhand bookshops love to receive annotated books actually! and some people are actually selling their annotated books on etsy too! they look amazing, and there’s a market for it! ☺️

[@Champagne_Silk]

Yes, I only annotate in books that I won’t sell, such as books I use for studying. I ordered a book second hand recently and it was annotated and I found it incredibly annoying. Hopefully, if there is a market for annotated books then sellers will be upfront about it in their listing.

[@cicero464]

I don't like annotating on books cuz I'm scared of writing on books lol 😂 I use commonplace journals for reading books and storing info and quotes, passages that I like. But great video tho! U make it look amazing and make me wanna do it too❤❤❤

[@ThisNovelReader]

I start by using sticky tabs. By the time I get to around 50 pages, I can tell if I like the book and want to continue annotating. If I do, I keep going. Usually, I’ll come back and underline, write, and tidy up the tabs.

[@cupsandthoughts]

that’s so interesting!! :) i’m glad you have a structure for annotating your books! 🤍

[@BeckyLStoutWriter]

I know some people think it's a crime to annotate, but let me just say this. I've published several books of poetry and a novel, and I would love it if readers cared enough about what I wrote to comment on it within the pages. I can't speak for all writers, obviously, but to me, it would be an honor. 😊

[@margaretwhittaker7519]

Looking at the books you've annotated, it looks like you leave a part of yourself in the book.

[@cupsandthoughts]

yes i do!! i’m glad you see that 🥰

[@theresachucle5362]

Great daily vlog have a great week😊🧵🪡🤗🤩🎄🎁❄️

[@cupsandthoughts]

thank you! you too 🥰

[@filee123]

🌻🧡

[@libbysreadingcorner9564]

I really enjoyed this video. Thanks so much for sharing...

[@cupsandthoughts]

i’m so happy to hear that! you’re welcome 🥰

[@libbysreadingcorner9564]

@@cupsandthoughts You're very welcome. I hope that one day soon I can start annotating

[@hanagashiru]

hiiii i have a question, how much colour tabs did you usually used per book?

[@scottmccutie]

i loved watching this! i've been annotating my books in some form since i read looking for alaska at 12. now i'm 23 and i still love to do it! my style is more color-coded since i like to go back and know exactly why i highlighted something. i'm trying to get more into doodling in my books as well

[@ish4191]

new viewer here, not be rude but may i know why do you prefer writing with pen over pencil? love your videos ^^

[@carlazoe9852]

Me gustaría que tuviera subtitulos en español 😅 me encanta tu canal lamentablemente no se el idioma ingles

[@stargazerart]

who cares if you ruin a book by writing in it, its your book! noones meant to enjoy it but you!

[@elmaahi2508]

Bener lagi di Indo mahal mahal

[@ImashaApril]

So good to see your video after so long! ♥️🫶 Loving every bit of it. I finished Yellowface yesterday and loved it. Thanks for the recommendation 🫶🥹♥️

[@cupsandthoughts]

i’ve missed posting! 🥹🤍 i’m so glad you enjoyed yellowface! it’s one of my favorite books ever 🥰

[@vanessacostantini9980]

Thank you for this video, it is very inspiring! The only thing I have to say, I could barely see the overscript because of the small, yellow character