My Evolution in Annotating Books-With Examples!

[@talking_to_trees]

With regard to annotating fiction: my personal way is simply based on the idea that I want to remember what I read, I want to remember what I felt when I read it, and I want to mark beautiful sentences and words. In order to not take myself out of the story, I use booktags to pinpoint any idea I would normally highlight or write next to. I also mark themes, but I don't explain or intellectualise them. It is just me noticing things. Once I am done with the book, I go through the tags and remove the ones I don't want to hold on to (some words are often just good because of the whole story, and not so much when I go back to it). From there it's the same process as the non-fiction process below: I add quotes, themes, questions, ideas, and sometimes movie or other book connections into the reading journal, condense everything onto a cue card, and now when I go back to these, I immediately remember what I read and my books no longer turn into ghosts. When I reread, it's so much more fun because I have my notes and booktags, but I find new things and add it to the whole thing. It's fun to see how every version of me as a person finds new things each time I reread a book!

[@thedialectic6346]

What you said about highlighting made me grimace. But you're right. If everything is significant, then nothing is. You're a great example of what to aspire to as a reader.

[@ilya1046]

I mostly read fiction and struggle with annotations. This video was very helpful. Thank you!

[@1russodog]

I look at your frame…the background those titles. Many of which I share similar interests. Power to you and forthcoming videos. Stay well friend!

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

My backdrop of books has really helped like-minded readers discover their shared interests with me. I'm glad it's working out that way, and I'm glad to have you here among them.

[@xxmsp91]

I annotate fiction for perspectives and ideas about people and their foundational beliefs. Too many times I've been hurt, or hurt other people because there were fundamental differences on how each of us view the world. For example what happens when you put two people together where one views friendship as an opportunity to practice compassion, whereas the other view it as an opportunity to practice competition? Of course, friendship in general is more nuanced than this simplified view of either/or.. but if you put two people different enough that fall in the opposites of the spectrum, the internal experience they go through are drastically different. Reading books that explore these ideas open me up to lines of logic I would have never come across on my own. These thought exercises help me solidify my own ideals with the added perspective of others. Great works of fiction that explore these ideas give me the strongest argumentation both sides that I otherwise could not have come up on my own due to my personal biases. That's when the highlights come in. I highlight beautiful passages that justify a belief that I completely disagree with on a moral level. So later when I come across similar instances as the circumstances in the fictional books I've read, I'm not paralyzed by confusion about a certain social situation on why a certain person feel so differently than the way I do, but rather help me assess the situation quickly and take a course of action that suits my needs rather than being swallowed up by the ideals of the other that may be nonnegotiable.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

That is a wonderful purpose for annotation. We are all of us worlds in ourselves, our choices an accumulation of consequences (often unseen), so too the choices of others. That's great of you to seek that understanding in what you read, the ways judgments from outside can miss the complexities inside, and the ways we are all of us victims of circumstance. Thank you for sharing.

[@RyanHReviews]

Reading Mortimer Adler's essay "How to Mark a Book" persuaded me that I need to start annotating.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Thank you for the reading recommendation!

[@RolandoSMedeiros]

That Essay is better than 90% of "How to Read" (also by him)

[@buster9106]

I like the idea of creating a map for my future self.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Yeah, and that metaphor extends to the initial wading through the terrain of the text. Though it is initially a struggle, you can all the while leave breadcrumbs and track the bounds of the trail you've traversed. Those breadcrumbs and that tracking becomes a resource for your future self to return to that landscape with the experience and mapping you've built for yourself, and now, finally, you can see the nuance of the terrain for what it's always been, rather than merely the struggle it had initially felt to be.

[@ryam4632]

You're spot on regarding the value of writing in books.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Glad you agree!

[@owendavis4154]

I agree with your point about annotating fiction. I am reading Moby Dick for the first time and discovering many unfamiliar words. I'm just jotting them down in my journal to look up at a later date, which is definitely tarnishing my enjoyment to some degree. My plan is to read the book again after I finish. Time consuming but it works for me. I did the same with Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time and found that got a lot more on the second read. Helps if the books are great!! I also journal my thoughts after each chapter including favourite sections from the text....I guess that's just my way of having a conversation with myself about the book. Thanks for the great videos, keep up the good work. I'm planning on tackling The Story of Civilization thanks to your Ten Hard Books video.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

I love that you journal afterward. It's like you're distilling down-purely for yourself-the significance and meaning of what you read. The advice I offered in this video ended up rigid and studious, fitting of my disposition, but I also love the value of being reflective with what one reads, just lingering for a time, loosely. It allows for perhaps one of my favorite outcomes of both speaking and writing: you become accountable for your thoughts and so come to know your thoughts. With In Search of Lost Time and Moby Dick, such works are often themselves meditations, and so it is fitting to allow the words to wash over as sound waves themselves and then you ruminate on the feel and echo that resonates. That's why I love talking to my brother or my girlfriend after I read something beautiful. I want to discover what lingers and what my own thoughts truly are.

[@BonnieNicoleWrites]

Ooh I love your discussion at the beginning. I so relate to treating books as holy relics. I love that thought of shifting the thoughts to treating books as something to work with instead. I rarely annotate, but I have on a few occasions. I appreciate your suggestions for organizing the notes, as that has been my struggle.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Hey, Bonnie! Yeah, it's hard not seeing books as delicate, pristine objects-at-a-distance. In many ways, they're just as precious to me now, but they've become touchstones of points in my life, ones I can return to from time to time. I like having access to that on my shelves, to relics of myself.

[@BonnieNicoleWrites]

@@ToReadersItMayConcern That's such a wonderful way of viewing it.

[@noeditbookreviews]

This is something I struggle with, and by the way, I'm seeing a lot of really great titles in your shelves!

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Hey, thanks for stopping by! And we share a lot of interests in non-fiction; many of the science books you cover are also on my shelves. P.S. When you get a chance, check out my most recent vid, the one with "What's This Channel" in the title: you might be surprised by what you hear at the 22 minute mark. ;)

[@thedialectic6346]

I annotate fiction but I'm a writer. I highlight and annotate marvelous passages that I want to aspire to and remember. When I find something funny, I write "Ha!" on the page. However, it takes away some incentive to grab a book when I have a few minutes since I can't seem to read without annotation and highlighting. I'm still trying to find a balance with that. I have also thought of just reading fiction without annotation the first time and then rereading with the intent to annotate. I read a lot of scripture too. I annotate scripture like crazy. There is a school of thought (reading scripture) that says past annotations can get in the way of future revelation, so some people buy new sets of scripture every time they are going to start reading again. I've done it both ways.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

That's interesting the point about reading scripture: our past markings can draw attention to what mattered then and cause us to miss what matters now. That's always what we have to contend with, our attention. Our attention isolates and that in itself defines what we're perceiving. Sometimes I buy books with various markings from past owners. It feels impossible in those cases not to be curious about or to emphasize-mentally-what they underlined. That creates a different road through the book. I guess all our past markings are left behind by our past selves, so different by the time we reread as to almost be different people. Like even our own memories, we have carved out what is significant in an experience, cutting away other details, yet maybe those now-lost details could have new meaning if seen with fresh eyes. Part of me wonders if writing about what we read in a separate space would be most helpful. We then could define what matters to us now without directly narrowing the book's pages. But then, of course, what is realistic? That seems to me so cumbersome as to, like you describe, disincentivize reading for its own sake. In the end, like so many things, we don't have perfect solutions, just decisions. Thank you for stopping by with your thoughtful remarks. 🙏

[@Cobaltdragon]

Excellent point about fiction and non fiction. I rarely annotate fiction, I will tag pages for major events or character development but rarely more. Great video 👍

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

So much of what I adore in fiction comes from enveloping myself in it. I love feeling my way through it rather than dissecting. Thank you for checking out some of my thoughts!

[@Cobaltdragon]

@@ToReadersItMayConcern my pleasure, very much enjoyed. I agree about fiction - I am just getting back to reading more fiction again and for me it is a break from the everyday busy world, just want to enjoy the journey without overanalyzing everything.

[@RachelJ2016]

New sub 👋🏼 It looks like you’re in an actual library and I’m so jealous 🙃😂 will we get a tour of those shelves one day?! Keep these videos coming. I can’t tell you how happy I am to have found some booktubers recently who are talking about slowing down to read/annotate and just talking about books other than the usual popular ones we see over and over!

[@RachelJ2016]

Also I love annotating. My books that I annotate, I hope to hand down to my children to read one day ❤ I hope they appreciate it 😂

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

I'm glad to have you here! It's been a dream to be surrounded by books in this way. I love it! And I started filming a shelf tour yesterday. It's gonna be split among many videos. Will take a while.

[@vicenteferrao2960]

I've been trying to get back into the habit of reading and actually finishing books that are not, well, non-fiction. Your video gave me some great insights (or maybe helped put them into words?) on how hard and somewhat unimaginative reading fiction has become! Having watched the steady decline in pages from when I was a Portuguese undergrad, it's almost inevitable to notice this particular sort of relationship that was created with fiction. I guess my point is that I hadn't realised how much of my engagement with this sort of literature is weighted down by my literary analysis habits, and how it would probably do me some good to simply... Read and explore the feelings and images the stories bring to me.

[@thedarianjade]

Maybe trying tabs for fiction to keep it looser but also mark things/moments you really enjoy. I use an annotation bookmark with tabs. This allows me to easily mark something I enjoyed, or a word I was unfamiliar with, but not take much time or effort where it would take me out of the story.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Yes, thank you for that suggestion! It's definitely the time and effort that becomes a distraction, so reducing that as much as possible with fiction would be ideal.

[@LaughingStockfarm1]

I annotate fiction, but much more lightly than non-fiction. Mostly what I pull out are particularly beautiful passages. Also, because I tend towards epic & more literary SFF, invented words, political alliances of the characters, and other world-building points that seem long-term useful will get highlighted, flagged, or emphasized in some way. But like you I mostly just want to let the umwelt take over. I have been known to write ranty post-its to a character who is a particular jerk, or does something mind-bendingly stupid. 😆

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Yeah, books kind of suggest their own annotation styles; different books have different challenges, and we have to adapt. It's been a long while since I've read science fiction or fantasy-they used to be my favorite genres-and so I wonder if when I go back to such works I'll end up adopting a similar method to yours. I recently purchased Alan Moore's Jerusalem, which seems to fit as dreamlike fantasy. Maybe that will be my return, and we'll see what sort of annotations that book suggests of itself.

[@LaughingStockfarm1]

@@ToReadersItMayConcern I look forward to what arises, if any annotation happens, when you read Jerusalem. Happy page turning!

[@margarethaines9310]

You are right - annotating fiction serves a purpose that is personal for the reader - even if the literature consumed will be used in a graded paper. In addition to "squaring" new or interesting vocabulary and noting the definition in the margin, I have several themes that I am interested in that recur in many different types of texts. For instance the idea of "treasure": literally wealth and what people will risk/trade for it (gold diggers or panning for gold in the West), but also intangible things that are valuable (connection, creativity, parenthood, agency . . .). It is handy to keep a Commonplace Book for quotes. I suppose these ideas will be useful at some time in the future, but at this point I am happy to easily locate them 🙂. Thank you for your thoughtful ideas.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Oh, that is so interesting! I love this!

[@ThatReadingGuy28]

I love to see how your channel has grown in the last few days!

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

Thank you so much! Steve Donoghue gave a huge boost to the "hard books" vid, which then prompted KZbin to push it out further. I feel very lucky. And I happen to particularly LOVE your channel, so if there's any way I can help you, please let me know! [FOR ANY VIEWERS READING THIS, CHECK OUT THAT READING GUY'S CHANNEL! HE'S ARTICULATE AND HIS TASTES MATCH MY OWN (WITH PERHAPS EVEN MORE FUN OBSCURITY ON TOP)!]

[@ThatReadingGuy28]

@@ToReadersItMayConcern thanks for nice and words, but with your videos are infinitely better quality! You deserve all the subs you've been getting.

[@NicholasOfAutrecourt]

@@ThatReadingGuy28 I hate to break it to you, but you both have incredible channels! I'm glad I was given the opportunity to discover both of you recently. Looking forward to seeing how things progress!

[@NicholasOfAutrecourt]

Despite being a very slow reader, I still struggle to make myself stop and take notes. I can't bring myself to write in the book, but I usually have a tablet of paper or spiralized notebook, but still struggle. I've been wondering if there might be some good "carrots" to wave over my head to act as a kind of incentive. I already use Goodreads and my own KZbin channel to post long-form reviews as a reading catalog, but I'm sure creating a new habit of taking handwritten notes will also redound with benefits. If anyone has any ideas, I'd certainly love for you to share!

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

The best carrot for me has been the difference annotation makes in my ability to retain and communicate the information I read. It can be frustrating to grasp a concept at the level of recognition but not to be able to recall the concept at the point of discussion. Slowing down, jotting notes, organizing the text visually, though at first seemingly slow, becomes engaging in itself and rewarding in its eventual benefits. But that's one of those qualities that can only be felt after having already made the leap. Another possible carrot is the mere feel of slowing down. Thinking about what to write and how to visualize relations between ideas prompts a concerted effort to think, think, think the whole way through a book. And that perpetual thinking is its own reward, or, at least, it has felt as such for me. In some ways, upon re-reading a book in a post-annotation mindset, I find myself feeling as if I had never really read the book in the first place. With annotating the reading becomes an act of interchange between myself and the author, and that feels wholly distinct from doing otherwise. All that said, I've been watching your videos for a long time. You are an excellent reader, and in your case, annotation may not be as necessary as for myself.

[@NicholasOfAutrecourt]

@@ToReadersItMayConcern This is why I try to leave comments. I never know who's watching me. I'm so flattered that you take the time to watch! From now on, I'll be returning the favor. Keep it up with the spectacular videos!

[@davidnovakreadspoetry]

I’m beginning to think I should do some form of note taking for nonfiction books I read. I like the video’s distinction between highlighting and using a pen - but I hate to mark up books.

[@LaughingStockfarm1]

I’m hesitant to mark up books as well, so I use 0.23”/6mm highlighting tape! There’s also underlining tape. It can be removed if you decide not to keep the book, so the trade value is maintained. And I use post-its for writing out my thoughts, again removable. I’m mostly a fiction reader, and I have discovered that with good fiction at least, I am much more immersed in the world, and have a better feel for the characters. On the other hand, it really makes bad writing glaringly obvious and rather painful. Then my post-it notes become rather scathing, which is also a nice stress reliever. 😆 Really appreciating these videos!

[@rafael55]

I use a note book to take notes of the book i'm reading. Help's me remember better and does not make my book ugly.

[@adeliaforsteri3683]

I totally agree with not annotating fiction. Unfortunately i have to do it anyway bcs i sometimes forget plot points..., i usually mark important plot info so if i am in chapter 10 and something happens that requires some info from chapter 2 i can quickly find it. But I'm personally not a fan of doing that as it takes me out of the story a bit tho

[@swiodine]

I admit I don't like marking fiction up much either. Nevertheless, one thing that I have always done is written a brief summary of the events of a chapter right above the chapter title immediately after I finished reading it. This significantly helped my ability to recall the events of a book, as forcing yourself to carefully think through what happened in each individual chapter allows you to better process the more minute details of a narrative, and more deeply appreciate the work as a whole. This has been especially helpful in preventing me from reading a book too quickly, and losing track of the story as a result.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

I'm so glad you said this. I've done this a few times myself, and you're completely right, having to pinpoint what matters to you most about a chapter is key to recognizing what resonates most, and that is immensely valuable and seemingly requires reflection. Another similarly helpful act is to talk about what you read with someone who cares. That, of course, requires a special someone, but it quickly reveals to you what you truly understand or what you only have a superficial grasp of.

[@cristianmicu]

i can totally relate about the highlight

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

I'm glad I'm not alone!

[@talking_to_trees]

I love your reasoning and method of annotating. I am definitely going to incorporate the content page method to my annotations! I have gone through cycles of annotating or not annotating. At the moment, I annotate heavily, but I think it is because it is not frowned on any more. There are librarians and teachers who would probably burn me at the stake if they knew this. Like you, I have degrees of annotations, but one of those degrees is still a highlighter but I use one that is almost like a crayon. I like that it lifts things out for me. I also write in the margin, summarise chapters and main ideas, but I also make notes in a GoodNotes notebook after every chapter to just take the main ideas out of it. And then I also have a cue card system where all of the books in my library are catalogued once I have read them, with their main quotes/thoughts/themes on, as well as a summary in my own words and a star rating. These cue cards are also linked through their date to my virtual reading journal where all notes and all the best quotes are kept. And I also try and write an essay (sometimes just half a page) about what I found or thought while reading the book. I do this for all my books, whether non-fiction or fiction or graphic novels. I think everything has sometimes to teach us, although sometimes I need to squeeze a bit hard to get meaning out of some things.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

You know, your experience in this regard sounds perfect for a video of your own. I would be fascinated to see your cue card system and the differing degrees of annotation you employ. You sound like you have a wonderful, immersive way of doing things!

[@talking_to_trees]

@@ToReadersItMayConcern i might just do that! I will tag you when I do x

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

This makes me unreasonably happy.

[@ReadtoFilth]

If it was my book I may highlight or make a short note at the end of the chapter. But most of the time I don’t really like to stop to take notes. And I usually watch or read the review or analysis of the book right after I finished it.

[@apollonia6656]

If the books are on and yours annotating helps. I never (would I dare) scribble in any of my parents library, even though I am far from being a child because they do not have a single pb; all the books are in or leather bound, first prints or extremely valuable for other reasons. Infact, most of my books look like they have become books within books ! 😂

[@Julian-tu6em]

You've convinced me to start annotating instead of highlighting! Also do you have a list of all the books you've read? I recognize a handful of them but would love to see the others. That is if you have one already of course.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

I've yet to list out what I read, or track my reading in any separate way aside from writing in each book and remembering. Over time on this channel I'll cover more of what I've read in the past, and eventually I'll showcase every book I own (though, with there being over 1,000 books on all my shelves, it'll take a while).

[@micheleshave323]

It’s not necessary for anyone to deface or otherwise disrespect a book. Books are tools of learning and/or entertainment. Most of the KZbinrs recommending this practice are young people who might not consider that the book will at some point be passed on to someone else who will then be forced to work around your writing to get their own meaning. Also, as you grow and mature your feelings will change so how you annotate now will probably change in six months to a year. Wouldn’t it be better to make your annotations in a journal so if you reread later on to can see how much you have changed and annotate your annotations without ruining the book for the people who come after? Books are precious, they should be respected.

[@benpessoa4013]

My initial inhibition of annotating was making the book less aesthetically appealing. Even now when I do mark my books quite regularly, an ugly mark or a redundant annotation sort of makes me want to engage with the book less.

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

As part of this video, I should've shown what my girlfriend does with her books. She was inspired by my method of annotation, but she adapted it to her artistic sentiments and thus draws images along the margins rather than words, and these images bring her back to the thoughts and feelings of that moment in the text.

[@janehornsey6372]

You a sour siteo interesting; I'm very glad I've found your site.

[@eryzish]

Do you keep a commonplace journal?

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

No, actually. I had to look up the term. I do jot down ideas I have-often for future writing, lessons, or now for this channel-but they end up in various places or dispersed among Google Documents, not in a single book and not as a regular practice.

[@eryzish]

Nice. Looking forward to more of your videos.

[@KeithDvorak]

instead of google docs, you may want to consider obsidian, which would keep all your notes in one place but with the ability to link ideas, or parallel streams of thought etc? typology!! ❤

[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

@@KeithDvorak Thanks for the suggestion!