How to Start a Commonplace Book: A Practical Beginner System

A commonplace book is a personal collection of information you want to keep: ideas, quotations, observations, references, useful facts and notes from things you read or hear. Unlike a diary, it does not have to record your day in chronological detail.

If you are wondering how to start a commonplace book, begin with capture first and organization second.

1. Choose one notebook

Use a notebook you are comfortable writing in regularly. You do not need a special format.

The MISSTIME William Morris Vintage B5 Notebook is one current ruled B5 option if you prefer a larger writing page.

2. Decide what belongs inside

Capture material you expect to revisit: a useful concept from a book, a sentence that changes how you think, a recipe variation, research notes, a design reference or a question worth exploring.

3. Add the source

When possible, note where an idea came from. A book title, author, article name, conversation or date gives the entry context.

4. Add your own response

Add one or two lines explaining why you saved something, what it connects to or how you might use it.

5. Create a lightweight index

Number pages and reserve a few pages for an index, or use a small set of index tabs for recurring themes.

6. Review instead of constantly reorganizing

Once every few weeks, skim recent entries and add cross-references to related pages.

Commonplace book vs journal

A journal often centers on your experiences and reflections. A commonplace book centers on material you want to collect and think with.

For broader notebook choices, see journal vs planner and browse notebooks and journals.

FAQ

Does a commonplace book need categories?

No. You can write entries chronologically and use an index or page references later.

What should I write first?

Start with something you genuinely want to remember.