Oh how I love those quotes of hers about pens! Lizard green and slippery. 😁 🦎
She's so playful, you can feel so much of her personality in so few words.
"That’s the real point of my little brown book…that it makes me read —with a pen—following the scent."
So I've *just* (I know, I know) started actually reading with a pencil and slowing down. It's a completely different experience. I'm annotating so much and enjoying the process. It feels scholarly, in a romantic sort of way. I'm reading Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun and the pencil is helping me follow the scent of Gene's incredible depth of writing.
Really enjoying these looks back to the early days of Noted, Jillian. 🤗
I'm continually awed by how everything Woolf writes is gorgeous--even the smallest, most mundane phrase. What an enormous talent. But, she also worked at it--intensively.
A long time ago I decided the difference between "work reading" and "pleasure reading" was the presence (or absence) of a pen/pencil. Reading without a writing instrument feels totally luxurious--wanting nothing but the experience from a text. Of course...that rarely happens, and the pencil *always* comes out at some point!
I'm so glad you're enjoying these re-Noted posts Nathan. I only had 40 subscribers when I published this piece. And I love Woolf so much.
A huge talent, but also a slight relief that she worked at it intensively ;)
I think as I've started to think about writing more and more it has become harder to place myself purely in a "reading for luxury" category. I find myself always analysing and thinking about the text, but yeah, turning to an actual pencil will maybe be the way to have some distinction.
An inspiring article about keeping a notebook - and making one yourself! Thank you Jullian - and Virginia.
I personally love using a cover with an elastic in the middle, so you can add a cheap notebook or loose papers. If you use loose pages, you can remove any pages when they become no longer relevant (or you mess them up, as I do). It is a good way to recycle paper. When the cover is full you just remove the pages, staple them, or sew the pages together, and start again.
You can make the cover of anything. Leather, card covered in papier-mâché or material. Or buy one. I don’t intend to advertise but here is a link showing what I mean; https://shorturl.at/luzEI
I love this--thank you for sharing. I make my own notebooks, but I always struggle with the cover. It takes a bit more artistry than just sewing paper together.
I know it is hard. But you don't have to follow conventional bookbinding methods. You can sew a cover, use thick leather, thin metal or other materials. Let your imagination go - as long as you like it, it can bend in the middle and is not too unwieldy, anything goes!
I love her letters and journals, but never developed a taste for her fiction. Then again, I haven’t tried it since I was in my early twenties; perhaps I should revisit to see if my perspective has changed.
I’m thrilled to have found this post! Thank you so much! I have been toying with the idea of making my own notebooks for years and a few days ago finally just did it - a thin one, only two signatures, and small, A6; I got some paper and the backing of an old notepad and used a Coptic stitch to sow them together. I am a potter, I make things with my hands all the time, I sow and mend clothes... But making this notebook … was something else! Of course I couldn’t have put it better than Wolf , “exciting, soothing, ennobling and satisfying “. YES!
Next I will be diving into paste papers to make covers but that’s another story. And I will be reading more Virginia Wolf.
This is a delight. I have loved her books and letters, so its fascinating to find this a time when I am trying to figure out how I can do 'work reading' as you put it. I read a page and then end up writing and off on my own tangent. But I will have to give indexing a try - see if I can leave myself a trail of crumbs so I can return to important passages, and also *remember what I was thinking* when I bookmarked it
Oh wow I love this! Around the age she describes I used to copy down all kinds of things I loved. Book passages and song lyrics to whole albums and endless lists of books I needed to read. I look back on those notes and wonder why I spent so much time doing that, but it turns out, I guess, there's something universal about it!
Orlando was written wholly in purple ink. You can see the manuscript at Knole, the Sackville’s house in Kent. Virginia gave it to Vita, and it’s there.
Oh how I love those quotes of hers about pens! Lizard green and slippery. 😁 🦎
She's so playful, you can feel so much of her personality in so few words.
"That’s the real point of my little brown book…that it makes me read —with a pen—following the scent."
So I've *just* (I know, I know) started actually reading with a pencil and slowing down. It's a completely different experience. I'm annotating so much and enjoying the process. It feels scholarly, in a romantic sort of way. I'm reading Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun and the pencil is helping me follow the scent of Gene's incredible depth of writing.
Really enjoying these looks back to the early days of Noted, Jillian. 🤗
I'm continually awed by how everything Woolf writes is gorgeous--even the smallest, most mundane phrase. What an enormous talent. But, she also worked at it--intensively.
A long time ago I decided the difference between "work reading" and "pleasure reading" was the presence (or absence) of a pen/pencil. Reading without a writing instrument feels totally luxurious--wanting nothing but the experience from a text. Of course...that rarely happens, and the pencil *always* comes out at some point!
I'm so glad you're enjoying these re-Noted posts Nathan. I only had 40 subscribers when I published this piece. And I love Woolf so much.
I too am delighted by these revisited posts.
A huge talent, but also a slight relief that she worked at it intensively ;)
I think as I've started to think about writing more and more it has become harder to place myself purely in a "reading for luxury" category. I find myself always analysing and thinking about the text, but yeah, turning to an actual pencil will maybe be the way to have some distinction.
Gold and green pens! Lovely!
I thought so too!
An inspiring article about keeping a notebook - and making one yourself! Thank you Jullian - and Virginia.
I personally love using a cover with an elastic in the middle, so you can add a cheap notebook or loose papers. If you use loose pages, you can remove any pages when they become no longer relevant (or you mess them up, as I do). It is a good way to recycle paper. When the cover is full you just remove the pages, staple them, or sew the pages together, and start again.
You can make the cover of anything. Leather, card covered in papier-mâché or material. Or buy one. I don’t intend to advertise but here is a link showing what I mean; https://shorturl.at/luzEI
I love this--thank you for sharing. I make my own notebooks, but I always struggle with the cover. It takes a bit more artistry than just sewing paper together.
I know it is hard. But you don't have to follow conventional bookbinding methods. You can sew a cover, use thick leather, thin metal or other materials. Let your imagination go - as long as you like it, it can bend in the middle and is not too unwieldy, anything goes!
"discovering, pouncing, thinking of theories...." she described herself best one would think
delightful
It's so kinetic! I love that line.
"kinetic" ahhhhh you writers kill me 🤣😉
Pouncing is such a good word!
Right?! Leave it to Woolf to find the perfect word!
Very informative and inspiring to do the same. I sort of do this while reading: note taking and researching
It's so nice to see echoes of your own process in someone as brilliant as Woolf, isn't it?
Very interesting. I like Woolf 's ideas about notebooks, and her execution of them, much better than I like her fiction.
Ah! No!! Terry! But then again, Woolf has a very particular style. She's not trying to please everyone. And she definitely doesn't.
https://open.substack.com/pub/terryfreedman/p/review-to-the-lighthouse?r=18suih&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
I love her letters and journals, but never developed a taste for her fiction. Then again, I haven’t tried it since I was in my early twenties; perhaps I should revisit to see if my perspective has changed.
I love that Woolf enjoyed using colored pens - it feels so unexpected! It’s inspiring me to use my favorite purple more often
I always think of Woolf when I use a purple pen!
Beautiful beautiful 🍅
Thank you!
I’m thrilled to have found this post! Thank you so much! I have been toying with the idea of making my own notebooks for years and a few days ago finally just did it - a thin one, only two signatures, and small, A6; I got some paper and the backing of an old notepad and used a Coptic stitch to sow them together. I am a potter, I make things with my hands all the time, I sow and mend clothes... But making this notebook … was something else! Of course I couldn’t have put it better than Wolf , “exciting, soothing, ennobling and satisfying “. YES!
Next I will be diving into paste papers to make covers but that’s another story. And I will be reading more Virginia Wolf.
Thank you again for this! 🙏🏽
I love her idea of pens as accomplices. Wow. I’m going to steal that idea.
Yes!!! I love it too!
This is a delight. I have loved her books and letters, so its fascinating to find this a time when I am trying to figure out how I can do 'work reading' as you put it. I read a page and then end up writing and off on my own tangent. But I will have to give indexing a try - see if I can leave myself a trail of crumbs so I can return to important passages, and also *remember what I was thinking* when I bookmarked it
A trail of crumbs! That's a great description.
Oh wow I love this! Around the age she describes I used to copy down all kinds of things I loved. Book passages and song lyrics to whole albums and endless lists of books I needed to read. I look back on those notes and wonder why I spent so much time doing that, but it turns out, I guess, there's something universal about it!
Same here! I love that we were all doing it separately (but also, together, across time and space).
This is just delightful.
Thanks, Rach!
Fascinating, Jillian. I like to think that ‘Orlando’, one of my favourite books, was drafted with that green and gold fountain pen
Im sure it was.... or purple!
Orlando was written wholly in purple ink. You can see the manuscript at Knole, the Sackville’s house in Kent. Virginia gave it to Vita, and it’s there.
Revelatory. More than I'd expected!!
"Ennobling"
Thanks, Kenneth!
Love this ! Great ideas and inspiration! Keep writing!
Thanks, Trish!