This is my
second post regarding my reading journal journey, and it will serve as an
update of sorts. As I mentioned in my first post regarding this topic, I started
using the Modern Ms. Darcy free Reading Journal template. I have found it useful, but I am not entirely
satisfied with it. I used her first template and I found out today that she updated it in October 2019. Looks like she streamlined it a bit.
I am not a
stickler for detail so things like date of publication or publishing house are of no real use to me. Ratings are
something that I am not fond of either, though most people seem to like using
them. Unless the book is outstanding or a
wall-banger, I really don’t feel compelled to rate a book or say much about
it for that matter.
For the above reasons, I decided to start my own template after much research involving other people’s
samples/templates. I also decided to
keep a “running list” or index of books in digital form, meaning in a Word document. The main reason to create my own template is
that I am going to switch to a standard-sized 3-ring binder so that I can fit
more information. Though an A5 paper
size initially seemed like the thing to do, in the long run it isn’t working as
well for me. My current A5 3-ring binder got thick really fast.
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I am also
trying to incorporate some lists. The
first one I have created is just a numbered list with titles and author names,
color coded to reflect those books I’ve found outstanding, the wall-bangers, and
the Christmas anthologies. It does
double-duty as my index. I am keeping
that list in digital form (using Word).
It makes it easier to do a search for a specific title to make sure I am
not duplicating reads, etc.
The other
lists I have are lists of favorite authors, authors recently discovered whose
work I’ve liked, and a list of authors that haven’t impressed me. I’m now starting a list involving tropes
because over the past several months I keep wanting to read following specific
tropes/themes, and I’ve realized I’ve forgotten a lot of the stories I’ve read
over the years, and some were stories that I’d like to revisit.
Even
though I haven’t dipped my toes yet on bullet journal, I couldn’t resist buying
yet another one. This time a Scribbles
That Matter journal. It is hard cover,
A5 sized so it is not huge. The pages
are thick, so ink does not bleed through.
The pages are already numbered. It
also includes a few pages for an index and a page for the keys to symbols and
color coding. I am not used to writing
in a bullet journal. Hopefully I’ll get
used to it…once I decide to start it, that is.
This time I think I am only going to be including space for the book
number, title, author, and notes, if I feel like adding any. Every time I research for bullet journals, I
end up feeling defeated even before starting.
Looks like a lot of artsy types are using them and let’s face it,
creative and/or artistic I am not and I feel deflated just thinking about all those beautiful
ones on display online because I know I’ll never reach that sort of
“perfection” and “artistry”.
As I was
expecting, I lost interest and have been quite lax in following through with
this project. Right now I am
catching up with the running list (index of sorts).
