Using Different Notebooks

Quite a few people still use notebooks, it seems. I use them more than most. Unfortunately, most people use them for school. Composition and spiral bound notebooks are the most common everywhere. For most of the people using them, the only distinction between their notebooks is the class they’re used for and maybe the amount of subjects or the color of the cover. I use my notebooks differently. For starters, they are of all different shapes and sizes. Colors and bindings, too. I do have preferences, but I also want to find new preferences.

I use my notebooks based on their type. By that I mean I have a different one for every task. I have one for stories (several actually), one for sketches, one for my “drawing every day” drawings, one for story notes, one for general notes and cartoons, and many others. I’m not sure how many people do this or something similar, but I find it handy to be able to grab a notebook and know exactly what is in it. This over-specialization has backfired and it resulted in me combining several notebooks into one, leaving a few books without a home.

20130611-224857

Those instances are few and far between, though. In general I’ve found it good to specialize my notebooks. If I am doing a certain task I can take a small notebook that is suited for the task instead of a large one that covers everything. It also enables easy referral since I don’t have to constantly search the one and only notebook for something on a specific topic.

It doesn’t just come down to using different same-brand notebooks or even differently sized notebooks. I use completely different brands with completely different styles for my various books. I use Mead, Moleskine, Field Notes, Top Flight, Bienfang, Strathmore, Rhodia, Clairefontaine, and even military-grade Memorandum books. I use all different rulings from blank to dot grid, and I’ve even found a hex grid notebook.

I’m not sure where I’m going with this, I just think it’s weird that I use notebooks like this. Is it? How do you use notebooks? Most of the people I know seem to use them in the way I described above, where they just have one that holds every thing. Or a large one and a pocket one. Either way, my giant bag of notebooks I take with me and cycle through my satchel will continue that way. And I will continue to write on paper notebooks. And I will love doing so. And I hope all of you writing on paper notebooks will love it as well.