How I Annotate the Books I Read
Profound thoughts are welcome but not necessary
Don’t let the title fool you; I don’t typically read from my shelves. I work at a library, so books are at my disposal more than I’d like to admit. I also don’t annotate every book I read from my shelves, but I still have this burning urge to talk about my annotating “process”.
Color-coordinating
Yes, I have specific colors assigned to different aspects of a book because I’m not a monster. Here’s what they are:
- Red is for triggers or anything that grinds my gears.
- Blue is for sad girl hours, duh!
- Yellow is for quotable literary moments.
- Pink reminds me of how single I am.
- Purple has one job, and that’s to remind me of all the information I’ll most likely block out of memory.
- Orange is the funny friend of the group.
- Green is the replacement for any color that goes missing.
If you have a color-coordinated annotating system, please let me know what that is in the comments. I’ll keep an open mind, but unlikely to implement any of the ideas. I’m mostly joking.
My chaotic process
I don’t have a process because annotating doesn’t have to be daunting. I write in my books with pen, mark pages with tabs, and I’ve recently started dog-earring pages if that whole section sticks out. I’m sure that’s blasphemous to many people, but it adds character to my shelves. What would make my bookshelves stick out to others if I don’t show what makes the books unique to me?
When I first started reading as a hobby, I would buy any book that sounded remotely interesting to me. It would sit on my shelves, collecting dust for years. My wallet and my bookshelves were screaming at me to stop. Now, if I manage to annotate a book to its end, it deserves a spot on my shelves. Sometimes I’ll start annotating a story that I’m excited about but stop halfway through because the book ends up flopping. Those bless the shelves of Half Price Books.
Live and let live
I refuse to tell you that annotating books will change your life. If you want to try, here are a few tips:
- Write your annotations in pencil first.
- Use one color of tabs. Don’t rack your brain coming up with a complicated system.
- Start annotating with a novella or shorter book. I wouldn’t recommend starting with a 600-page Brandon Sanderson fantasy.
- On-page buddy reads can also encourage you to annotate more. If you don’t own the book, you don’t have to worry about the pen markings.
- Write your thoughts on a sticky note and decide later if you want to commit to putting pen to page.
- Don’t spend your reading experience critiquing the book if that’s not the reader you are. Annotations don’t have to be prodigious.
If any of that makes you uneasy, annotating may not be for you. You can write notes about the book in a journal or word document. Reading just for kicks-and-giggles is also an option if you’re into that. Don’t write in your books for the sake of an aesthetic Instagram post. Annotate for yourself.
