That New Old New System of Mine

You are not beholden to a system. If something is not working for you, change it. Scrap it. In my classroom, when I had one, I’d stop instruction if I saw the lesson wasn’t working the way I intended. That’s the trick to being a teacher, a good one at least. Your lesson plan is more of a guide than a rule. If the way you decided to teach isn’t getting through to the kids, stop. Try again the next day. Let the kids know that it’s not working and they’ll, surprisingly, quickly, get on your side. No point in pushing a train to nowhere.

There’s probably a lesson in there somewhere…

One of the best lessons I learned about notebook use was so long ago I can’t remember who originally said it, but it’s along the lines of “make the notebook work for you.” For years I’ve been doing the Bullet Journal method and, to me, it’s the best way to lay out how a day needs to go. If anyone asked me what’s the best way to incorporate a journaling practice into their life, I always suggest it.

Unfortunately, I am not living the kind of life that lends itself well to laying out a day and then following through on it.

I’ve stopped Bullet Journaling once before, shortly after COVID halted the world, but picked it back up. Through that time I switched back and forth between using the one designated large notebook and a series of pocket notebooks as my Daily Log/scratchbook. Eventually, I settled on one large notebook because it felt grand. Important. And don’t dismiss that feeling. If something feels important, then you can treat it as important. I could use it to break out nuggets of ideas, log things for the long run, do my Morning Pages (another practice of mine) when I needed, rewrites for novels, and so on, all in one place.

Except, it became a crutch of mine.

I’d carry it with me, but wouldn’t use it. It became this tower of fear I’d have to overcome before I could even pick up a pen. I felt guilty about not logging days. And when a notebook starts doing that to you…that’s a problem.

Though it’s still September, I made the call to wrap this year’s Bullet Journal up now.

Then, two things happened to me…

Austin Kleon is an artist, author, and creator, and I came across this piece of his near the beginning of the year (most of it is behind a paywall, but you’ll get some good stuff at the top). At the time, I thought using four notebooks seemed like a bit much. He even says so much in the article itself:

Before I get started, I want to say that this is my system, and I do not necessarily recommend it to others! Writing is my job, so it would make sense that I’d have a bunch of notebooks. My intention with this letter is to be descriptive not prescriptive.

But then I found this delightful little tool, the Lochby Pocket Journal…

Lochby Pocket Journal, a brown multi-use carrier of field notebooks.

…and it just screamed, “USE ME.”

Suddenly, multiple notebooks didn’t seem that crazy…

But wait, hold on. You ditched the Maxpedition Organizer pouch because you didn’t want to carry around a bunch of notebooks and you wanted to simplify things and URGAHG *screeching metal noises*

“Remember, if the system isn’t helping you, change the system.”

I wrote that the last time I felt there needed to be a system overhaul.

A year can change a lot of things. A new baby could be on the way. There could be a new part-time job taking up your life. But, more importantly, you could learn something.

I learned something.

The second thing to happen to me was I was given the chance to truly impress a literary agent with a Revise & Resubmit. To tackle the process of reviewing and editing an entire book, with kids, with a complicated lifestyle, I had to break it apart into chunks, then tackle each of those chunks one at a time. First, review what the agent requested. Then, isolate those pieces into their own actionable requests. Then, make them tangible actions to follow. Then, review the book, highlight sections to review/remove, and outline the book onto a note cards to see the flow of the story and if the changes could fit. Finally, identify what parts need to be written or rewritten and tackle of each of those separately.

Though I took a month off in August for start-of-school/prep-for-baby shenanigans, and I’ve slowly started picking it all back up.

At the time of writing, there are 5 new parts to write. I’ve done 1 of 5.

And only by doing things within the realm of actual, factual, tangible actions, was I able to get anything done.

And that’s when it clicked.

The Bullet Journal system is great when you allow yourself freedom of space to think, to explore, to wonder.

I can’t.

My present thinking feels like it needs to be within a narrow hallway with a goal of a door at the end.

Austin Kleon says each of his notebooks fit a purpose.

https://austinkleon.substack.com/p/my-4-notebooks

I like that.

I like the idea of having a notebook that’s made for one thing, and one thing only, and only doing that one thing in it. Where my life is, as chaotic as it can feel from day to day, as it will continue to do so, I need to be told what to do. Kind of like how the only way I was able to complete what I could for the rewrite was to create small tasks for myself to follow.

I can only create when I narrow how I’m creating.

Lately, I’ve been carrying around two notebooks for certain. One is the Morning Pages journal (which might be undergoing its own change, but we’ll see) and the other, one I started this past summer, is a small sketchbook. I used to carry a sketchbook with me everywhere for a solid ten years, starting just before I graduated high school right up until I moved to Phoenix. I’m no expert, but I used to be okay. (This is what I tell myself.)

I really just wanted my sons to see me drawing so they would feel inclined to join me. Kindergarten was starting, and I wanted them to gain some tactile strength in their fingers before they had to start doing it for real. It’s therapeutic, helps me get story bits out in the form of character design, and really allows me the breathing room to just goof off and do something creative without judging myself too harshly.

The interior of my daily journaling practice might end up looking like this…

“That’s two notebooks down,” I thought. “Could I use more?”

After all, four isn’t that crazy to consider since I was, at the time, already carrying three around with me. But what would the change be? What part would the Lochby Pocket play in this scheme? And would it really help me?

Does anyone else think about notebooks this much or do I just have a problem? I mean, it’s not like I have drawers filled with empty notebooks ready…to…be…used…

These notebooks need a purpose. They need a life.

And I need a purpose. I need to know what to do. I’m a dad. I got a lot going on.

Here’s where I’m currently at with my other notebook usage.

Inside the Lochby Pocket Journal is space for four Field Notes-sized notebooks. The front one is currently being used as my monthly “BuJo” style notebook, where I track water and log the day’s/month’s events (more on that later). The next notebook is for Fifth Draft blogs. The third one is a story development notebook for Project NESS, specifically the rewrites. A fourth story development one could go in there.

But this is where I’m at a crossroads.

Kleon has both a Pocket Notebook and a Logbook. The pocket notebook is always on his person, used for scribbling or jotting down notes or ideas. The Logbook is for keeping track of the day’s events before or as they occur. The BuJo notebook could be transitioned into a full-time Logbook only, leaving extra space in the Lochby.

I could repurpose this little guy for the Logbook:

This used to be my everyday wallet. No. Seriously.

Or, I could use this wonderful notebook I picked up at the Arizona Renaissance Festival (whose name I can’t track down) and I think it’d be perfect as a Logbook, also.

If I use the Renaissance notebook that means the wallet notebook becomes the Pocket Notebook, carry with me everywhere, used for scribbling and jotting, while this is the Daily Logbook, the Lochby is all the projects, the sketchbook, and the journal for Morning Pages.

Five notebooks.

Is that too many?

Maybe. But it’s not about the number of notebooks. It’s about having space to think. I don’t have time to categorize and label all the separate parts of my Bullet Journal. I want to know what’s in each notebook and what I can find there. It’s very “elementary school we’re just introucing new classes to you so you need a notebook for each one” vibes, but there’s a reason teachers do that.

It’s organized. I don’t mind carrying a backpack (as I’m about to start doing again aka diaper bag), if it means I know what goes in each notebook.

This is where I’m at now. Things could always change tomorrow.

So let’s stick with these four.