Victoria Minks, Bookbug and Writer
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How to Organize Your Novel Notes and Research

10/23/2016

3 Comments

 
How to Organize Your Novel Notes and Research
Hey my friends! 

NaNoWriMo is only a little over a week a way! And with #NaNoPrep comes tons of random notes, research, character sheets, etc etc etc. How on earth do you keep it all organized? I have two different ways I keep track of everything. One is on the computer, the other is with all my actual papers. 

So, first up, we have Evernote. You've probably heard me talk about this before! (I'm not an affiliate--this is the real deal, lol!) This is an absolutely great app--I've been using it for years! The best thing about Evernote for researching is a handy-dandy little thing called "Evernote Web Clipper". What is this? Well, when you're researching articles on the web, if you come across something that you want to save, instead of copying and pasting or doing some such inconvenient maneuver, you can click your Evernote Web Clipper! From there you can save your "clip" as either the article in its entirety, as a simplified article, as the full page, as a bookmark that will take you to the webpage later when you click it, or as a screenshot. You can pick from there what notebook to save it into, as well as the ability to add tags and write a comment along with the article. I find it super handy when researching--my most used way of the clipper is the Simplified Article, but they're all useful!

Once in Evernote, I usually have one notebook for each book, and stack notebooks for series. It's super easy to keep track of things with the ability to search within notes, add tags, or star notes for importance. You can do bullet or number lists, check-box lists, add attachments, make a table to fill in, or use different colors for your text. Evernote also syncs across devises and saves your notes on the cloud, so you'll never lose your valuable research and you can access it from anywhere.  The best part? You can do this all for free. Sure, there's a premium version, but I use Evernote extensively and have been very happy with just the free version. 

The other way is with divided folders. I have several cute plastic folders--some are just a slim pocket, and some have dividers in them. The ones I buy aren't as bulky as typical American ones, and I really like them for stashing my writing notes. I use one folder for a book, and these folders get used all the way up through the editing and publishing stage, as well as organizing my book tour info, schedules, etc. I keep the folders stacked on each other in little open filing drawers on my desk--where I can see the edge of the folders so I can easily pull it out, but they're kept out of the way and neat. 

So how do you organize your notes and research? Let me know in the comments below! 

You all have a lovely day!
<3
Victoria
3 Comments
Faith Potts
10/23/2016 10:43:35 pm

Wow, Evernote sounds awesome! Definitely looking into that. :D
Oh, goodness yes...I LOVE researching!! Haha, I tend to go a little overboard too. ;P
I usually hand-write my notes, color coding them by what they relate to, and keep them in a binder (or strew across my writing area...lol). I'm a rather sloppy note keeper though. ;)

Reply
Victoria Minks
10/29/2016 08:21:53 am

Ah, color-coding is always fun! :) And yes, I love Evernote! :D

Reply
Katja L.
12/10/2016 12:06:10 pm

I use Evernote. But I also have a big box full of loose papers. . . and a lot of loose notes in my iPhone “Notes”. . . and other stuff. LOL. <3

Reply



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    Victoria Minks is a bookbug and writer, with oodles of daydreams and ideas. She loves historical fiction, chocolate, music, horses, and old books, and firmly believes that there is whimsy and beauty in any day. She was saved at age 5 and desires to write for God's glory.
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