I don't know about you, but for me, it's sacrilegious to write on books. Not even in the ones from school haha. And if I had to do it, I'd do it in pencil and with tiny handwriting.
“Only the very weak-minded refuse to be influenced by literature and poetry.”
–Cassandra Clare
I've been a bookworm (as I like it more: book-dragon) for years now. It wasn't until a few months back that I started tabbing my books with sticky notes. I don't know why I didn't start sooner or why I never had the compulsion until I'd become part of Bookstagram.
Either way, I'm glad now I'm into it. Nevertheless, I'm still unable to write on my books.
Why do we annotate?
Let's rewind a few years back. During University, I used to read long scientific articles. I would have to highlight and write on the margins with questions and notes. Some of you could say that if I could write on those papers, I could also write on my books. Well, yes and no. It would be the same as the action of highlighting and writing on a piece of paper. But one was for academic purposes, and the other was not.
Writing on my scientific articles was ok for me because I was sure that I would never reread them. And I was right haha. After finishing University, I haven't picked a single one of them to reread.
Also, for me, writing a book is something unthinkable. Something that makes me cringe only thinking about it. And I really don't know the "why" behind it.
Sadly, humans cannot memorize everything they read and see (except for some). So, the only way we can actually remember is if we focus on some parts. That way, we can retain specific details or if later we want to delve into the idea. So, in the end, it becomes a habit. A way to study for our exams and quickly scan documents when rereading.
All of this is for academic purposes. But what happens with our precious books?
This could as well translate to when we read our favorite books. People annotate their favorite books with questions, feelings, and ideas. You could see it as a way of keeping track of your thoughts while reading. Ensuring that you understand the text. It's a way to customize your book.
The reason why I don't do it on my books
So if it is something we make to "customize" our books, why do I have an aversion? This is my honest and personal opinion. So please don't come at me.
Books are a sacred thing for me. They are my transportation to incredible worlds and distract me from reality and life's problems. So annotating on them permanently causes me a bit of distress.
I don't like my handwriting either. So when I reopened a book and saw the smudges I wrote, I would be traumatized. On the other hand, my parents taught me that I should always be careful of works of art, and books ARE that. Thus, in a way, I'm just following my parent's education.
Furthermore, I'm scared that what I write will make no sense whatsoever. Making a fool of me. I know it's an irrational fear, but that's how fears work. I'm afraid of writing with grammatical errors, I can't use Liquid Paper on my book 🙄
And maybe you'll tell me: "write with a pencil". My irrational fear is the same: I'm afraid I'll break or rumple the page. Others would tell me: "use a notebook". If I'm honest, I tend to forget I have a notepad next to me while reading haha. I'm so immersed in the reading that 1) I forget about it or 2) I'm lazy enough to stop my reading and write.
And I know it's my fault for not solving my dilemma/fear with an alternative solution. Thankfully, Bookstagram came to the rescue. Since I'd become part of it, I saw how people were using sticky notes of all different sizes and colors to use them as a way for tabbing and annotating.
I started talking with some amazing people, and they explained to me their method. And it made SO MUCH sense. Some said to me that each color represents an emotion. The bigger sticky notes were for writing on them and putting them in the correct section.
All of you who explain to me how you tab and annotate are COMPLETELY GENIUSES. And I'm eternally grateful.
I'm still in the trial and error stage. I started using only one color but realized I wouldn't know the significance when rereading. Later on, I searched for sticky notes cards and what emotion could represent each color. There were so many options. In the end, I decided to do it myself haha. It is not the most beautiful thing I've made, but it works for its purpose.
The point is: do whatever pleases you. If you feel the need to highlight or quickly find your favorite parts (or the ones that completely destroyed you), there are a ton of ways you can do it. You can actually write on the book, or you can use sticky notes just for pointing the sentence. Or you could use a bigger sticky note to write, or you could use a notebook. Any one of them works perfectly. None of them are wrong. You just have to find the one that best suits you.
I also can’t annotate, but I do use big sticky notes to write in them and stick them on the page