Annotating to Become a Mindful Reader

I have recently decided to deface my beautiful paperbacks in the best way: book annotation.

This aesthetic trend serves the purpose of reading in a deeper and more meaningful way while also creating lasting memories of your favorite novels. While e-reading is on the rise in popularity due to its ease of access, convenience, and eco-benefits (trust me, I am riding that e-book train HARD), your paperbacks and hardcovers don’t have to be left out of the circle of love. Here are reasons to annotate and some ways to start annotating today to become a more mindful reader.

Annotation not only improves reading focus but also furthers comprehension and understanding. Typically one would start with creating a system by picking colored tabs or sticky notes where each color has a specific purpose in book tabbing. While reading, you will automatically keep each tab’s different tasks in mind, so you can focus more on the subject matter, emotions, dialogue, and overall literary aspects of the book. That way you can catch them and tab them for later.

Another part of book annotating is to use highlighters or underline things within the book. This could be exciting saucy scenes, new vocabulary, or virtuous moments–whatever you as a reader would like to remember about this book. Some people use a ruler and some people just freehand.

Lastly, annotation automatically puts the reader in a mindset for analysis and reflection. By having a guided list of things you are actively searching for and responding to with tabs, colors, and even your own personal notes, even without intent you are actively getting a deeper understanding of the material and using personal connections to further your experience with the book.

While this may sound like a lot of work for some, it can be very rewarding to see all your notes and tabs at the end of the read. Creatives love to reflect on their work and the vibes are immaculate with some natural lighting and greenery in the background if you want to take a picture. I also highly recommend this for those who want to get into reading, because it also helps with concentration for long periods of time, when you might not be used to it. Color and memory, as well as highlighting/underlining and memory have both been proven through several studies to cause a higher retention of material, whether that be concepts or vocabulary. So, give it a try!