★★★☆☆ | Writing. | Print | Own | StoryGraph | Goodreads
I learned at least one thing from reading this book: I have not been doing the Zettelkasten thing right. Mr. Doto here provides a practical guide on how it’s supposed to be done, and in reading it, it helped me conclude decisively that this kind of note-taking is absurd and in no way how I want to take notes.
True adherents write individual “atomic” permanent notes that include just one idea and are linked to at least one other note in the Zettelkasten system. You write these notes with faith that as the system grows, the connections and insights will follow. Nuts, I say. That’s what our primary brain and subconscious is for. No, No, No. Not for me.
And there’s an entire chapter of how awful Zettelkasten-inspired writing is. It’s disjointed and muddled. No thank you.
Reading this book convinced me to look critically at my own writing process to make I sure the time I’m investing in what I now know is a glorified digital commonplace book is actually paying off. Guess what? No, it’s not. I’ve decided to pare way back on my use of links and backlinks and knowledge notes. I think it’s all busywork that’s getting in the way of my actual thinking and writing time.