Bibliography
Locke, John. A New Method of Making Common-Place-Books. 1706. https://fs.blog/john-locke-common-place-book/.
Locke’s indexing system solved the fundamental problem of commonplace books: how to allocate pages for unknown future subjects. His alphabetical index subdivided by vowels allows unlimited entries under any topic without pre-assigning space. The method requires a bound notebook with numbered pages, an index at the front, and systematic recording of page numbers by subject heading. Essential reading for understanding the organizational logic that made commonplace books functional as knowledge management tools. Available freely online with clear diagrams showing the index structure.
Havens, Earle. Commonplace Books: A History of Manuscripts and Printed Books from Antiquity to the Twentieth Century. New Haven: Yale University, 2001.
Exhibition catalogue from Yale’s Beinecke Library providing the first comprehensive historical survey of the entire commonplace book tradition from classical antiquity to present day. Havens argues for a broad definition that includes the messy, eclectic practices of actual compilers rather than just prescriptive Renaissance models. Documents how “reading was by no means a passive or receptive act” but involved selecting, extracting, gathering. Shows commonplace books as progenitors of modern reference works—encyclopedias, concordances, books of quotations. Acknowledges that the tradition “stubbornly refused to be ‘traditional'” and varied widely across users. Essential for understanding commonplace books as they were actually practiced, not just prescribed.
Blair, Ann M. Too Much to Know: Managing Scholarly Information before the Modern Age. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2010.
Groundbreaking study demonstrating that “information overload” is not unique to the digital age. Blair shows that 16th- and 17th-century scholars complained about book abundance after the printing press using language remarkably similar to modern anxieties. Documents sophisticated information management techniques developed in response: note-taking, excerpting, alphabetical indexing, thematic organization, compilation of reference works. Places commonplace books within broader context of how educated people coped with exploding textual information across cultures. Essential for understanding why commonplace methods remain relevant—they represent centuries of tested solutions to perennial problems of knowledge organization. Winner of multiple awards including Choice Outstanding Academic Title 2011.
“Commonplace Book.” Wikipedia. Accessed November 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonplace_book.
Comprehensive overview tracing commonplace books from ancient Roman rhetoric through Renaissance education to modern practice. Explains the distinction between chronological journals and topically-organized commonplace books. Documents how the practice was formally taught at Oxford by the 17th century and remained a standard study technique into the early 20th century. Notable practitioners include Francis Bacon, John Milton, Thomas Jefferson, Mark Twain, and Virginia Woolf. Valuable for historical context and understanding commonplace books as information-organizers predating modern knowledge management systems.
Holiday, Ryan. “How And Why To Keep A ‘Commonplace Book.'” RyanHoliday.net, November 14, 2019. https://ryanholiday.net/how-and-why-to-keep-a-commonplace-book/.
Contemporary writer’s defense of handwritten commonplace books despite digital alternatives. Holiday emphasizes the physical act of writing as crucial for retention and engagement. Provides practical workflow: mark passages while reading, let material percolate, then transfer selections to the commonplace book. Notes that commonplace books aren’t limited to book material—movies, speeches, conversations, and observations all qualify. Includes compelling quote from historian Douglas Brinkley about Reagan’s notecards: these were “tools for his trade.” Strong argument for why this centuries-old practice remains valuable for modern writers.
Eagan, Kevin. “Strategies to Keep a Commonplace Book.” Critical Margins, July 11, 2022. https://criticalmargins.com/strategies-to-keep-a-commonplace-book-f5652fd8eef5.
Practical organizational system from a working practitioner. Recommends standard notebooks (A5 preferred) with table of contents at front, index at back, and numbered pages. Every entry includes source citation at top of page. The index uses descriptive tags (like hashtags) to enable quick retrieval across multiple notebooks. Suggests typing table of contents into digital tool (OneNote) for searchability while maintaining handwritten originals. Addresses the key challenge: creating an adaptable system that doesn’t feel like a chore. Emphasizes enjoyment as ultimate motivation for maintaining the practice.
Moss, Ann. Printed Commonplace-Books and the Structuring of Renaissance Thought. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996.
Scholarly examination of commonplace books as the information-organizers of Early Modern Europe. Moss documents how humanist schools trained students in commonplace methods from their first Latin lessons through advanced studies. The commonplace book “mapped and resourced Renaissance culture’s moral thinking, its accepted strategies of argumentation, its rhetoric, and its deployment of knowledge.” Traces the tradition from medieval antecedents through printed manifestations to 17th-century decline. Essential for understanding commonplace books as pedagogical tools that shaped how educated people thought and organized knowledge for centuries.