How I Keep My Ideas Organised

Writing is messy work. Writing allllllll different types of things from songs to novels means that things can get messy if I don’ have a system. That’s why I developed my best (read: most recent) system that has not let me down (yet.) It’s what I call the Squirrel Approach, because I gather all the bits and pieces, anyway I have to then collect them in my notebook. Then once a week I have a massive ‘burial’ of my metaphorical acorns and put things in all the digital places they need to go.

But that sounds a bit confusing, so let me break it down.

Step 1: Gather the acorns.

Using whatever I have on hand; sticky notes, scrap paper, a napkin whatever- I collect anything I need, dates, logins, lyrics, random ideas, character or scene sketches, bits of dialogue, websites to check out, things to buy or to do ALL OF THE THINGS!

If I’m lucky, I have my notebook handy and they can go straight in there.

Step 2: Put them in a pile

This is when I get all the loose bits and make sure they’re all added to the notebook. 'Why double handle?' I can hear you saying. Well for starters, the loose stuff always gets lost so only hanging onto it for a day or so is the best option. The second reason is ... well, writing stuff down means you’re using a different part of your brain and remembering things in a different way and that is GOOD. Everything is in one place, and it's handy to be able to look back.

Step 3: Digitise

This is the important part, the bit that makes you go from being ‘meh’ to a productivity superstar (in my eyes anyway.) You take what you have and you put it where it needs to go in your digital files. NOW, before you get up in arms, remember you can collect all this stuff digitally in the first place (using notes or Google Keep) but the convenience of having a physical notebook and the pleasure that can be derived from using one far outweigh the benefits of completely digital (I’ve tried it, didn’t last long… I ended up with an empty notebook filled with loose papers.)

If you’ve made it this far, congratulations, and if you plan to implement your own organisation method- YAY! That’s great, remember this is just my way of doing things, so play around! Comment below or reach out at @aviva_anastasia to tell me what you do to keep your ideas organised!