Once, in third grade, I lent a friend a new paperback book I’d just finished. To my horror, the first thing he did was open the front cover and fold it down flat, running the heel of his palm up and down the bend. The book never closed flush again—instead, the cover would spring up like a cowlick. I remember getting so mad because I loved (and still do) keeping my books in pristine condition.

But recently, I ordered a book for the sole purpose of annotating the hell out of it. I started listening to Jaded by Ela Lee on audiobook, and within minutes knew it would be one of my favorite books of the year. The prose is gripping and tight yet sublime. She writes how I want to write and I need to know how she does it. Armed with my multi-color pack of pens, I almost feel naughty preparing to defile its pages!

For the past forever, I’ve used an e-reader to highlight and annotate, appreciating its ease and convenience. But something about this book tells me I’ll need to go IN scrawling long notes in its margins, deploying a color-coded highlighter system, and even diagraming out timelines. This move reflects my broader efforts to cut down on screen time and return to the tactile world, but I’m eager to see how creating this artifact of close, critical reading feeds back into my writing.

Stay scribblin’,
Jamie

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