Do you ever jot down your thoughts?

1. 60

   Jyoti Patilposted 12 years ago

   Do you ever jot down your thoughts?
   
   It happens to me that while travelling or driving alone or just sitting at a coffee house, I get some ideas. Thoughts that make me feel that I should write this down or else I will forget it. And I quickly save it in my cellphone or write it down. Do you do that too?
   
   

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2. 64

   marwan asmarposted 12 years ago

   Unfortunately I don't but I should. I have always told myself I need to carry a little notebook to jot down great ideas that come to my mind, but I have never done that yet. I tend to rely on memory which is wrong.

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3. 39

   tree57posted 12 years ago

   Hi Jyoyi Patil; Y es all the time I have a pad and pen with Me always,I got stacks of papers in a small suit case, around7 of them;and I have to sort them out,I got them in order by year,since 2003, I do automatic writing and My mind is always working.

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4. 78

   sankari.nayagamposted 12 years ago

   Everytime when I get a thought I should immediately jot it down, but it happens so that I either don't get a paper or pen and when I don't get it I rely on mind that I will remember the thoughts whenever needed. But unfortunatey sometimes (but very rare) I realize that I had to work really hard to get the thought back. Atleast form now on I should make it a practice to jot down my thinking!

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   Nick Bposted 12 years ago

   I don't in the typical sense. I often have scenes, bits of conversations or other noteworthy bits that pop into my head and ever the optimist, I try and put them in a story.
   
   I must have millions of words now in unfinished stories; ideas that seemed good at the time, but just never went anywhere.
   
   I probably should jot them down, but the question springs to mind about where to put them. Okay, so I have a book - or several with the thoughts in, but then it's a lot of work to reference them quickly. So do I design a database to copy them into and if so, what kind of referencing would I use to retrieve them?
   
   I'll stick to what I do.

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6. 67

   Rod Marsdenposted 12 years ago

   Of course I do! I'm a writer! I mostly jot things down on train trips. I take
   LOTS of train trips. It is a very good thing to do. One thing I like about it is it gives the old gray matter some exercise.

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   Mercia Collinsposted 12 years ago

   occasionally, but never the best ones. The ones for that story or article that will be so good that I will make my fortune. Perhaps Santa will bring me some tine notebooks into which I can put those great thoughts .

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   thirdmilleniumposted 12 years ago

   Lord knows it is criminal negligence for a writer not to do this but I am a sloth and never do it but keep regretting it all the time
   
   I have, however, resolved to do it from now
   
   Thanks for acting the catalyst

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   Cardisaposted 12 years ago

   Yes, I use my cell phone and I carry a notebook everywhere. I had a recorder but it went bad. I promised myself to get another, since it would be easier than writing while driving on the road.

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10. 0

    Jodi Sykesposted 12 years ago

    I carry around a small notebook in my purse to capture anything that I might be able to "eventually" use.  I have a section for dialogue (you never know what great phrases you can pick up from a little Southern Belle, a waitress, etc.), one for scenes and one for descriptions.  I don't know if I will ever use it all, but at least I have it "just in case"!

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11. 44

    bharmoriatposted 12 years ago

    yes. i write down thoughts that are important to me , and i like to share some on hubpages itself. i like to remember the words , i had expressed my thoughts. reading them after a while is like feeling them again!.

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12. 78

    randslamposted 12 years ago

    I use to and I need to make a habit of it because losing those flashes of lightning is like throwing gold into the streets.

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13. 61

    lilian1posted 12 years ago

    Yes I do otherwise I tend to forget I try to keep a pen/paper handy for any new ideas for a hub I want to write about I had a great idea not long back and because I didnt jot it down have forgotten what it was which is annoying ....

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14. 0

    mikeq107posted 12 years ago

    Yes all the time...no mater how trival...Actually 3 of them turned into chapters in a book. All 3 were totaly unrealted at the  time , a year later I came up with the dots that connected them all.I have countless other notes that have served me well...Great question..thanks for asking!!!!
    Mike :0)

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15. 61

    rlahaposted 12 years ago

    If it is possible for me to write down my thoughts I do. Usually I get them when I am on the verge of falling asleep and am too lazy to get out of bed to write them down.  Sometimes though, I am lucky enough in the daytime to have a pen and paper handy so I do get to write them down. Good question!

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    patnotheposted 12 years ago

    Hello, Jyoti... I always do jot down my thoughts or anything that comes to my mind especially when it is important. I just cannot really trust my memory. I used to have a sharp memory but not anymore. Some says, that maybe it is because of the heavy  anesthesia injected on me twice when I gave birth through Cesarean section. But I would like to believe that it is because of my diminishing youth (hahaha) Being forgetful, like I always say to my friends, will likely topple me down . That is why I always carry with me a ready notepad. I may forget my perfume or powder but not my pen and my notepad.

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    Marlin 55posted 12 years ago

    On Occasion I do, but most of the time I just hold it in my head. When a thought does surface I've learned to bring it up out of the subconscious and think about it. Then it becomes a conscious process. Sometimes I will even take the idea and write a partial story and set it aside. I find that when I come back to it that the idea is still just as fresh inside my imagination.

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18. 0

    cmahanposted 12 years ago

    Yes, I do. I have notebooks all over the house. One in the kitchen, nightstand by the bed, in my purse, table by the couch and on my desk. I also use the voice recorder on my iPhone. I learned a long time ago that when a story idea or content idea come to me and I don't write it down immediately I never remember.

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19. 59

    Dee aka Nonnaposted 12 years ago

    Yes, there are notes everywhere.  In notebooks, on scrapes of paper, on the back of envelopes and napkins.

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    emichaelposted 12 years ago

    All the time. 
    
    And it always seems to happen to me when I'm driving. When that happens, I just make a voice memo on my phone. It's safer than scrounging for a piece of paper and pen on the interstate

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    Patkayposted 12 years ago

    I am also as guilty as thirdmillenium, I wish I could get into that habit of jotting down those thoughts. The are actually very important to a writer. I will make it my old/new year resolution.

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22. 60

    Ramsa1posted 12 years ago

    I do jot down my thoughts or they would just fly right out of my mind. It's a great idea to carry a notebook, or a piece of paper with you. I've written down thoughts on paper napkins at restaurants and coffee shops. Nowadays, of course, we have laptops and cell phones which work just as well.

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23. 59

    whoisbidposted 12 years ago

    Yeh. `once is a while I do this when reading something I am meditating on

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24. 81

    Danette Wattposted 12 years ago

    All the time. I keep notepads and post it notes around the house, in my car and purse. If I get an idea or just hear something I like I write it down b/c then I know I won't forget it.

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    Phyllis Doyleposted 12 years ago

    All the time!  I never go anywhere without my little notebook and pen.  I write down so many thoughts and ideas that I always have good references or reminders about a poem or story to write.  OMGosh! if I tried to remember everything, tried to keep it in my mind, I would certainly get it all jumbled up and write something very confusing. I recommend that all writers are never without a "jot it down tool".

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26. 73

    dahoglundposted 12 years ago

    I am not the best organized person so I do jot things down but usually can't find them again. If I am reading books that I own I may highlight or underline things.I may also put markers of sorts on the pages.Despite everything some stories and articles do result from this

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    joanwzposted 12 years ago

    Yes, I do this all the time  Some times I write it as a text message and send it from my phone to my e-mial. Usually I jot it down on whatever paper I can find, from the check book register to restaturant napkins and to-go menus, Whatever I can find to write things down on.

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28. 75

    alancaster149posted 12 years ago

    Sometimes I do, to plan out a piece of writing that's going to be longer than a couple of A5 pages worth in one go. For instance, when I've been putting down my historical articles on Hub-pages I've already got the facts, the names and the dates ready. When I was setting down my travelogues I was following a map sequence, so I didn't need to make notes except when looking up info on certain locations. In writing the Hunding Hrothulfsson series I sit down and take the story on from where I left off to where I can set the reader down before the next part.
    When writing the RAVENFEAST series I started off from notes and built up the story from there once the bare bones were 'laid out'. Now I'm on the editing stage of OUTCAST (No.3) I'm at the point of making it readable for readers.

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    MisguidedGhost16posted 12 years ago

    Yes, of course. Lots of times my inspiration will come from a passing thought in my head that I find myself saying "I've got to remember that!"
    
    I've learned to actually carry a pen and paper with me in my purse just for moments like these. My memory is not always the greatest, and when out and about I can be easily distracted so I often make sure that the moment significant thoughts rise in my head I write it down.
    
    I also find myself just sitting down and writing whatever it is that comes into my mind despite how jumbled up it may be. Any thought can be turned into art, in my opinion.

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30. 73

    Benoitsmidgetposted 12 years ago

    You are not alone. I also use my cell phone's notepad app for just this reason. Although pen and scrap paper are always my first choice. I just don't think there is anything like seeing it in ink.

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31. 72

    Twilight Lawnsposted 12 years ago

    I have a Sony digital voice recorder which I SOMETIMES remember to carry around with me.  Sometimes I can dictate my thoughts and have a whole "chapter" in there that I can play back and develop... if I remember to take it with me.

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32. 82

    catfish33posted 12 years ago

    I have become forgetful in my old (well, maybe not) age. So I write down story ideas and plots and what my agenda is during a day so I can keep them straight.  That's how Newly Homeless and the Convenience Store Workers' Bill of Rights and Privileges came about.
    
    It seems to work.

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    stariswhoiamposted 12 years ago

    yes, I think about life...
    how I want to live it,
    why it is the way it is,
    I write poems, ,
    song lyrics,
    diary entries,
    think philosophically ANYWHERE
    so i jot down things.

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    starstreamposted 12 years ago

    Yes, the last few days at work when I get a free moment I have written some notes.  The journal idea is PERFECT.  I love hubpages.

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    PictureThisposted 12 years ago

    Yes, it helps me remember things, but when I lost a loved one I had to be the one to go through things. Reading some of the notes, I realized they had many more thoughts and feelings than they let out. Now I try to think how my actions will affect others and try to be more attentive. I try, it doesn't mean I can achieve perfection or anything but trying is a start.

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    Beata Stasakposted 12 years ago

    Always if I have pen and paper handy and few minutes to spare...my hubs are just that...'scattered images in my mind'

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    athena2011posted 12 years ago

    Definitely. I have a poor memory so have to write everything down or I lose it. I also operate with a To-Do list daily, for the same reason, that I am afraid I will forget to do something important if I don't have it written down. I just find it easier this way.

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    Emily Sparksposted 12 years ago

    Yes.  When I think of something I don't want to forget, I write it down.  It helps me to remember things, and helps to keep things from getting "lost" in everything else I think about.

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    jenevieveoposted 12 years ago

    i have an app in my phone that i write my self notes or bits of poems. I like it because i have thoughts throughout the day and i like to return to them later without losing any of the original thought. Its actually been extremely useful for my creative writing and my academic writing.

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