Sometime in 2019, I came across ‘a commonplace book’. It wasn’t a specific book but rather an expression for a type of book. I had been thinking about creating a blog and was looking for a ‘handle’ on it, a name for the blog, a concept that might help me form a basis to start a blog. Working titles popped up and one of them ‘justanotherblog’ became ‘yesanotherblog’ – which I launched in March 2020.
As a somewhat obsessive type, a collector and writer of lists, I accumulated other possible blog titles and one or two of them refused to go away. I had the idea of ‘a scrap blog’, recalling my childhood years and scrapbooks – home for a miscellany of items. As I did a spot of research I stumbled across ‘a commonplace book’ – and became quite excited. The idea of a book being home for a disparate range of information (quotations, notes, sketches, reflections, recipes, lists, etc) reminded me of an encyclopedia. I remembered the boxed set of encyclopedias I got for Christmas when I was 8. Commonplace books go back to antiquity and gathered pace in the Age of Enlightenment, the printing press also accelerated their growth. By the 18th century, it was a widely used form of gathering knowledge and ideas – and was even a required element in University studies at Oxford and Harvard. The philosopher John Locke wrote an entire book called ‘Method for Common-Place Books (1685).
This is where the blog you are now, comes from. But rather than a book, it’s a blog: A Commonplace Blog.
It will be home to blog posts (short notes and small essays), quotations, aphorisms, sketches, photographs, pictures, sound clips, video links, excerpts from books, a miscellany of impressions and expressions, recipes, conversations, and monologues. Eventually, there will be guest bloggers and a podcast.
It will also be home to collaborative online projects. I created one (53 Fragments) in 2014 and last year I started to think about the next project. As the Corona-virus and pandemic gathered scale and momentum, I started to think about a project that would be a response to this.
At the end of 2019 I decided to reach out to artists, writers, musicians, and friends – with the goal of bringing together a group of people who would share their response to the pandemic – through essays, poetry, pictures, photography, painting, drawing, music and film/video.
What a wonderful discovery I made on this Saturday morning when I stumbled upon your anything but commonplace blog. I was transported to another time in another country, far far away from the entity of Facebook where we first met. Thank you Dean & all the others involved for creating this space unlike any other that has fully held my mind & spirits attention for the past few hours. I must needs step away for the moment to pursue something on one of my many to do lists, however I will be visiting you again very soon!
Got it! I am not very into all this technology, I think my whole life is a common place books full of an assortment of memories some photos and sketches some thoughts that come at unexpected moments. Good luck with your project Hilary
Ciao, volevo sapere il tuo prezzo.
Ciao – Il prezzo per cosa? Una delle mie foto? Quale?
What a wonderful discovery I made on this Saturday morning when I stumbled upon your anything but commonplace blog. I was transported to another time in another country, far far away from the entity of Facebook where we first met. Thank you Dean & all the others involved for creating this space unlike any other that has fully held my mind & spirits attention for the past few hours. I must needs step away for the moment to pursue something on one of my many to do lists, however I will be visiting you again very soon!
Really enjoyed reading and listening to Sarah. Thank you for this wonderful idea
Got it! I am not very into all this technology, I think my whole life is a common place books full of an assortment of memories some photos and sketches some thoughts that come at unexpected moments. Good luck with your project Hilary