Book review: ‘A System for Writing’ by Bob Doto

I wish I’d had this book over three years ago when I began converting the research for the book I was (and still am) working on (plus loads of other research for future projects) into a computerised ‘slip-box’ or ‘zettelkasten’. In the years since then, my slip-box and how I use it has slowly evolved, becoming central to how I work. As I’ve said before, there’s no going back.

I’m not about to go into how I use my slip-box because Bob Doto uses his in a very similar way, and explains it far better than I ever could. In A System for Writing, Doto takes us through the concepts of a zettelkasten system, the various types of note that go into one, how to link them, and how to develop them further. He then goes on to explore how to use such notes to produce short- and long-form writing. The book is illustrated throughout with example notes, many of them taken from Doto’s own zettelkasten.

When I first tried to get my head around Zettelkasten, I consulted Sönke Ahrens’ extremely useful book How to Take Smart Notes. This was—and still is—seen as the book to read on the subject. I predict A System for Writing will replace it.

If you’re a writer or researcher who isn’t already familiar with the concepts of a zettelkasten, you need to read this book. You should probably also read it if, like me, you are already familiar with the concepts. Reading it certainly confirmed a few ideas I’d had about improvements I could make to my own system, which I now can’t wait to try out.

Highly recommended.

See also:

• All of my ‘note-making’-related articles and reviews
• Video of Bob Doto using his zettelkasten to write an essay