Index cards: a simple, powerful tool for writers
If you’ve been reading this space for any period of time, you know that I use a variety of desktop and Web applications to do my writing. That combination gives me the flexibility I need — when working from home, or when working on the road or at a co-working space.
Lately, though, I’ve become reacquainted with an old friend: index cards. They’re a decidedly low-tech way of working on an article, blog post, or any other writing project. But the humble index cards are a very useful and very flexible tool. In fact, I’m surprised that they’re not a part of the toolkit of more writers.
Why index cards?
When, as I’ve said, I have a number of desktop and Web applications at my disposal. Not to mention one or more Moleskine notebooks that I cart around with me.
Good question. The great thing about index cards is that they’re cheap, they’re portable, and you can recycle them. And, to paraphrase someone (sorry, can’t remember who), index cards don’t go down when the power does and they don’t need a connection to the Internet.
As for using them instead of a paper notebook … tough call there. I actually started using index cards again because my Moleskine ran out of empty pages, and I didn’t have a fresh one handy. I did have some index cards with me, though.
Other than that, I find that index cards promote brevity. When using a notebook, I’ve actually written full articles or posts by hand. More on this in a moment.
Using index cards
That seems simple, no? Just start writing. When you run out of space on one side of the card, flip it over. Then start on a new one. It’s not quite that cut and dry. Doing that, you’ll burn through a pack of cards very quickly.
A couple of paragraphs ago, I mentioned that using index cards for writing promotes brevity. Here’s how I do use them:
- Put a heading at the top of the card
- Write a couple of sentences that get to the main point of a section of what I’m writing
- Or jot down three or four point-form notes that do the same
The sentences and notes don’t have to be full sentences, either. A series of sentence fragments will do.
Index cards are great when you’re having trouble deciding on the structure of a piece of writing. Put them on your desk or on the floor. Try arranging them in a logical order. Then, move cards around until you find a structure that works. This also works when you’re trying to re-angle a piece of writing. Shuffle the index cards, remove and replace them as you see fit.
Summing up
Using index cards is a quick, cheap, and easy way to get writing. They’re also very flexible and can get you thinking about what you’re writing and how you’re writing it.
Thoughts? As always, feel free to leave a comment.
Photo credit: earl53 from morguefile.com
