Marginalia. It’s the notes scratched into the margins of a book. It’s scribblings in the open space that are evidence that someone is engaging with the words on the page. It reflects the thoughts, reactions, and insights that the reader turned margin-writer has as she takes in the words and chews on them.
The first time I remember taking part in this ancient practice was my freshman year in college. Our assignment was to choose from a list of “classic literature” and write a paper on it. I was surprised to see Frankenstein by Mary Shelley on that list.
“Isn’t that the story about the green monster that came to life from electricity?” I thought. How that Hollywood horror movie could come from something deemed “classic literature” piqued my curiosity. I selected that novel, and it blew my preconceived notions out of the water. I couldn’t stop writing in that clean space on the side of the pages, and when it came time to pull my thoughts together and write the essay, I reread my pen scratchings. There, a lifelong practice began—not just writing my own but loving to read others’ marginalia I found in any used book I held in my hands.
I discovered Billy Collin’s poem in the early 2000s when a camp counselor asked me if I had ever read it (Thank you, Kyle Heys). He loaned me his book so I could read it.
“There’s a name for this delightful practice?” I exclaimed. I was shocked and delighted.
My marginalia you find in this blog are not just my musings from the written word but also from others and the text of the world around me. I hope maybe you will discover you engage with the scribblings found here and create your own musings.