Do You Underline When You Read Novels?

On Reading Habits.

A bookstagrammer recently sent me a note (and a photo) saying how much she enjoyed my book, explaining that as she read, she underlined her favorite lines and put stickers on pages she wanted to remember. She did this for two reasons: The first is that she always sends her books on to friends to enjoy and wants them to see the parts of the book that resonated with her. The second is that this book enthusiast likes to return to novels by flipping back to the pages with her favorite parts.

I LOVED this approach to reading fiction. For one, authors never get to hear how a reader specifically enjoyed their book. But seeing it, in the picture below, also gave me an idea as a reader. It’s such a fun way to journey through a book.

Annissa sent me these photos of how she marked up an advanced copy of my novel. I want to know what was marked with all of those stickers.

I thought of this unique approach again when I read the interview in the NYT Book Review last weekend with writer extraordinaire Kate DiCamillo. They asked her to describe her ideal reading experience (when, where, what, how).

DiCamillo responded with: “I am most myself when I am sitting in an armchair holding a physical book. I am an underliner, a dog-earer. I like a patch of sun, a cup of coffee and a dog somewhere nearby. This is heaven.”

Um, agreed! But what I focused on in the interview is the fact that DiCamillo underlines and dog-ears her novels, too. I had no idea how commonplace it was to mark up a novel as a reader, not simply an editor. I’ve always been one to underline and write notes in my nonfiction books and I write all over my own unpublished galleys, but I have to admit I never highlight passages in novels I’m reading. I’ll dog-ear a page if I think it is particularly well-crafted, sure. But other than bringing my books in the bath and to the beach, I’ve been a bit too precious with the novels I’m reading.

This made me realize: It’s okay to take a pen to someone else’s fiction. In fact, I love the idea of going back to books like Donna Tartt’s The Secret History and Kristin Hannah’s The Great Alone and revisiting some of my favorite lines, if I had marked up the book. What an incredible way to keep the characters and emotions in a story with you, long after the story fades into memory.

So I’m putting the question back to you: Do you highlight or underline novels while you’re reading? Or are you pen happy only while reading nonfiction? Or do you rarely write anything in a book. Explain.

xo