If there’s one thing I know as a high school English teacher and a novelist, it’s that mistakes in writing not only happen but often make it to the final version of any given work. Students sometimes get flustered when I find different corrections that need to be made in different versions of their “final” drafts for a given essay. I explain that this happens because of how the brain works. Neurological science has taught us that the brain likes to take shortcuts and will fill input gaps with what we expect to be there. This is why a “he” that was supposed to be a “she” or a comma that’s placed where none should be will frequently go unnoticed through multiple readings.

Case in point: A few months ago, each of the alpha readers for my forthcoming novel found entirely unique grammatical errors that did not match those found by others in a manuscript I had proofed several times before sending out. I am an experienced writer and a teacher of writing, yet it still happens. Who was it that said to err is human?

As vexing as this can be for authors, it’s even more frustrating for readers. This irritation is compounded even further when the mistakes occur in areas of continuity rather than grammar. Nothing will yank a reader from a story faster than a character’s eyes described as blue in one chapter and brown in the next, or a location being misnamed, or a scene being written in the wrong season. While these seem like rare mistakes to make, they occur more often than authors like to admit. It is entirely too easy to make this kind of error when creating a world and juggling minutiae within it for an extended period of time, and it dispels the reader’s sense of willing disbelief. For this reason, every author should create an author almanac for every story world.

Every. Single. One.

For those who are unfamiliar or need a refresher (don’t scoff—I had to look it up to make sure I was using the right word), an almanac is an annual publication of reference information. The content varies by need: The Farmer’s Almanac contains details about the dates of the summer solstice, the autumnal equinox, phases of the moon, and other details important to farming while the World Almanac contains details about cultural, economic, and political significance in any given year. Whatever the target audience, the specific information that audience needs is collected in the appropriate almanac.

The writer’s version goes by many names: the novel bible, the fact manual, the world building notebook, the story portfolio. Whatever you call it, you should create one for cataloguing all of the details of each of your stories, even if you write contemporary fiction in well-known settings. Keeping track of minute details is essential to the success of your story and its impact on your reader.

Once authors decide to implement this practice, they often ask how to contain it. Lots of authors use bullet journals, many use spirals, some use notebooks, and a growing number are using computer software designed specifically for this purpose, like Notebook.ai (note: this is NOT an affiliate link). I love the idea of having everything on the computer, but I am a kinesthetic, tactile person. I gush over bullet journaling, but I’m too obsessed about organization—while bullet journaling uses an author-made key to help authors find ideas that span multiple collections of pages within and across journals, I’ve found I need room to expand any given section as much as necessary while keeping all of the information that pertains to the section together. Over the years, I’ve learned the system that works best for me is an old-fashioned three-ring binder with tab dividers, notebook paper, and lots of cheap pens. Throwback, yes, but effective for the way my subconscious works.

The next place where authors often stumble is deciding how to format the almanac. The answer is: whatever works for you. As with any system of organization, there’s no one right way. I recommend assessing what you already have, grouping like things together, and formulating your content divisions from there. For example, in my current series my divisions are:

• Plot (where I put all of my plot brainstorms and outlines, which frequently change as the story grows and takes shape)
• Characters
• Settings (including maps—every location has a map, because I’m that visual)
• World Building
• Scenes
• Misc. Brainstorms and Timed Writings
• Romance (or other specialized) Thread
• Revision Notes
• Current Printed Draft (for marking up and editing)

Notebook.ai, a computer program designed specifically for building and storing author almanacs (including those developed by role-playing game enthusiasts), organizes the free content portion of its services (with further categories available for subscribers) as:

• Universe (subdivided into Name, Description, Genre, Overview, History, Roles, Notes)
• Character (subdivided into Name, Role, Other Names, Gender, Age, Overview, Looks, Nature, Social, History, Family, Inventory)
• Locations (subdivided into Name, Type, Description, Overview, Culture, Cities, Geography, and History)
• Items (subdivided into Name, Type, Description, Overview, Looks, History, and Abilities)

There are lots of articles on line that discuss how to organize an author almanac. If you are stumped in this area, I recommend you look at those articles, find a system that works for you, then tweak that system as needed for your style and the individual story.

Whatever your system looks like, you definitely need a system, if you don’t already have one. Your readers (alpha, beta, and commercial) will thank you for it. If you do have one, how does it work for you? What organizational categories do you use and what tips/tricks do you find helpful?

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