About the time I began going around telling folks I was a writer, I took to heart something philosopher Francis Bacon once said: “A man would do well to carry a pencil and paper in his pocket, and write down thoughts of the moment. Those that come unsought for are commonly the most valuable, and should be secured, because they seldom return.”
So, I’m never without a notebook and pencil in my shirt pocket. As a result, I’ve become a diligent daily diarist, and have amassed boxes full of notebooks.