Do You Use a Writer's Notebook?

"Victory is won not in miles, but in inches. Win a little now, hold your ground, and later, win a little more." - Louis L’Amour

That quote is exactly how I've felt about JumpStartWriMo.  I knew my spirits were flagging and I needed something to get me going.  I was holding my ground, but needed a little more.  Finding other people in the same predicament and going through this JumpStartWriMo with them has been such a rejuvenating experience.  I appreciate everyone who has made goals with me, sprinted with me, commented on my blog, and in general just been such a great writing support and community.  Don't forget on Saturday we're going to post how we did with our goals!

I was looking at my writer's notebook today because I've been carrying it around with me for the last three weeks and it's looking fairly beat up.  I have my idea pages, dialogue pages, chapter pages, research pages, and character pages.  The longer this month has gone on, the more paper I've filled up with my ramblings.  But guess what?   This manuscript is in the final stages and the next book is outlined.  I feel so great being able to say that.

And then I wondered how you guys did your writer's notebook.  

For me, I have snatches of dialogue come to me in the oddest places and so I can write it down on my dialogue page.  I have reader feedback coming in where a character needs more description and I can jot that down in my character pages.  I also loosely organize my chapter pages where I can give a summary of what's happening in that chapter and what needs to happen.  It's a nice guide when I'm drafting and revising.

It's also a nice reminder for me that I have done the work.  When I look at that fat beat-up book I know that  I've come a long way from the first draft of the book and that I'm putting forth my best work.  It gives me a sense of satisfaction to look at it because it's an accomplishment.  It might sound silly to some, but my writing notebooks mean a lot to me.

Do you have a writer's notebook?  How do you organize yours?