Site Info

Commonplacebook.com is the personal website of Hawthorn Mineart. I created the site way back in the dark ages — in late 1994, probably in November, as near as I can reconstruct. I feel sad that I don’t have “blogiversary” like all those other fellows who celebrate every year. Originally, the URL for the site was at my service provider because it was really expensive to own a domain name in those days. In 1998, I bought this URL and here I’ve been ever since.

What is a “commonplace book” you might ask? (Or not, I’ll tell you anyway.)

Commonplace book (n.): an edited collection of striking passages noted in a single place for future reference. There was a time when commonplace books were a popular way for civilized men and women to record striking passages they found in their reading. Who can forget the electrifying effect that some thoughts have on us when we encounter them for the first time? The commonplace book is a way of memorializing those striking passages so that one can return to them for renewed inspiration.