Brief intro
Today we’re adding a small feature that solves a big annoyance: private notes on any book in your account. It helps you remember why a title caught your eye - without turning your tags into a to-do list.
Problem
Most readers have a large TBR. It grows fast and, after a few weeks, it’s easy to forget why you added a book in the first place. You scroll your to-read pile and think, “Was this the one from that interview?”
Many tools push tags as the answer. Tags are useful - until they’re not. “recommendation”, “podcast”, “friend”, “2025-goal”, “to-buy” quickly becomes a wall of labels you never filter. The micro‑example: “Recommended by Anna - podcast episode #27.” It deserves a note, not a tag soup.
If you’ve used Storygraph or similar services, you probably felt this: sometimes you just want a single, private sentence that carries the context forward.
What we built
Private notes are short, personal annotations you attach to any book - whether it’s to-read, in progress, or finished. Notes are visible only to you.
They’re perfect for capturing a quick reminder, a link, or a short quote. No public fields. No social feed. Just your reading journal, in your words.
Why it helps
- Remember why I want to read this and avoid aimless scrolling.
- Track the recommendation source (friend’s name, podcast, article, librarian).
- Paste a review link or a short quote to revisit later.
- Note signed‑edition details or where you shelved it.
- Do light, pre‑read journaling without publishing anything.
- Improve book discovery - your future self knows exactly what to pick next.
How to use it
- Add or edit a book in Bookworm.
- Find the notes section and add a note.
- Write a short line like “Recommended by Anna - podcast episode #27”.
- Hit "Put it in the shelf" or "Modify book" button. Your note appears in the notes list for that book.
- View or edit anytime as your reading workflow evolves.
Tip: private notes for to-read books keep your TBR meaningful. When you return later, a single line unlocks the context.
What’s next
On our radar: optional image upload (for signed pages or shelf photos) and a lightweight journal export. As always, we’ll ship what’s most helpful, then keep it simple.