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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/42828
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/42828
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

It's a personal decision. For me, I wouldn't.

I think your goal is to be a novel writer, not a non-fiction writer, not a research writer. Notes as you have them (or much less) is fine; at most I'd take **less** notes, but keep track of the final source that made your decision for you.

So you decided in Chapter 17, character Joseph, on X, because you read Y, around page 140-150. That way if you are in an edit round on Chapter 17 and want to revisit something, you can review your notes on Chapter 17: Aha, it is X. Now you have a clue about where to start on the backtrack, you don't waste time on the early non-productive part of the search. You read what made your decision, and can decide if that was weak justification, strong justification, or if you want to go further. If you make a change, record THAT in your notes on Chapter 17, because who knows if you will be back here in Chapter 17 a month from now!

Of course you can start this "ResearchResults" file now, and fill it in as you go. If you need to backtrack through old notes and rebuild them, do that _as needed_ don't make a new project about it that interferes with your writing.

My advice is to be a **_novel writer,_** not a non-fiction writer, not a blogger. Entertain people through your fiction, and don't sap all the time you have to write fiction with reading, blogging (neither of which you get paid for), and the drudgery of writing a bibliography for a non-fiction reference book. You could have written more novels, and IMO that would be a lot more fun, and build your readership a lot more, and make you more money in the bargain.

Original score: 2