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Sketchnote Handbook, The: the illustrated guide to visual note taking

  • By Mike Rohde
  • Published Dec 3, 2012 by Peachpit Press.
    • Copyright 2013
    • Dimensions: 7" x 9"
    • Pages: 224
    • Edition: 1st
    • Book
    • ISBN-10: 0-321-85789-5
    • ISBN-13: 978-0-321-85789-7
    • eBook (Watermarked)
    • ISBN-10: 0-13-308812-X
    • ISBN-13: 978-0-13-308812-0

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  • Description
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  • Reviews
  • Sample Content

This gorgeous, fully illustrated handbook tells the story of sketchnotes--why and how you can use them to capture your thinking visually, remember key information more clearly, and share what you've captured with others. Author Mike Rohde shows you how to incorporate sketchnoting techniques into your note-taking process--regardless of your artistic abilities--to help you better process the information that you are hearing and seeing through drawing, and to actually have fun taking notes.

The Sketchnote Handbook explains and illustrates practical sketchnote techniques for taking visual notes at your own pace as well as in real time during meetings and events. Rohde also addresses most people's fear of drawing by showing, step-by-step, how to quickly draw people, faces, type, and simple objects for effective and fast sketchnoting. The book looks like a peek into the author's private sketchnote journal, but it functions like a beginner's guide to sketchnoting with easy-to-follow instructions for drawing out your notes that will leave you itching to attend a meeting just so you can draw about it.

Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars The medium is the message---and it's a powerful medium, December 14, 2012
This review is from: The Sketchnote Handbook: the illustrated guide to visual note taking (Paperback)
Customer Video Review Length:: 2:54 Mins

The Sketchnote handbook is a lovely and useful book. Buy it if you want to take poweful notes and have fun doing so. Rohde shows us how to create powerful, personal notes, infused with feeling, and exploding with ideas visualized. I am a professional visual notetaker and design educator, and I am always looking for fresh approaches to this powerful medium. Mike delivers a fun and useful book in that both professionals and novices will appreciate. Mike shows why Sketchnotes work and he shows a variety of approaches to creating them, showcasing sketchnoters from from around the world to underline his points. The book is an easy read, designed to skim or dive deep. Rohde emphasizes that sketchnoting is about capturing ideas, not about showing off virtuoso art chops, and gives useful tips on structure, quick and easy drawing, and penmanship and lettering. Rohde's tone is encouraging as he urges you to start slowly and build on success. Even adding one little... Read more
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Useful...and a lot of fun, December 13, 2012
By 
Quick take: great book -- well organized, clear instructions, and, of course, good illustrations. Highly recommended.

I didn't know much about sketchnoting before buying this book. I'd gleaned a bit about it from author Mike Rohde's tweets, and from those by another contributor, Veronica Erb, and I was curious to learn more. Along came this book, and I thought I'd give it a shot.

It's a fun read -- Mike Rohde's enthusiasm really shines through. It's also surprisingly well organized, at least compared to what I expected from a book about doodling. Mike does a nice job of explaining the value of sketchnoting, i.e., why it's a useful technique, and then walks you through different kinds of sketchnote patterns and the how-tos.

The book also contains a lot of examples from other sketchnoters; these give you an idea of other peoples' styles, and offer their take on tools and techniques. It might be mildly intimidating to see so many great-looking examples,... Read more
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars For anyone who takes any kind of notes... ever, December 9, 2012
By 
Chris Guillebeau (Portland, Oregon and the World) - See all my reviews
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Mike Rohde does fantastic work. After talking with many talented artists, I hired Mike to create the interior artwork for The $100 Startup. He did an excellent job and I continue to hear positive comments (almost daily!) on how the illustrations mesh so well with the text.

But this review isn't about my book; it's about Mike's. In The Sketchnote Handbook, Mike takes us behind-the-scenes, documenting the process and workflow he uses in his unique method. Learning about how Mike does it is interesting enough to me, a non-artist, to justify the purchase of the book. However, Mike goes further and makes the case that *everyone*--even you and me--can use visual note-taking to improve the way we capture and retain information.

It's a no-brainer: This book deserves a wide audience! I've purchased multiple copies already and will continue to buy more as I hand them out as gifts.
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Table of Contents

Chapter 1: What Are Sketchnotes?
Chapter 2: Why Sketchnote?
Chapter 3: Listen Up
Chapter 4: The Sketchnoting Process  
Chapter 5: Types of Sketchnotes
Chapter 6: Sketchnote Strategies
Chapter 7: Sketchnoting Techniques

Sample Pages

Download Chapter 4 The Sketchnoting Process (includes

The Sketchnote Handbook Exercises

 
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