If youre in the middle of your NaNoWriMo draft and you feel like your novel lacks the kind of sensory detail that other authors seem to include naturallythe kind of writing that makes you feel like youre inside the story, with the characters, feeling what theyre feelingit might be time to start carrying an observational notebook.

This kind of notebook is less of a journal and more of a way to quickly jot down what you see, hear, smell, taste, feelyou get the idea.

Once you get into the practice of observing this kind of sensory detail, youll be able to use your expanded sensory vocabulary in your own writing.

Literary Hubrecently shared an excerpt from author Lydia Daviss new essay collection,Essays One, in which Davisexplains the benefits of this practice:

This will sharpen both your powers of observation and your expressive ability.

A productive feedback loop is established: Through the habit of taking notes, you will inevitably come to observe more; observing more, you will have more to note down.

Davis suggests that you use your notebook to write down specific, detailed observations about everything from the posture of the person sitting by themselves at the coffee shop to the way the steam coming off your own cup of coffee temporarily thickens the air in front of your nose.

(Not saying that you have to do this observational work at a coffee shop, of course, but writers in coffee shops are cliche for a reason.)

Heres a sample from Daviss notebook, on the way wind affects an outdoor patio:

High wind yesterday blew womens long hair, womens long skirts, crowns of trees, at dinner outdoors napkins off laps, lettuce off plates, flakes of pastry off plates onto sidewalk.

As you take the time to both observe and describe your surroundings, as well as how those surroundings affect your body and the bodies of the people you see around you, youll have a greater wealth of detail and sense memory to draw from as you draft your novel.

They say youre supposed to write what you know, after allso use your observational notebook to ensure you know what a windy day does to a flaky pastry, or what a hot cup of coffee does to your nostrils, or what sitting alone in a bustling cafe does to someones shoulders.

Then get back to your NaNoWriMo draft, and see how many of those observations end up finding a way into your story.