(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)
At this point in time, I can barely keep up with all the different pocket notebook makers. The pocket notebook is such a convenient and affordable class of notebook, it's virtually impossible to avoid making one if you are involved with any kind of stationery market. The ubiquity of the humble pocket notebook deserves the recognition it has achieved, though. It's an indispensable tool that people used long before it was cool. With that mentality, I'm always happy to try out a new pocket notebook and compare it to the old standards.
The Endless Storyboard notebooks are new on my radar, but I'm glad they made their way to my desk. The specific one I'm looking at today is no long available (special editions!), but I'm definitely excited to see what other editions come out from the Storyboard line. Edition 01 - Moonshot is a two-pack of moon-themed pocket notebooks. The cover of each notebook features imagery of the moon. One cover uses a shot of the whole moon, while the other is a low orbit view across the surface of the moon looking out into open space. They're both excellent choices for a notebook cover, and they definitely know how to pull my strings when it comes to any kind of space exploration theming.
Branding aside, this is still a pocket notebook, so how does it compare to the others? Well, one of the specifications that threw me off is the sizing. It's not the standard pocket notebook size (3.5 x 5.5 inches). This notebook measures in at 3.5 x 5.9 inches. The extra fraction of an inch of vertical space means you get another couple of lines out of each page. It's not large enough to make a visual difference (unless you're comparing two different notebooks side-by-side), but it definitely makes a difference on the inside when doodling and writing notes. One of my first thoughts regarding the extra height was whether or not the notebook would fit in other cases I had for standard pocket notebooks. The Nock cases I use have just enough extra space to accommodate the additional 0.4 inches without introducing any negative side effects. I can even use this notebook with a leather Traveler-style notebook cover. The leather cover is flush with the notebook height, but it still provides excellent coverage. And, of course, these notebooks still fit perfectly in most pockets and bag sleeves.
Moving around the rest of the notebook, it features a strong stitch binding, rounded corners, and sturdy cardstock cover. The inside of the covers are blank, and the only unique page is the very first one, which contains some space to fill in vital information and dates. The large "Storyboard" on the front is the only branding you'll find on the front, and the back contains a little more information such as the company name, the dimensions, number of pages, and paper quality. There's also some text to note the special edition:
EDITION 01: MOONSHOT
One small page turn for man,
one giant idea for mankind.
Personally, I'm not a fan of the way they repurposed Neil Armstrong's famous quote upon stepping foot on the moon. The changes they made to fit the theme and edition of this notebook seem minor enough to feel lazy, and I wish they'd put a bit more thought into creating their own writing-oriented idea or just left it off completely. Writing is what generates great ideas, not turning pages. It leaves me with a vague "huh?" feeling.
Besides the odd quote on the back cover, this notebook is stellar. The paper inside is 90gsm off-white paper with a standard dot-grid layout. The paper has a good bit of tooth, but it performs beautifully with different kinds of nibs and inks. I'm extraordinarily happy with how this paper performs. The fact that it's used in a small pocket notebook is even better. I haven't noticed any feathering or bleeding, and show-through to the back of the page is almost unnoticeable unless you're using a very dark and wet ink. Honestly, this is some really great paper.
There are two notebooks in the pack, and each each book contains 64 pages (32 sheets). That's plenty of space for lots of ideas, and the quality of the paper means you can use any of your favorite pens and inks without worrying about bleeding or unusable show-through on the back sides of the pages.
The Moonshot edition isn't available any more, but you can sign up to receive notifications on the next special edition announcement. For people looking for fountain pen friendly pocket notebooks, you should seriously consider this option. Endless also offer another line of notebooks called the Recorder Infinite Space that look promising. With Tomoe River paper inside, these A5-ish hardcover notebooks have great color and layout options. At under $15 USD, these look like a great deal.
These notebooks aren't perfect, but I'm really excited to see what Endless produce next as part of the Edition 02 campaign. These are fantastic notebooks, and it would be great to see them available all the time.
(Endless Notebooks provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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