# Use \*org-roam\* buffer to list forward links instead

**URL:** https://org-roam.discourse.group/t/use-org-roam-buffer-to-list-forward-links-instead/1167
**Category:** Troubleshooting
**Created:** [January 15, 2021, 8:19pm UTC](https://org-roam.discourse.group/t/use-org-roam-buffer-to-list-forward-links-instead/1167 "2021-01-15T20:19:38Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![holtzermann17](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/org-roam.discourse.group/holtzermann17/32/377_2.png) [@holtzermann17](https://org-roam.discourse.group/u/holtzermann17)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2021, 8:19pm UTC](https://org-roam.discourse.group/t/use-org-roam-buffer-to-list-forward-links-instead/1167/1 "2021-01-15T20:19:38Z")

</div>

I’m editing a file with multiple outbound links and no backlinks.

Here’s a cheap and dirty way to get the outbound links to show up in the `*org-roam*` buffer instead of backlinks—though with this one-line change they are still referred to as “backlinks”.

```
(defun org-roam--get-backlinks (targets)
  "Return the backlinks for TARGETS.
TARGETS is a list of strings corresponding to the TO value in the
Org-roam cache. It may be a file, for Org-roam file links, or a
citation key, for Org-ref cite links."
  (unless (listp targets)
    (setq targets (list targets)))
  (let ((conditions (--> targets
                         ;; I've swapped 'dest for 'source here! -JAC
                         (mapcar (lambda (i) (list '= 'source i)) it) 
                         (org-roam--list-interleave it :or))))
    (org-roam-db-query `[:select [source dest properties] :from links
                         :where ,@conditions
                         :order-by (asc source)])))

```

OK, so this is a bit silly! But maybe it could inspire a better solution.

Another solution that doesn’t require changing code or other such silly stuff is: `M-x occur RET file: RET`.