Journal (Photo credit: [E]mmanuel17)
I’ve struggled with keeping a writing journal current. To be truthful I’ve struggled with whether I should even keep a writing journal. When I do keep one I’m never really sure what I should include. As it turns out there’s a bit of everything in my journal. Sometimes I even write about writing. Things like what I’m working on or ideas I might have about other projects. I also keep an idea notebook separately. This is dedicated to story ideas only whether for a short story or a novel. My journal usually includes the weather and other things that may be going on around me. I’ve also wrestled with the idea of counting my writing journal entries in my daily word count. Don’t judge me, I’m writing and I’m writing words so why not count them? I know what you’re going to say, if I do count them it’s not really showing how much I’m doing as far as writing fiction. I already count my blog entries separately but I do count them. Since my writing journal is done in long hand it would take extra time to count so it might be more trouble than it’s worth.
How many of you keep a journal? If you do what kind of things do you include? I’ve never kept a diary which I would think would be more about feelings and emotions. What do you think? Let me know if you keep a writing journal and what type of things you include. Thanks for stopping by.
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No journal as such. Morning Pages, which are mostly drivel, odd books carried about in handbag, all filled with notes and some sketches, not attached to anything or any particular piece of writing.
The only time I keep a proper journal is when I am away.
Then it’s one journal per trip.
I choose a pretty book with nice paper and buy a new pen. And I keep it religiously day by day. Writing at the end of each day instead of doing Morning pages in the morning. I take my camera and use it not just for main sites, but for in-between places, the context.
Towards the end of the trip, I write a couple of pages called ‘Things to take home’: observations, often sounds and smells which obviously can’t be photographed. In Niagara, it was the deafening roar of the falls, in Egypt, it was the sound of several different muezzin calling the faithful to prayer in the middle of the night and the smell of the souk. Once in an old cottage in France, it was the clang of the mousetrap catching the mice that scurried in under the ancient front door.
At home, just Morning Pages and my rubbish.
Oddly enough I do better with a journal when I’m at home. I go away and things fall apart.
How weird! But there is so much to get on paper when you’re away – so much that could be forgotten?
(so much that could be forgotten) Like a writing journal.