Well, I have not yet succumbed to the flu, this A-Z Challenge, my editing, nor the new idea that is tormenting my brain. I'm alive and kicking folks, very much so.
Journaling is something that everyone seems to recommend. I've never seen a quote on Pinterest (or anywhere else, for that matter) that said "Don't journal!". So many authors (published and non) say that journaling is so important.
Personally, I've always journaled on and off. I still have a bunch of unfinished diaries from when I was little. Truth be told, they are the funniest things ever. When my cousin visits, sometimes we read them out loud and every time, giggles fill our lungs where the air is supposed to be. Most of the entries are on how much I hate taking naps, how much I love my mom, how mean my mom is, how much I love my mom again, how much I love Barbies and Polly Pockets, and the list goes on and on. Later on, the entries evolved to writing about the fun my best friends and I had and my crush and how much he was totally in love with me, because, let's be real, an eleven year old and a fifteen year old is NOT weird.
Now, when I journal, it's mostly thoughts and feelings, about people and life in general.
Journaling is a great way to just keep life in order. To just breathe in and out, and be who you are. It's all about self-discovery. To truly journal is to embark on a great adventure, one of finding out so much of who you are. It's also a fabulous way to work on your writing voice and discover your strengths and weaknesses, both writing and otherwise.
I have a tendency to get caught up in the heat of things and to react RIGHT AWAY. I have a thirst for justice, for things to be as they are supposed to be. Unfortunately, I have caused people I love to suffer because of the hastiness in which I have reacted to things in the past. Journaling has really helped me to pause and self-reflect before responding or retaliating.
For my Harry Potter homies, it's sort of like Dumbledore's pensieve. I use journaling as a way to "get out" my excess memories and emotions. It helps me to see things differently and calm down and, ultimately, just enjoy life more.
It's also perfect for when you need a break from your characters. You can take a needed escape (because, seriously, we all need it sometimes) from your WIP and yet still be writing.
Do you journal? What do you journal about?
Hi Anne Marie, I'm glad to read you have not yet succumed to the flu. I hope it passes you by altogether. I'm lucky with things like the flu, and common colds - never seem to get them. Now… kidney stones, hey, well that's another story! hahaha
ReplyDeleteI journal - two kinds. One is the Bullet Journal, which is my daily to do list and organizer - I absolutely love it!
The next is writing some random thoughts in a book - I don't do this everyday. It's something I like to do when thoughts overwhelm me and I want to keep track of what's going on in my head.
Great J post. I like how you use journalling. Creative.
Sent with smiles, Jenny, Pearson Report
2015 A to Z Challenge Ambassador
@PearsonReport
Oh, I should do more bullet journaling, great idea! Thanks, Jenny!
DeleteNope, I've never journaled. I've tried a couple of times, just based on advice from historical figures, but it didn't seem at all worthwhile to me. I regularly write my thoughts about certain more abstract intellectual issues that I might happen to be mulling over (and may be connected to events in my outer life not often, yet on occasion), but never so much about me personally or specifics in my life, which I find inexorably boring. I'd much rather be doing things than write about doing them. But if journaling is something you enjoy then that's wonderful.
ReplyDeleteYes, I rarely write about events, it's more thoughts and such...but it's definitely a personal preference and something I've enjoyed more as I've gotten older. Thanks for commenting!
DeleteI try to journal but I end up not writing anything for weeks. Then I have to try to catch up with everything that's happened that I want to write about. I say I'll write every night, but it never happens.
ReplyDeleteHaha oh, the struggle of writing...
DeleteI bought my first journal when I was sixteen. I kept journaling for the next seven years. I don't so much anymore. I just write story ideas and scenes in a notebook. Life is sooo busy for me.
ReplyDeleteAs long as you're writing, right?! Thanks for commenting.
DeleteEvery now and then I think it would be a good idea to do 3 morning pages. I also like the idea of combining arting with writing
ReplyDeletezannierose A-Z
If I could actually...art...then I would say that's a fabulous idea! Thanks for visiting, Zannie!
DeleteHey, Anne!! :) Thanks so much for joining my blog!!
ReplyDeleteI actually don't journal because of the whole "write about your current crush" thing... I used to, but I went back and shredded all of those pages with any connection to "true love" in them. (I.E. all of them. :P) Haha! ;) My blog is really the way I store my thoughts. And, of course, the occasional essay.
Hi, thanks for visiting! Haha, I feel ya...still shudder when I think about those days. And I suppose you could say that blogging is a type of journaling!
DeleteJournaling is great way to take that break from writing, yet still keep writing.
ReplyDeleteSo true! Thanks for commenting.
DeleteI journal in sprints. I'll journal as consistently as I can for month and then just forget about it until months later. But I noticed if I challenged myself to something, like writng an unsent letter to anyone everyday for a week, I stick to it better.
ReplyDeleteBut mostly I keep journals around for poems that I come up with. Usually they're not very good. Or I'll just ramble in stanza form. But it helps a lot. It really does.
Definitely always helpful just to get some words out. Thanks for reading, Ashley!
DeleteI like your connection of journals to the pensieve. Very nice. I am glad you are healthy.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteI'm like you--I journal on and off. I also like to look back and see days that were especially important, or reflections and things I've learned. It was helpful when my mom was trying to remember details about my grandma before she had died, and I was able to look those few weeks up and recall a few things we'd forgotten. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly it! It's so nice to look back and see it all there. Thanks for commenting, Courtney!
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