How do you write a journal? I'd like to do more than write in it...any ideas would be helpful.?

Answer 1

Paint, Draw. Paste in pictures cut out of magazines, then explain why you chose the pic and what it means to you. Tape in locks of hair, but what ever you put in, remember to comment so you know why it is there.

Answer 2

A journal is the one place where you can write your OWN impressions, perceptions, thoughts, theories, sensations, dreams, private insights and so forth. It is the one place that you truly attempt to record YOUR experience, YOUR direct and actual encounters with your entire reality - within and without.

Just start where you are. Put down the date and start to write about your experience. It is a bit like a documentary film. Start where you are. Start with what matters to you. Initially you should not perhaps try to go for a result or any preconceived ideas. Don't try to please anybody. Try to write the truth. Don't worry about how fancy or formal it is. You can refine it as you go along, but only if that happens naturally.

I started a journal as soon as I left high school. Of course I could not put everything in it. But I learned to make entries almost daily. I have learned that it is a continuous act of discovery or self-revelation. It represents the wholeness of my life - problems included. It is a way to stay honest with oneself. The idea is to represent life fairly even as you have to edit what you write because there is never enough time.

You have to decide if you want others to read it at some point. If you want to be ruthlessly honest it might not be possible to have others read it. Otherwise you may have to introduce some subtlety.

You can draw in it. You can write down nocturnal dreams. You can describe relationships. You can introduce theories. You can quote significant remarks made by others. You can comment on the remarks. You do not have to use the names of the actual people. You can protect other people's privacy, etc. But you can still write almost everything down.

A journal makes you grow. You learn about yourself quickly. You keep track of yourself.

The best notion of a journal for me comes from the word "journey". The journal teaches you that life is a journey. The journal is a way to record the journey. It is therefore full of surprises. You do not know what you will enter in it from one day to the next. It teaches you that life is an adventure. You find out what you really value, what really matters to you.

If it becomes indulgent and too self-enclosed, you can always set it aside for awhile and wait until you are moved to start it up again. I have been keeping a journal for over 35 years. It is a touchstone even as it has gone through many phases. I often sow the seeds of many future plans or ideas in the journal. I have also used it as a reference or bookmarker for many things.

A journal is not for everybody, but for me it has been an indispensable way to overcome and transform the humdrum.

Because it is open it is like a vessel of transformation. But what is being transformed is you, the mystery of the journey of the self through thick and thin.

Try to buy a hard cover journal early so that you don't lose your early writings. Then you can file them and find them again easily. Date everything. It is a time capsule. It keeps you connected and in touch with yourself and your changes. It is something to look forward to daily.

A journal can help liberate what has been repressed. It helps bring to light what has been concealed in darkness. It can be creative, spontaneous and natural.

B. Lyons

Answer 3

I have kept a journal from the age of 15. i am now 36. one day i decided to write a journal for my kids, i have filled it with things from there child hood and will give it to them on their wedding days as a gift (i have 2 girls) to start a journal is easy, you buy a book, i like hard cover, and i date everyday i write in it, what you write is up to you, i always wrote about what was going on in my life. have fun with it! with my children's i put pictures in it of their activities or school pictures. you can buy different color pens and stickers, what ever you want. good luck.

Answer 4

To be truly meaningful, a journal should serve two purposes... 1) Capture events (and your thoughts on those events) daily, and 2) be a place that you can share your most intimate thoughts, beliefs, questions, without fear of criticism or reprisal. After time has passed, it becomes beneficial to reread sections and discover that your thoughts on some issues have changed over time, while some have not. It can be very instructive, as long as you can learn to be truly honest with yourself.