The Art of Journaling

Do you keep a journal? I have kept several over the years and I'm a bit addicted to notebooks in general. In business, I have what I call a master book that keeps all of my notes in one notebook, but I am still guilty of using post-it notes and scraps of paper. I'm also guilty of having several journals. One is about my life. I record the days or weeks events whenever I get a moment. I have several writing journals that I pack and take along with me wherever I go. I write about thoughts, ideas, the weather, bits and pieces of future essays...whatever I can think up.

It occurred to me that this might not be the best way to journal. We're told to keep one calendar, one notebook, one master whatever. But creative people (even us left-brained creative types) have a tendency to be all over the place when it comes to keeping a journal.

That's when I read about a person who keeps several journals (on purpose), and I let out a sigh of relief. One is for recounting the day's events. It's happy, it's filled with gratitude, and maybe a rant or two, but it's mostly positive; a journal you would happily read again in your old age. Another is for pouring out your anger and frustration...all those negative thoughts that have to go somewhere, so why not on the page. This notebook doesn't have to be pretty. In fact, once you've worked through a problem, you can gladly burn the darn thing. And the third is an art journal. You fill this one with color, doodles, drawings, and of course, words.

I like this idea. But I also like the idea of combining color and drawings into your everyday journal just to spice things up a bit. And because I don't like to fill my everyday journal with negative thoughts, I really like the idea of keeping a journal you can just vent to, scribble on, and then toss it aside.

I recently bought a small blank journal to keep in my purse. I like lined pages, but I'm trying something new. I'm going to let myself color outside the lines and see what unfolds.

What are some ways you journal?

You might also like, Good Things Come in Pretty Packages and Write Away.

Photo: pamgarrison.com