Litsy

How to Make a Journal of Your Life | Dan Price

I finished reading through another ten volumes of my 25-year daily journal, so I got to have a little fire tonight. I‘ve reached 2004, in which I hit a LOT of weird little personal touchstones.

Gonna see if I can clear volumes 61-70 before I lose the privacy I need for this process. That‘ll take me past halfway through my 130-volume archive.

BookishMarginalia Wow! That‘s impressive! I‘m curious — do you still journal? 5h

xicanti @BookishMarginalia nope. I hit twenty-five years and said, “Yeah, that‘s it, I‘m done.” 3h

16 likes2 comments

xicanti

How to Make a Journal of Your Life | Dan Price

A few years ago, I started rereading the daily journal I kept for twenty-five years so I could make note of important stuff and then burn each volume. I had a longer-than-anticipated gap in the process, but the conditions are right this week so I‘m back at it. Ten more volumes met their end tonight.

If you‘re all 😱, be assured I don‘t do this lightly. This journal is my mandala: something I had to make but don‘t have to keep forever.

Ruthiella I have a friend who did this. It makes sense to me. I actually don‘t want to read the journals of my younger self. They make me cringe a little. 5d

xicanti @Ruthiella there‘s definitely a lot of youthful ignorance in here. Also a lot of days where I wrote because I liked using my pen du jour, not because I had anything to SAY. 5d

Karisa 👏👏👏Your words, your choice! How did it feel? 5d

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Texreader This is amazing. Wow!! I kept diaries back in elementary school and they embarrass the heck out of me. I‘ve stuck them back in some closet. When I find them again they are getting “torched.” If I had been older and had nuggets of meaningful writings, I hope I‘d do the same as you. Such a beautiful thing. 5d

willaful @Ruthiella So much so! I kept my pregnancy journal but everything before it went into the shredder.
5d

Kenyazero I just read a book where a character did something similar! 5d

SamAnne Wow. I get this. I don‘t want others to read my journals when I pass. I‘m going through them this year. Burning sounds good! 4d

xicanti @Karisa it‘s been good. I‘ve now consigned fifty volumes to the flames. 4d

xicanti @Texreader it‘s a satisfying act. 4d

xicanti @willaful I‘ve ripped out and kept a few entries here and there, when they were personally significant. I think I‘ll probably keep most, if not all, the volumes I wrote when I lived in Auckland, but it‘ll be a while before I get that far. 4d

xicanti @Kenyazero I‘ve got a fictional twin! (Or a memoirist twin.) 4d

xicanti @SamAnne burning‘s so good! If I recycled them, I‘d worry someone would dig them out or something. 4d

BkClubCare Yeah, add this task to my to do list 😒 2d

xicanti @BkClubCare good luck! 2d

40 likes14 comments

monalyisha

The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life | Suleika Jaouad

Perhaps the most delightful email header & subject combo I‘ve ever received in my inbox. 😅

BookishMarginalia 🤣🤣🤣 Agreed! 1w

TheBookHippie I love her emails. 1w

44 likes2 comments

monalyisha

The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life | Suleika Jaouad

My New Year‘s resolution (which I‘m hoping to put into effect before New Year‘s) is to start journaling.

Do any keen journalers have resources they love? I‘m open to whatever — specific notebook brands, pencils (not an inkling), advice about repeated prompts or a general structure that works for you, books about the topic, etc?

Thanks for helping me get excited!

TheBookHippie I‘ve journaled since I was 12 daily. I keep four going. All four use different mediums. I do monthly prompts on here if you want to be tagged. So I guess it‘s what type and how do you want to journal. 3w

dabbe @TheBookHippie is the best journalist ever! She has scores of fabulous ideas, and she provides us with monthly journaling prompts. I have a suggestion for a literal journal:
1. Choose a journal with lines and where the ink doesn't bleed through. NYT's Wirecutter has excellent ideas.
2. Each page is devoted to a book.
3. When you finish a book, record the title, author, date you finished, and 3-6 quotes from that book that spoke to you.
That's it! 3w

monalyisha Thanks, @dabbe & @TheBookHippie! I‘m not opposed to including book-related thoughts but I‘m imagining something more self-reflective and less of a reading tracker. Really, I want to get into the practice of consistently *writing.* This feels like a good first step, and I think it will probably be good for my mental health, too. 🩵 3w

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JamieArc Yes, @TheBookHippie provides some lovely prompts. I also do this one thing where I write the numbers 1-100 and have some question, like things that fill my soul, and quickly write what those are in each number, not thinking much about it. This usually gets me writing something. 3w

JamieArc Also, check out lectio divina. While it has been used in religious context, it doesn‘t need to be. It‘s basically taking some small passage or quote, writing it out, reflecting on it, and writing about it. It‘s a practice I always want to do more of. 3w

TheBookHippie @monalyisha mine is non book. My prompts are for free writing. 🙃 or whatever you want to do. I have rage journal to use when needed -a daily journal for anxiety-a collage journal and a free write from my prompts journal. Whew right? 3w

TheBookHippie @JamieArc I do this with poetry often. 3w

TheBookHippie Horror of all horrors I don‘t log or keep track of the books I read other than once and awhile I put my library books into StoryGraph to kinda see genre wise. 3w

TheBookHippie @monalyisha a lot of my personal journal is poetry I write. I will say this, it has helped my mental health for decades and when I am not writing I can feel it. 3w

monalyisha @TheBookHippie @JamieArc I kind of like the idea of a lectio divina poetry journal. Maybe I need two. 😜 (edited) 3w

monalyisha @TheBookHippie When I went to PEI with my friend this summer, she had a journal that she wrote in everyday, which was a practice suggested to her by her therapist. I think that‘s what inspired me initially. 3w

xicanti I kept a daily journal for twenty-five years straight, at which point I was like, “Yeah; good run” and I quit. If you also want to be daily about it, I think the best thing you can do is give yourself permission to half-ass it sometimes. Some days, you‘ll want to fill forty pages with deeply personal reflections and/or some artistic stuff. Others, you‘ll just wanna jot down something quick. Either one‘s fine. Do you. 3w

TheBookHippie @monalyisha It is the best thing for anxiety I‘ve ever found. 3w

monalyisha @xicanti I used to journal as a teen but I was always too embarrassed, looking back, to let the pages exist and I‘d inevitably destroy them. 😳 Kind of a red flag there, huh? 😅 At the very least, writing my thoughts down and letting them remain will be progress! 3w

AnnCrystal A friend was telling me about a The Shadow Work Journal.

Favorite pencil, General's® by the General Pencil Company

Been searching for a USA Eco notebook.. Decomposition and Northbooks both seem promising, but I haven't found either to try (yet). 3w

zezeki I have been journaling for years, but not daily. I have gratitude practise that I do daily, but I keep that in a separate notebook. I'd also recommend using journaling prompts, there's a YT channel called struthless, he also posts about jorunaling: https://youtu.be/U8RQsJ0Q3Mo?si=ryY1kQrFNzRoD8QW 3w

Chelsea.Poole I use the “one line a day” method so it‘s not intimidating. I find that it‘s something I can maintain if I‘m not feeling intimidated by a big ol blank page each day. Nor do I have the time to write more than a small paragraph daily. Anyhoo, I‘ve filled one of these up and just began a new one in 2025: https://a.co/d/9zeSDTf They come in a variety of styles. Plus you get to look back at the previous years‘ entires as it‘s a 5 year journal. 3w

yourfavouritemixtape I am bullet-journaling and really like Rhodia Notebooks. The paper is really nice to write on and they feel good in your hand too. 3w

Booksbymybed I have been journaling my entire life and having fun with is very important. Also fun supplies. My favorite brand for low pressure but high quality is Midori MD notebooks, excellent paper for pen or pencil. Additional things that make it fun are washi tape and stickers. I love Blackwing pencils, they have various types and hardness. Prompts, lists are an excellent way to start, I also like to include scraps of paper and small photos. 3w

monalyisha @AnnCrystal @zezeki @Chelsea.Poole @yourfavouritemixtape @Booksbymybed @TheBookHippie @xicanti @JamieArc @dabbe This has all been very helpful. Thank you! Lots to look into and I think I‘ve developed a practice to start with! I woke up this morning and got to work. Go me…and you all! 💞 3w

TheBookHippie @monalyisha 💕💕💕💕💕 3w

monalyisha @TheBookHippie I can absolutely do the work of looking through your monthly prompts. But if you have a master doc, I‘d be happy to be the recipient! I don‘t think I‘m going to use them (at least for now) but I think my mom would really benefit from them! I want to put together a journaling-themed Christmas present for her and would love to include your monthly prompts list. 📝 3w

AnnCrystal @monalyisha 💝💝💝. 3w

JamieArc @monalyisha I appreciated this because right before I read your post last night, I got out my journal and wrote for the first time in a very long time so it encourages me to continue. 3w

monalyisha @JamieArc I love that! 3w

TheBookHippie @monalyisha email me social@bookhippie.com I‘ll send everything I saved 3w

monalyisha @TheBookHippie Amazing! You got it. 3w

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LitsyEvents

Journalkeeping | Carl Koch

repost for @TheBookHippie

#JOURNALINGPROMPTS NOVEMBER

I cannot but remember
When the year grows old—
October—November—
How she disliked the cold!

-Edna St Vincent Millay

Whole poem: https://poets.org/poem/when-year-grows-old

Song : https://music.apple.com/us/album/when-the-year-grows-old/1588177175?i=1588177604

All welcome 🩶

29 likes

merelybookish

The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life | Suleika Jaouad

Half of my books for #10beforetheend. I've been working away at the Nin & Pinkola Estes for a while.The other five include:
The Frequency of Former Things by Nick Fuller Googins
We Love You, Bunny by Mona Award
On the Calculation Of Vol. 3 by Solvej Balle
Big Kiss, Bye Bye by Claire-Louise Bennett
The Dead in their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley

@ChaoticMissAdventures

sarahbarnes Can‘t wait to see what you think of the new Awad! 1mo

merelybookish @sarahbarnes My hold came in from the library so just need to finish current audio and then it's 🐰🐰🐰🐰 1mo

vivastory I'm very much interested in the Balle series 3w

merelybookish @vivastory Get on the band wagon! It's excellent! And Nov 18th is her day and when volumes 3 & 4 come out. 2w

54 likes4 comments

kelli7990

Journalkeeping | Carl Koch

I saw this post on Instagram from someone I follow and here‘s my comment on this post.

AnnCrystal 👏🏼🫂👌🏼💝. 2mo

14 likes1 comment

GatheringBooks

The Bullet Journal Method: Track the Past, Order the Present, Design the Future | Ryder Carroll

#Falling Day 8: #DearDiary made me want to share photos of my new bullet journal - little acts of creation, labor of love with colors and customizable grids with these stencils and stickers. Super stress reliever.

Eggs, Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

DebinHawaii Amazing! 💛💛💛 3mo

Eggs Love bullet journals 💛📔🧡 3mo

45 likes2 comments

kspenmoll

Creative Journaling: A Guide to Over 100 Techniques and Ideas for Amazing Dot Grid, Junk, Mixed Media, and Travel Pages | Renee Day

My journal I bought at an Indie bookstore to start in September. I am bundled up in fleece & fuzzy slippers to brave the chill while writing. #porchlife #coffeeandbooks #75SOFT #journalprompts #BERmonths #day1

TheBookHippie, AllDebooks

dabbe Brave the chill? Ah, what that must be like ... L💜VE. 💛💜🧡 3mo

LeahBergen Ohhh, the Heyer bio! I haven‘t read that. Are you liking it? 3mo

AllDebooks That's so lovely, as is your teacup 😍 3mo

TheBookHippie ♥️♥️♥️ hope you‘re feeling much better! 3mo

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