Journal MERGED

I have kept a journal for years now and it's an essential part of me as a 'writer.' One caveat- keep it private or in a private place. Mine has already got me into trouble. Journals, to be useful, cannot be politically correct.

 

i love writing in my journal keeps me focused on what i need to focus on, i phave pictures in it, drawings... just random things i find interesting.. its fun to collect things.. i have a hard time reading past entries, i just write them and move on and dont ever look back.

 

I have never kept a journal.
One of the main reason why I write fiction is to mentally escape the boringness of my life.
It has never proved a handicap.

By all means keep one, whatever floats your boat.

 

In Zen we say "Every flower needs shit to grow in."

I use journals for sifting through the shit and letting it fertilise and I use fiction, essays and other pieces for when the flowers want to grow.

 

I started a journal last summer. Probably the best thing I ever did. I love re-reading old posts and seeing where I was at. I love writing new posts and expressing my mental frustration. I love the idea of looking back on them when I'm 80 and remembering it like it was yesterday.

My grandma says it is one thing she has always regretted she hadn't done. When you get older you forget a lot. I have a quote that basically states how humans think life is so long but then asks how many more times are you going to remember that vital childhood memory so ingrained in yourself that you couldn't possibly be the person you are without it.. maybe 5? How many times will you see the sunrise.. maybe 20?
I have a great grandma who writes in her journal everyday.. I think it's a really neat way of marking your existance on this earth.

Peace.

 

i love writing in my journal, its such a release and i enjoy reading back on how i was and the situations and experiences i have been in.. best thing for anybody

 

And another point about a journal- if you want it to be rewarding to you and your writing in the future, be specific. Name the car, name the place, name the person. Name the taste, name the scent, name the sound. I'm always surprised how detailed some writers are in their prose. They're either great researchers, liars- or good journal keepers. Be the latter.

 

a lot of my best material starts in my journal, i wouldn't be me without it

 

I have kept a journal off and on. I'm not writing in it now, but I'm typing all my journal entries onto my computer. I enjoy writing a journal although it's a bit of work.

 

A journal is forever. The important thing to remember it's neither a daybook nor a diary. It's you, your ideas, your reflections and your world. I can't share mine as some opinions aren't all that transferable. And some descriptions might offend.

 

iv always kept a diary when i was younger that now that i look upon it was more of a journal becuase it had everything in it...i remember i kept it with me in 8th grade when i was alowed to watch my sissters birth...so everything that i felt right then was put directly into it, its amyzing and im happy i did that. sad thing is that as i got older and into high school i found little time to write in it everyday, especially since i get so discriptive and write too much lol no time for homework...so i stopped for almost a year, and i regret it more than anything because that period i stopped happened to b so far thee most important time in my life. but resently, since iv been on the computer soOoOo much i started an account on livejournal.com, that way i can successfully keep one still. i find it very fun to reread the past, see how i thought then, how iv changed, how i think now. and i dont want to ever let another lifechanging experience/s go by without remembering them like i had...

 

I hate writing journals its such a shame, because I totally agree with the scope for release and useing it as a springboard for creative ideas.
I end up feeling really obliged to write it and then sit down and think I've got nothing very interesting to say.
that being said I have recently kept a weekly journal for my counselling course, which was a course requirement, I still found it a chore but did it and I realise the importance of reflection on self growth
S

 

voted for: I've kept a journal for certain events and periods of time

Now, since blogging started, it's much more pleasant!!

 

I write one good thing that has happened to me every day or anything good that i want in it. I try and do this for every day but i usually do it every few days and use my memory... This actually works really well, except for days where nothing goes right.

Ive tried to write in a journel before but i cant help but think it'll be found and read, i mean what if i die? then my mum might read it and i do NOT want that to happen. I know its paranoid but thats me.

 

I wish the same. I just found liars and jokers.

 

I write in mine twice a week or so. In my opinion, why pay hundreds for a shrink when you can pay five bucks for some notebooks?

Writing, for me at least, is the best therapy.

 

this is exactly how i feel.