Quick! Name something that can make you feel happier and more productive and inspires creativity. Your first thought might have been “a hot cup of coffee” – and okay, that’s valid. But did you know that keeping a writing journal has the same benefits and they last long after the caffeine buzz has worn off?
Why Keep a Writing Journal?
A writing journal can be an essential part of a fiction writer’s toolkit. (Journaling also has surprising emotional and physical health benefits.) Whether you use an app on your phone, a battered notebook you picked up at the dollar store, or a handmade bespoke leather-bound diary, your journal is a safe place to store, develop, and play with writing ideas. The type of journal you use is far less important than how often you use it.
Keeping a journal can help you:
- Store ideas
- Generate inspiration
- Record your thoughts and feelings
- Play with different forms, tones, and styles in your writing
- Forge a sense of identity: ‘I am a writer. See, I have a journal!’
Don’t underestimate the power of that last point. If you see yourself as an amateur writer, telling yourself that what you write doesn’t really matter and by default isn’t good, then the writing you produce might not speak to your potential. But if you see yourself as an author, then gifting yourself a tool like a journal reminds you daily that your ideas are worth looking after.
What to Put in a Writing Journal
Journals are, by nature, a very personal resource—use one in whatever way works best for you. Here are the most common things a writer might put down in their journal.
- Revelations. It’s 3 a.m. and you just thought of the most amazing plot twist for your novel-in-progress. No, you won’t remember it in the morning. Write it down!
- Brainstorming. Choose a topic and just down as many ideas as you can within a brief, set time limit. Go!
- Your deepest thoughts and feelings. Emotion is the cornerstone of good fiction writing. Recording your own feelings will help you when you’re trying to build relatable characters and themes.
- Character development. When your characters speak, listen! And record what they say.
- Descriptions. Sketch locations and settings, characters, and important objects.
- Storyboards. Map out ideas you can visualize but haven’t found words for yet.
- Half-formed and outlandish ideas. Capture everything! And remind yourself that although only some ideas are worth acting on, all ideas come from a place of inspiration . . . and that’s good.
How to Keep a Writing Journal
You don’t need any complicated rules to follow, you only need to write. Of course, a little structure could help you feel more motivated. Here are a few pointers to consider.
- Aim to write by hand whenever possible. There are a number of studied benefits of writing by hand (as opposed to typing). The practice could even help you produce better quality writing.
- Write for twenty minutes every day. Yes, journals are great for recording quick thoughts or ideas, but regular journaling will keep your mental writing muscles limber. Make a habit of grabbing twenty minutes per day to write in your journal.
- Write about things that challenge you. What scares you? What makes you laugh or cry? Ask yourself tough questions and then follow them. That’s where the energy is!
- Time yourself. Try freewriting. Choose a subject, set a time limit (say, the aforementioned 20 minutes), and write without stopping to think or edit. Tell yourself before you even begin that whatever you write is going to be nonsense, and then let the nonsense flow. Within, you’re sure to find golden nuggets of wisdom you never knew you had. Use those nuggets in your fiction writing.
- Try a little up-front organization. You could separate your journal with tabs for Ideas (anything that pops into your head), Observations (things you note when you’re out and about or people-watching), and Scribbles (your imaginative playground where anything goes.)
- Be free. Honestly, there are no rules. Do what you want. Write a bucket list, daydream in text, doodle a picture, keep track of your daily activities and feelings, record interesting snippets of conversation. Nothing’s off the table, and none of it has to make sense. That’s the beauty of it!
Commit to your writing . . . daily.
Consistency and persistence are two essential qualities for a successful writer. That’s why daily writing is so important. A journal helps facilitate that, even when you don’t have a project in the works. In fact, your journal just might provide the inspiration and momentum for your next fiction writing challenge!
PRO TIP: If you forget to write, set a calendar reminder on your smartphone. Keep the reminder active until you’ve made daily writing a habit.
Journaling exercises your brain and gets you used to thinking about words, imagining characters, and considering the shape of stories. Most importantly, it makes writing a habit that becomes a central part of who you are.
A strong writer is one who writes something every day.
Where to Get Writing Journal Ideas
A blank page! Oh no! Once you get into the routine of writing in your journal each day, this fear will go away. But if you ever get stuck, here are a few ideas to get you moving again.
- Where are you? Describe the location as if you’ve never seen it before. Find interesting details. Use your senses.
- Make lists. Your favorite words. Your favorite foods. Your favorite dog breeds. Your favorite wines. Anything goes!
- What books do you wish you’d written? Why?
- Write in the first person as one of your characters. What would they think if they were looking around your location right now?
- Try a poem – writing haiku is a nice challenge to get you thinking about syllables and the rhythm of words.
- Write a story in exactly 50 words. Choose one of these prompts: Fire. Magpie. Broken. Red. Mist.
- Write a logline (one-sentence summary) for a story you’ve written.
- What will your author’s biography be inside of your novel’s back cover? Write a current one. Now imagine a future you who has become a huge publishing success. What does that bio look like?
- Describe the house you lived in when you were ten in third person POV. Get both the physical and the emotional details down.
- Try any one of a zillion writing prompts available online, like these from Poets & Writers, or this Instagram writing prompt feed.
Every Epic Journey Begins With Inspiration
Kick-start your creativity and lock out writer's block with 120 hand-picked writing prompts – yours to download for free.
Featuring prompts focused on Mystery, Horror, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Romance, plus a genre-agnostic selection, there's something to help no matter what you like to write.
Pick one, or pick a few and combine them for pre-built twists and turns or a mega genre mash-up. The choice is yours!
