The Writers Journal

Journaling is the single most important way to capture ideas. For a writer, all the world is an idea mill. Simple tasks such as grocery shopping or visiting the drycleaner can generate fascinating character personalities and spark situation setups that will provide the building blocks for a story. A funny incident related to you by a friend or a tragedy experienced by a co-worker are all fair game for writing fodder.

When reading your favorite author, often a turn of phrase or quirky character may jump out at you. Jot these in your journal as well. Put them in quotations with the source, so you’ll know where they came from. These will be jumping-off points for future reference.

Whether it’s a small pad of paper in your pocket or 3 x 5 cards in the purse, a professional writer is never without the tools for jotting down those flashes of genius. Clippings from newspapers and even magazine photographs are also ripe fields for the writing mind. Slip your clippings into page protectors. From time to time, transfer your jotted notes into the journal. Take care in this process.

The neater and more organized your journal is, the easier it will be to use. I often type my ideas into my word processor and print them out, apply a strip of clear tape to the back edge, and punch holes for a page that won’t tear out with years of use. Sometimes, I find a clean sheet of paper already in my journal and write in pen. Find a method that is comfortable for you.