Consider this your complete journal writing guide. For Craft the Rainbow month, celebrating 2 years of my book Craft the Rainbow, we have been getting back to our creative basics. Think rainbows, craft supplies we all have around the house, kid’s projects, and – writing in our journals! Whether you haven’t missed a day of writing since grade school, or your have never gotten past page 2 of your fresh new diary, this post is for you!
To celebrate, all of our journals and pens are on sale now! Including My Life in Color, my exclusive guided journal to create a keepsake of your past, present, and future. Click here to see the sale!
Scroll down to find:
+ tips on how to make writing creative and fun
+ how to actually fill an entire journal
+ how to stay motivated to write in your journal
+ Our favorite journals of every kind – hardcover, lined, blank, and way more!
+ How writing daily can help you make better art
And that is just the beginning!
Why should I write in a journal?
We have all been told the importance of writing in a journal for our posterity’s sake. If this is the reason you write, I admire you for it! Preserving history and making sure your great-grand kids know what it was like during the COVID-19 pandemic and the beginning of tik tok is a noble reason to keep a diary. Though for some of us this motivation wanes from time to time, and we find our personal history missing some pretty major gaps.
For me, I have found I am the most consistent with writing when I make it a creative project. This post is full of tips on how to make your journal writing more fun and creative, and we think it will keep you more motivated than ever! Keeping a diary can be a creative outlet that helps you get pumped up in the morning or wind down at the end of the day. It can help you learn discipline making good habits.
How writing in a journal can improve your art
I remember reading the book Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron which discusses the importance of “morning pages.” The idea is that, first thing when you wake up, you write at least 3 pages of stream of consciousness in your notebook. No thinking of making sense, just writing whatever (whatever!) comes to your mind. Doing this regularly unlocks your creativity and trains your mind to let ideas flow freely. I love this idea! It takes all of the pressure out of writing daily.
Different types of journals
If you are stuck on page 2, it’s possible you aren’t using the right kind of journal for you! Try out a new kind from the list below:
Writing prompts
Wreck This Journal
(And other journal books you get to color in!)
Photo books
Write one line a day
Travel journals
If writing daily feels like too much right now, stick to travel books instead! Find one that will be sturdy enough to stay nice in your carry-on, reflects the place you are visiting, and fill it with memorabilia and travel stories to tell your friends back home!
Different ways to fill in your journal
If you’re the queen of filling up the first few pages of a notebook never to touch it again, I feel you. I see you. No one wants a journal that jumps from 8th grade to Senior prom to their wedding day; so when we find an old (and mostly blank) book it’s hard to find the motivation to start writing in it again. Though there are not many feelings better than starting a fresh crisp new notebook, our hope is that with this complete journal guide we can all start a brand new diary and then actually stick with it! And remember, when you reach the end you can reward yourself once again with another beautiful empty book.
The key to filling an entire journal is remembering this is meant to be a mod podge book filled with your growth, mistakes, good days, and everything in between. No one’s life is free of spilled milk and mascara stains, and your journal shouldn’t be either! As a recovering perfectionist, even I can promise that a full messy journal is a much bigger accomplishment than a half empty perfect looking one.
If you are having trouble overcoming your desire for perfectly dotted i’s and margins free of doodles – try this: abandon your perfectionism in at least one area of your life – your diary. Doodle to your hearts content. Bring your notebook with you to the breakfast table and don’t worry about spilling your coffee. Fill your book full of ticket stubs and anxious scribbles.
If we are overwhelming you, take a deep breath. There is a more structured way you can learn to love a messy journal – this Brave New World journal is filled with prompts to help unleash your inner artist. Baby steps, baby steps.
Try these creative ways to fill your journal
Doodling
While trying to jog your memory of what happened this morning, don’t be afraid to doodle in the margins, or fill the entire page! This snapshots in time say just as much about your current self as your words do. Draw a daily flower in your notebook and use this to keep yourself on track with writing!
Bullet points
Don’t stress over a novel of your day, just write at least a few key bullet points at the end of your day and call it good! If that’s all you can do, it’s a great place to start. Before you know it you’ll find yourself wanting to write more and more!
Collect recipes
If writing or doodling aren’t really your things, figure out what is! One idea is to gather family recipes and write down the memory you have attached to them. Making and writing our the recipe for your mom’s infamous chocolate cake is sure to start a flood of memories you’ll be itching to get down on paper. Try keeping a notebook dedicated to recipe related memories!
For Jasper’s first birthday I filled his baby book with photos, pins, and other paper momentos from his party! I can’t wait to show him when he is older.
Our favorite journals
Hardcover
Simple ruled
Dotted
Bullet
Unruled
This colorblock journal is customizable, comes in multiple color choices and page options!
Customizable
Journals for kids
Stickers
We promised you ways to make writing more fun, so of course we had to include stickers!
These habit forming stickers are such a fun way to keep yourself accountable (for more habits than just writing daily!)
Journal supplies
Hold all of your journaling supplies in this folio! These pastel pens are on sale in our shop now for a limited time!
All of the items in the photo above are on sale right now for Craft the Rainbow month! Click here to see the sale and start your own My Life in Color journal!