So here’s the thing…. Rarely do I use creative writing in journal pages anymore. Although I am a chatter box in person – I’m simply not much of a wordy person on paper. If I’m freeform writing, it’s usually because I’m feeling very strongly about something and I’m writing more to clear my head or to clarify too many conflicting thoughts that are hanging out in my wee brain. In those cases, when my emotions are riding high, writing in a journal or on a pad of paper truly helps me. So the writing has a specific purpose at that moment.
However, writing just for the purpose of writing – well I don’t practice that anymore. I know this is very helpful to a lot of people, and I did too for quite a while. At some point it started to be more of a time waster for me. I didn’t seem to feel much accomplishment or warm fuzzy feelings from my writings. The times I did sit down to write – it seemed more like a chore that I “should do” rather than an activity that I looked forward to.
Creative Journaling Works for Me
That’s not to say that I won’t ever return to writing in journals. I’ll still keep that door open for future enjoyment. One never knows. Maybe that will come back around and serve me well some time again down the road. For now, creative journaling is more my thing. These days I keep a collage journal, a mixed-media journal, and an unbound any-thing-goes type of journal.
Recently I picked up a new brown page journal to add to the mix. In this one I’m using primarily dry mediums such as pen, ink, pencil work, etc. On the front cover of the new journal I jumbled together a mix of patterns. Several from my own pattern shares that you can find elsewhere on my website. As I’ve just started playing with this one I haven’t created anything on the spine or the back cover yet.
And shown below is one of the first pages I did last week. I kept to a limited palette – something that’s not always easy for me to do. Even though this picture doesn’t show the page as brown, it really is. I guess the flash brightened it too much? Anyway – I’m loving the way the white pops on a brown background just the same!
I don’t typically create a page from start to finish in one sitting. I play with my pages for several days. Sometimes putting one aside and starting a new one in a different journal before returning to the unfinished page. Then there are times when I walk away from a page for a week or so as I play with other things. This happens more when I have other projects that I want to give priority to, or when I feel stuck on where to go next with a page. My journaling can even take a turn and end up being something completely different from what I intended it to be when the creative journey began. But rarely do I feel compelled to create the entire page in the same day I start it.
What’s your Journaling Style?
I’d love to hear from you and see what you have going on in your journals. Do you create in journals? Do you find them therapeutic as I do? What type of journals do you use and how often do you play in yours? Have you tried one type of journaling only to abandon it for another? I did that with Bullet Journaling. Totally did not like the “To-Do List” feeling of my bullet journal. That lasted less than a month for me. 😉
Do you create your pages all in one day or one hour? Keep several at a time or find one is more than enough to keep up with? Is Journaling a chore for you or a delightful time to play? Do you keep your journals or pass them along to others or trash them like I have on a few occassions? I had a little burning party after my divorce (many years ago) and several writing journals ended up in the pile. Was a most excellent event of emotional relief and it renewed my spirit to move forward. Have you ever participated in a shared journal with a friend or family member?
I did an Inspire, Inspire Journal a few years back, sharing some of my prompts and pages with blog readers. Is that something you all would like to share in again? We can start one together if there’s interest out there. Let me know. I love to hear from you all!
Have a Great Weekend!
~Cindy
What brand brown page journal are you using ? I journal sporadically. I might create for a half hour or four hours on one day. I use all kinds of mediums. I usually journal when I come across something that inspires me and I want to have a reminder of it.
Sorry it took me so long to respond Jackie! My brown page journal is a Cachet by Daler Downey. I purchased it from Michaels Craft Store in the USA. Thank you for stopping by and asking.
I have used white journals for several years and keep one with me at all time just in case I get a few unexpected moments in which to draw. I also have black, gray and tan journals and draw in them to explore new looks. I did a series of the same basic shapes on gray using different colored pencils to shading. The results are impressive. I found out which colors work best. I will be doing this with the tan journal soon. I also date and refer each journal to see how far I have come in my journey. 3 years ago my work was drastically different than it is today. Everyone should have a journal. Great artwork Cindy! Thanks for sharing.
TinyTeri – Thanks for your comments. I truly enjoy learning how others use their journals to grow creatively. Using different colored pages is a great way to do the color comparisons you spoke of. Appreciate you sharing with us all!
I do most of my journal writing on the computer these days. Most of it is just lists and notes about what I think I might want to remember. I don’t do much of what I called process writing any more. Right now I am also hooked into the planner craze. I am enjoying my happy planner a whole bunch.
I would love to do more in the way of a visual journal, but none of the approaches that I have tried recently have clicked for me.
I am happy to see a blog post from you.
Good day, thank you for visiting my blog and for sharing your thoughts with us. Journals sure have come a long way from what they were when I was young. Or maybe with the internet we all just talk about them more now. When I was a child, a diary was the only journal I knew. When I became a mom, I did the history of first moments type journal for my children…. well for a while. Until the business of motherhood got so busy.
You are in good company. So many people are enjoying the planner/bullet journal type thing. It’s a craze that really resonates with folks right now. A good way to keep folks on track and focused with goals, etc. While also chronicling their life activities. Awesome! Continue to have fun with yours!
Hi, I do not understand what this “journaling” is. Journals are words used to express personal emotions / events then recall the past.
Could you explain?
Best Wishes Always, Tracy
Hi Tracy, Well I can sort of explain. By that I mean that there are many different descriptions of art journaling or creative journaling. So my take on them may conflict with other peoples and honestly, we may all be right. At least by our own thoughts on things. I think I could write an entire blog post on this subject. LOL
You are absolutely right in that journaling usually involves words to express oneself and creative journaling is another take on this. It’s expressing oneself using an artistic outlet, and often using fewer words and sometimes no words at all. Many times this self expression is based on personal emotions/events and other times it’s not. Creative journaling is sometimes used in a professional art therapy session within a group setting. Sometimes on an one-on-one basis with a mental health professional and at other times it’s a solo activity for the artist.
Creative journals can represent a full work of art that’s shared with others. Then again, many, many, many journal expressions are never shared with anyone else at all. They are as private or as public as the individual wants them to be. I have several volumes of art journals based on my struggle with chronic pain. Although I’ve shared the pages and their meanings with people before, many of them are not shared. My creative journals are not locked up like my writing journals used to be. So someone might see what I work up in my artful journals, but I do not explain the meaning behind the color choices, the subjects of my thoughts, or the other representative things on the page. Not shared either because they most likely would make no sense to the viewer, or it may cause me to lose some personal touch with the piece. And if I share my pain related pieces it is primarily to assist others with learning how to use the creative journaling process for pain relief – a subject near to my heart and one that plays a prominent role in my life.
In creative journaling emphasis is not placed on the artistic skills or the art rules used by the individual doing the journaling. It’s placed more on how the act of creating leaves the person feeling. Therapists will sometimes use the final works for further talking therapy sessions, etc.
Many enthusiasts of the Zentangle method of pattern drawing can relate to the “zen” or the mind relaxation involved and the “no rules” attitude also familiar to creative journaling experiences.
If you run a web search using the terms, “creative journaling”, “art Journaling”, “vision journaling”, or something close to that you’ll find a wealth of information all surrounding how these types of journals are used by individuals for many years and from people of many nations across the world. Also note that the spellings Journaling/Journalling are interchangeable. So use which ever one you’re comfortable with and you’ll find plenty more information online.
Hope that helps!
~Cindy
Here’s a YouTube video that gives a pretty good overview of creative journaling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q244ClDT-Mk
Oh! Thank you for the YouTube link!
Hi Cindy,
You wrote, “My creative journals are not locked up like my writing journals used to be. So someone might see what I work up in my artful journals, but I do not explain the meaning behind the color choices, the subjects of my thoughts, or the other representative things on the page.”
This part of your response helped me the most as I do not want Anyone to read what I say about them. If I am having a bad day then write negatively about them…
Well, Everything you wrote helped me a lot.
(I think you DID just write a “blog post” on this subject! ^_^ )
Thank You So Much, Tracy