“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” ~William Wordsworth
I have a confession to make, as a writer I find it difficult to journal. There I said it!
Now let me expand on this confession a little more, I can journal and I do journal (some) but I have a difficult time staying consistent with my journaling. I also have a tendency to edit my thoughts before putting them on paper which is never good. Hence my dilemma with journaling.
So if you were thinking this is one more blog post about the importance of journaling, it’s not. It is about learning to put thoughts and ideas on paper and why this type of writing is important in moving you forward in your life.
“The act of putting pen to paper encourages pause for thought, this in turn makes us think more deeply about life, which helps us regain our equilibrium.” ~Norbet Platt
This type of writing allows me to write out creative thoughts or to unclutter my mind when I feel I’m at an impasse on a decision. I also use it as a tool to flush out thoughts that circle my head like a vulture, the ones that pick at my brain and never seem to go away. For those, I simply write them down to get them out of my head space.
I like to write with pen and paper and I love notebooks so these are my favorite tools for writing, using different notebooks for specific writing projects. For some, writing on the computer allows more ease of flow and creating separate folders or documents are the same as separate notebooks. Paper or computer doesn’t matter what matters is which one will give you easy access when the writing urge strikes.
When I use this type of writing for jotting down creative ideas or thoughts for future blog posts, I create a written trail to follow later. I can go to that notebook, skim through the pages and pick out parts that work for the project or post I’m working on. For me it’s a “treasure hunt”, finding the beautiful gem of writing that fits perfectly. It also allows me to see where my creative process has been and how it has evolved.
The notebook ( yep, I do have a different one) that contains a jumble of thoughts or just brain uncluttering allows me to look back and see if I’ve resolved or moved past whatever the issue may have been. It’s a way to keep in touch with my inner wisdom and teaches me to listen more closely to that inner voice.
Some may call this journaling but to me it’s a little more unstructured but I will admit it accomplishes the same purpose. It opens and clears my mind allowing me to find my own path through my thoughts.
If you are not writing things down, (to-do-lists do not count here!) start unwinding your thoughts with a little notebook time:
- Grab a notebook and just unload your brain on page 1. Once you start you will be surprised at what may appear.
- Working on a project? Have a separate notebook for your creative thoughts so you can reread your work and pull ideas together. This is much better than keeping it in your head which is what I use to do.
- Sit with these notebooks regularly, even if you only write one sentence. It’s all about getting it on paper or the computer.
- Go back and reread often, marking out things that are no longer valid or you have already used in your creative work. If I have used all of the stuff on a page, then I tear it out. This lets me know that those ideas or thoughts are long gone.
- Just try it and see if it works for you along your journey.
I would love to hear your thoughts on how you get your “writing on” and how it has helped you along your journey we call living. Share your comments in the comment section below and share the love of this post with someone you feel would love to start their own writing habit.
photo credit: JohnONolan via photopin cc