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Friday, July 20, 2012

JOURNALING LIFE


Whenever an artist friend shares her journal with me, I am awed at the slips and slices of creativity captured inside. As a writer, I routinely force my fictional characters to keep journals so I can spy on them and share their secrets with my readers. 

But do I personally keep a bound journal?  Nope. 

Yet this was one of Lin Oliver’s pieces of advice for writers in her keynote speech at the SCBWI Spring conference this April. 

For many writers, blogging has become a way to journal our lives as creative people; to engage with the world; to enjoy the process and share that joy with others. The word blog is a shortened version of the original phrase: web log. A blog is a log—or journal—you keep on the web. And share with the world. 

In the movie Contagion, Jude Law asserts that he is a writer. Elliott Gould’s character responds, “Blogging is just graffiti with punctuation.” 

Ouch. Unfortunately it’s sometimes true. Even for moi.  

Then again, not everything you write in a bound journal will be the stuff of great literature either. It’s not meant to be. We journal partly for our own purposes of finding ourselves and partly to explore ways to share our findings with the world. 

Do you keep a journal? Do you blog? How do you journal your creative life and share your joy with others?


PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for this life and for the creativity you gifted us with. Help us find ways to explore the gifts you’ve honored us with. Show us ways to share your love and glory with others today. Amen.


WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you keep a journal?

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This article recently ran in an issue of our Northern California regional newsletter for the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI).


7 comments:

chris said...

lol... I think I sometimes share more than I should on the blog, but I try to strike a balance here as I tend to write my blog more about life in general (as opposed to one general topic).

Re: Journaling... I do this... somewhat. Generally, it's major events or enlightenment that I can't share on my blog... so, yea, there is a lot more going on than I share (lol...). But I don't necessarily write every single day as true journaling entails.

From Carols Quill said...

@ Chris - I agree that some things don't need to be (shouldn't be) shared. I keep Tony Robbins' quote in mind though: If a life is worth living, it's worth recording.

Pam B. said...

My thought is that if you don't want someone's mother reading it, then you shouldn't write it.

From Carols Quill said...

@ Pam - LOL! Well said!

Pam B. said...

@ Carol---it's what I always told my children as they went through school---when note writing is prolific and often mean.

Unknown said...

Count me in - Yep, I journal aka Diary. Why? One reason is the Lord never wants us to forget His daily blessings and jotting things down while it's fresh in my mind. I see prayers answered, protection provided and most of all a pattern of growth. I use it to praise in that moment and tangible evidence of the Lord's blessing. I can refer to it and I remember how the Lord provided in the past which encourages me in the present.
As a Christian Writer, we are in the elite group of Moses and many prophets... Pretty cool huh?

From Carols Quill said...

@ Moses, er, Terrie - Great point about journaling in order to count our blessings. I do it to focus on how I see Jesus at work around me. And the more I write about it, the more I see. Bless you!