Here at wonder | wander | world we approach longhand journal writing as the ideal tool for the creative mind. As you put pen to paper, a mystifying interior world of hazy or fantastic ideas are made manifest and tangible as words spill onto the page.
It's best to journal at the start of a day, when the conscious mind is still dreamy and sluggish. Lazy enough to let some deeply buried gems light us up. Groggy feelings are dull and distant enough not to interfere with whatever bubbles up to the surface.
We love our pens, inks, and paper too. Writing in longhand is our happy place. The joy of writing -as each letter forms, as ink bleeds on to the paper, as pen nib scratches out a scribble - is a truly transforming and transcendent practice.
Lifehacker has these five top notebook recommendations. But feel free to shop around for your own personal favorites. We hope you share them with us too.
Through the years many experts have weighed in on the benefits of journal writing or keeping a journal. Various healthy attributes have been cited for body, mind, and outlook. Several methods and techniques are suggested to gain the most out of the practice and process.
For fellow pen and ink deviants, sites like Jet Pens provide lots of valuable advise along with several fun toys.
 |
| Distinctly beautiful ledger art by Plains Indians |
Even if not for any creative application, regular writing has its practical benefits. It can be functional and useful. You can journal to track events, errors, accomplishments, insights, and highlights. Identifying habits and patterns can help us adjust and improve with practice.
As children we journaled to practice our penmanship. Creating secret codes and languages to baffle anyone who tried to snoop into our diaries. Writing constantly through the years improved our use of words as well as deepened our love for them.
In school and at work we kept notes on lectures and lessons, agendas and meetings. Recording their importance and impact on us developed into a record of our growth and expansion through the years.
What seemed like a whole lot of flailing and floundering on a daily basis turned into a wild year of great AHA!s. Even with some significant "oh shit!"s included. And decades later they make for a clear record of who we were and who we are becoming.
These journals are our truest friends and constant companions. Our nebulous selves are better defined as we keep sight of our authentic selves recorded in these pages.
Don't take our word for it. Try it out for yourselves. Then get back here and let us know how it works for you. Happy trails to all.
No comments:
Post a Comment