Thursday, May 06, 2010

Journelling - To Do or Not To Do

I am currently taking a writing workshop through the local library and the teacher has advised we journal as homework.

I have never really kept a diary (6 months as an 8 yr old doesn't really count) and although I do have some wonderful trip journals, those are short term event focused writing.

I have a really hard time journalling daily - not that I find my life boring - but that I just can't seem to find the oomph to actually write my day down.

Many people have told me I should write a memoir, and I sometimes play with the idea of doing it as a series of diary entries (probably the only way I could make writing about myself palatable) but beyond that I struggle.

What are the thoughts of the rest of you? Do you journal? If so, what about and why and how often? If not, do you think you should?

Struggling!
Eddie

4 comments:

Douglas Underhill said...

I used to keep journals, but it became kind of obsessive - I couldn't sleep unless I'd written down what had happened that day, and it would often stretch out to an hour or longer of me scribbling self-obsessed adolescent rants.

The cure was to go through the journals, keep a few, and literally throw the rest away.

So I don't have advice on how to journal healthily. I do think that having a blog and a journal means that one of them will get short-changed. It seems a bit redundant. I'd say post to this blog every day, and then give your writing teacher a link :)

Eddie Louise said...

Doug:

Good idea - you are really helpful btw. I find your perspectives on things illuminating. Even when we don't agree I am bound to find new things to think about!

I really appreciate that you take a few moments every now and then to drop by here.

Cheers,
Eddie

Douglas Underhill said...

Oh, you're welcome. It's nice to comment on the blog of someone I actually know in person. I also find that you and I are in similar positions in some ways - trying to cram writing of various different kinds into our lives, for example

Douglas Underhill said...

...and you are doing a better job of it than I am :)