Bright Ideas 💡

I like to keep a Writer's Journal. It's not really a place to keep ideas (I use a pocket-sized notebook for that), although I do jot down the occasional funny sentence. It's where I put my problems and understanding of the story down in writing. It's where I work out kinks in how the system of magic works, or the timeline, or someone's backstory, and it's where I "write out" my writer's block. (i.e., by writing down a detailed plot treatment.) Keeping a Writer's Journal helps me to straighten things out mentally, and it's also a fun paper record of my process.

So, what's in a Writer's Notebook?

• Ideas: McCallister staggered backwards as he frantically tried to remove the naiad from his face. "Get off, get off!" He backed into a tree and knocked himself out. For the first time today, we were winning.
• Also, "understandings," as I call my on-paper explanations to a nonexistent person: Sierra is very empathetic. She's aware of other people's emotions + responses. And even though she's super good with emotions, she makes 90% of her decisions logically, based on observation and analyzation. On the other hand, Lily has hardened herself to others' emotions and makes most of her decisions based on her own gut reactions. Huh. What's the logic behind this?
• And my personal favorite, writer's block solutions. Here's an opening paragraph: Okay, so what the heck is going on here? We have Lily and Yana arguing over who knows what. Sierra stays for some reason. McCallister's knocked out on the floor. How in the world will I blow up the palace?

All of these examples were real: two from my binder, one from an actual notebook. A Writer's Journal is more of a concept than a real journal. I don't keep all my plots, characters, and questions in one basket, and I can't think of a single one of my writer-friends that does. So, try it. Take notes. Collect random thoughts. Start your own Journal.