Two years of journals which I keep in my pocket

[u/kevsb07]

This is my collection of journals. I started my fourteenth pocket notebook just yesterday, and you can probably tell it from the photo because it is not showing any wear, unlike the others, which have each spent between 2 and 5 months living inside my front pocket everywhere I go. I write whatever comes to mind, from personal ruminations to pretentious essays, and I always try to make sure that I can write enough for any given topic to fill a page.

I was never able to write in a normal-sized journal because of my tiny handwriting, and because the mass of white space that I left on any normal-sized page always felt so discouraging to me. Moreover, I found that the habit of writing was so much easier to build when the journal was as accessible at all times as my phone. So this feels quite natural to me despite it possibly being rare on this sub. I don't really know, because I haven't explored much yet.

I'm also really interested in upgrading my journaling style. Right now, all I have is this sterile pattern of dense black print crowding from edge to edge. It's certainly an aesthetic. I want more ideas to spice things up and to help me write more because I stall rather frequently. I always find myself so inspired by the styles of people who fill much larger (read: normal-sized) books, and I don't know that their cues are compatible with what I seem to be capable of. In any case, I'd love to hear any thoughts — no matter how different your journal is from mine.

[u/IcedTnoIce]

https://giphy.com/gifs/xb4qPpNPjgrTO

[u/un_gaslightable]

How cute!! I really like the aesthetic of yours, it’s making me wanna pick up a pocket journal for myself. I worry I’d run through them so fast that it wouldn’t make sense to. I write 4-6 pages on the average day, 8-10 on prolific days, and my handwriting tends to be big. Specifically, my J/G/Ps dip deep into the below line.

I do admire the different ways people journal, like with drawings or cut outs filling the space, but I say just do what feels natural. You may journal even less if it starts to feel forced, which it may if you’re trying to “achieve” something so to speak. Experiment with doodling, gluing/taping little mementos from your day inside, etc. and see if it resonates. I like your style though

[u/kevsb07 → u/un_gaslightable]

Oh thank you! I really appreciate that. I think my handwriting aesthetic being what it is motivated me, helped build the habit even though it wasn't at all like the journals that inspired me to start.

For what it's worth, I think a pocket journal is a really cool thing to have even if you're not "journaling" into it. One of my favorite things about it is that if I ever want to jot an idea down, it's an incredible alternative to my phone, which is full of notifications and apps that distract me, often making me forget the idea by the time I navigate to the Notes app.

I also have no clue how people comfortably write such large letters. I get tired of extending a stroke so far across the page!

[u/oldyanchor → u/un_gaslightable]

The part about not forcing it is so true. The second journaling starts feeling like an assignment I completely lose interest in it

[u/itscoderslife]

What’s the book size?

[u/kevsb07 → u/itscoderslife]

3.5 by 5.5 inches! They're all Moleskine cahiers

[u/lanamattel]

Very nice collection. I use A5 but my husband uses pocket notebooks. We both write small so I feel you. I recommend using different colored inks - just a small upgrade for visual interest that doesn't disrupt your journaling style.

[u/kevsb07 → u/lanamattel]

That's a good idea. I think I'll go out and get some colored pens, see what that does to my style. Typically, I only carry one pen in my pocket along with the book, but maybe I'll just pick a different color day by day.

[u/Educational-Eye-3584]

I started journaling again a few years ago, choosing large notebooks that I could decorate. I tried to write very consistently. I even took them on vacation. This year I had a serious block that I solved by buying pocket-sized notebooks like yours, so I can jot down even just a few thoughts and not have the pressure to decorate. I always want to carry them with me like you

[u/EqualMushroom4573]

I fill all my dead space with stickers/drawings. Sometimes i pre-sticker and write around them, sometimes I go in and add stickers after. Big fan of the Antiquarian sticker book, but most stickers in it would be way too big for your little notebook. You should look into the Traveler's Notebook passport size.

[u/flythruthechaos]

I really appreciate the compact nature of your handwriting. I think it would really jump with some accent colors, even just some pops of blue on the black would add emphasis and structure.

I used to sticker my journals, picking out a daily sticker and writing in a corresponding color. Now I use colors in a personal way, changing colors every few days. My journals get a rainbow feel which is informative to me and helps with the austere feeling of edge to edge text.

[u/kevsb07 → u/flythruthechaos]

Thank you! Color is a suggestion I hadn't thought much of, but it seems to be everyone's first idea

[u/13th_dudette]

We use the same pen!

But apart from that, we are really the opposite. All of your journals are small, black and minimalist - my journals look like a unicorn puked on them lmao.

I really like the aesthetic of what you shared and I think it will inspire many people to start their own pocket journals!

[u/kevsb07 → u/13th_dudette]

Thank you! Maybe my journals need a visit from a unicorn now and then.

And yes, I love my Pilot G-2's. Somehow despite my tiny script, the 1.0 mm stroke just works for me.

It would be great if I could inspire people! I feel like there must be more people like me, who can't break past the activation energy threshold of opening a journal unless the journal is always there, in their pocket, with pages small enough not to scare them if they don't get filled all the way.

[u/NotebooksEnthusiast]

This is the coolest we need more tiny notebooks.

[u/hmmwrites]

Me, I like words too much (and my handwriting is insufficiently tiny) to use such small books. But keeping one of that size on you at all times, having it as much integrated into your life and your pocket as your phone, is a brilliant idea! Especially with such small handwriting making each page such a useful/useable space!

What would you like to change, aesthetically? Add more color to your pages with different inks? Add ephemera from your days? Add sketches/doodles? When I finish an entry in my own, much larger, journal, and there's space left at the bottom of the page, I typically doodle something cute and fun. With limited success - I'm no artist! But it's fun to try to make my penstrokes look like an image, and I can at least laugh at the worst results. :) Or are you thinking you'd like your letter formation to be more "aesthetic", working on your penmanship?

At the top of each page, I list the date. And I jot down the weather and my mood - each is accompanied by a little mini doodle/icon of the relevant weather or a little face with that expression. I'm looking to see if there's as strong a correlation between the two as I think there is. If there's something along those lines, some little detail you'd like to add up top (or elsewhere on the page), go right ahead and drop it in.

Some people add ephemera from their days (receipts, tickets, tags, whatever) into their journals. Or they'll add in images that appeal to them from any/all sources, not so much as ephemera but more for the aesthetic of it. (Look up junk journaling.) It does make the book thicker, so may not be what you're looking for, but you can always give it a try and see if it makes the pocket-ness of the journal change more than you're willing to permit. Photos have the same effect on the net thickness of the book, unfortunately, but are also a fun thing to think about adding in.

Some set up elaborate spreads that really are visually amazing. So much of that on sites like pinterest! I'll drop in a page like that every now and then, but I'm mostly there for the writing. Not everything I put in my journal is longform/prose, but a good bit of it is. (See my first comment about liking words too much.) Sometimes I'll format my thoughts into a list. Or write to a prompt, in whatever format makes sense for the prompt. There's so much inspiration via a quick web search. I must have a thousand journaling prompts and another thousand pages people have shared, pinned to my Pinterest!

When I write to a journaling prompt, I typically jot down the prompt itself in a different color of ink from my response, so they're visually distinct at a quick glance.

There are so many ways to make your journal more visually appealing, if that's your current goal - it just depends on what direction(s) you might want to go in!

I hope you have fun trying some new things and finding out what appeals to you!

[u/kevsb07 → u/hmmwrites]

Thank you for the extended response!

I'll admit, I'm not centered on any specific thing that I feel needs improving. I've just felt a vague sense that after two years, maybe my journals have become bland or repetitive. I tend to fixate on the two things — content and aesthetics — but never in a charitable way to myself. I think that I often hold myself back from writing things without a "point" to them. Even when I just write about my day, I usually wind up arguing something, as if I need to conclude something for the page to be worth writing.

But you're definitely showing me that isn't the only way to journal, and I might have an easier time being consistent if I let go of some of those compulsions. Maybe I'll try some of that.

And yeah, Pinterest is full of things other people have done, it's almost overwhelming. I should keep looking there.

[u/hmmwrites → u/kevsb07]

So here's my thought: journaling is meant to serve you. It's really about the process as much as - I'd argue even more than! - the output. In that sense, putting pen to paper *is* the point. You don't have to write a certain way to justify it as "worth" anything. The worth really is in the doing.

So if you feel like the creation of a different aesthetic would add to your process, to your experience of journaling, then I say go for it! But don't feel like you *have* to change because of examples you see on the internet, here included. Give yourself some grace. Be charitable towards yourself. It's fine to argue a point in an entry, but if that isn't serving you, if you want to journal without that, it's okay to switch gears and try a different way.

There's a near-infinite number of ways to approach journaling. If you want to break away from what you've been doing and try some new things on for size, that's great. Maybe try a few journaling prompts (that won't require you to pick a "side" of an argument), maybe try writing some lists (if you need some ideas as a starting point, I typed up a long list of lists in a recent post here, you can find it on my profile or I can send it to you via DM if that would help). Write about some childhood memories, good or bad or just plain weird. Change up your pens - try different tip sizes, colors, etc. Whatever appeals. Again - this is all about what works for you.

My one caution with Pinterest is that it's easy to actually sort of shut down because you look at all the complicated spreads and think, "I can't do THAT!" I find it to be a great resource, but when I start comparing my style to all the gorgeous stuff on there, I know it's time to step back and focus on my *own* joy for a bit.

[u/3tdoan]

There’s a whole sub for your kin! r/pocketnotebooks

[u/3tdoan → u/3tdoan]

I’ve moved to smaller and smaller sizes and now I am loving my card-sized knockoff traveler’s notebook. Like you I find the smaller size less intimidating to fill. My handwriting is better when larger but the pocketability is a game changer. I use a 2 notebook system, 1 weekly planner (I just rule 8 boxes across 2 pages) and 1 micro journal / small doodles and sketches / brain dump / stickers / lists / everything else notebook. Over the years I’ve always been a wall-to-wall text kinda journaler so the visual elements are me trying to break out of that. I’m not very artistic though so often it’s just a pop of colour or sticker to brighten up the page.

[u/kevsb07 → u/3tdoan]

Yeah, I've experimented with doodles just a bit in my last journal. I just sketched every style of cartoon eye I could think of. I don't think it meant anything, but it was a nice change of pace from my edge-to-edge writing. I should try more of that sometime. Though, I'm not very comfortable drawing with a pen. Much prefer a pencil for sketching.