Mindworks Newsletter: July 2008

ON KEEPING A PERSONAL JOURNAL

Keeping a personal journal is as simple as listening to your own thoughts and putting them down on paper. Tell your own truth. You can also listen to others then tell that story and what it means to you. Everyday people tell truths about themselves and the world as they see it. When you scribe your thoughts in a journal you have the opportunity to see what's on your own mind.

FAQ'S ABOUT JOURNAL KEEPING

COMPUTER OR HAND-WRITTEN?
I'm old fashioned. I like to write with a pen and notebook. And as soon as I thought that I realized: I'm using a computer right now! As people become more comfortable with keyboarding (children are taught to use computers at younger and younger ages!) the process of writing is shifting with the technology. My most important concern for all new writers is this: how often do you use the backspace or delete keys? If you are constantly reaching for the edit functions, you may be interrupting your first thoughts. Editing as you go is a dangerous process that can stop the flow of words and ideas. Writing with pen and paper increases flow for me but if you are more comfortable with a computer, then by all means, use what is most comfortable. Strive for fast inscription, whether hand-writing or typing. Capture first thoughts on the page and edit later. I find that I can write faster with a pen and edit as I transcribe my written work to the computer.

WHAT IF I HAVE NO TIME?
We are all busy people. Many people use their busy lives as a reason to keep from writing. Writing would be doomed if writers waited for long stretches of solitude to commit word to paper. Most writing is done in segments: a page a day, a chapter a week. If you wait for the right time to write, or that long stretch of uninterrupted leisure, you'll just be a lot older with nothing to show on paper. Five minutes a day will get you started; every day for a month will get you hooked!

WHAT IF I HAVE NO TALENT?
The biggest problem with writing (as with many other life ventures) is that we expect too much in the beginning. Successful people (that includes artists and musicians) take chances. They 'do' while others fret about the 'rightness' of what they are doing. As a writer, are you thinking: Is this the correct word, the right phrasing, the proper sentence structure? How can you be sure of anything unless put something onto paper and let it look back at you? Nothing matters in a first draft except getting it down, recording the experience.

WHAT IF I HAVE WRITER'S BLOCK?
Unlike a roadblock, writer's block is not physical. If you can think, and you can manipulate a pen, computer, or dictate to someone else, you can write something. The problem more often is worry that what might be written isn't good enough.  Writers write. Not writing is a choice you make ’Äì based on the thoughts and feelings that run through your head about the quality of your work.

The late poet laureate William Stafford had a ready response to people suffering from writer's block. Stafford, a prolific poet, set himself the task to write a poem a day. When asked how this was possible, he replied: "I lower my standards." In his mind it was inconceivable to write everyday with the same high quality; it was also inconceivable that this should be a reason not to write.

In her book Writing Down the Bones, Natalie Goldberg voiced similar advice: "Allow yourself to write shitty first drafts." Without the first drafts and the rough outlines of poems there is nothing to refine or embellish later. To expect that every word off the pen has to be perfect is a paralyzing thought. Write what first comes to your mind. Later on you can edit or simply have a laugh over what you wrote and recycle the paper. Writing everyday is what gets you over the writer's block.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Hone your craft. Read a lot. Then write a lot. You'll get better and better with every line you write.

To explore the possibilities of  keeping a journal, check out this month's Wisdom and Thoughts to Ponder for a poem by Billy Collins, Journal.  You'll find some provocative questions as well as some fun creative activities to help you get started with your own journal practice. Contact me if you have trouble with the writing process or have specific questions about how to use a journal.

For more information and support for journal keeping, try a workshop or online writer's group.

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