Writing for yourself: an essay in praise of the journal

Writer: Xianyi Ren
Editor: Isabel Snare

In a 1933 diary entry, Anaïs Nin writes, “I will put pages of my journal into the book [a novel] but never pages of the book into the journal, showing a human faithfulness to the human authenticity of the journal”.  And although I am in vehement disagreement with many of Nin’s other takes (lit class would know), I wholeheartedly vouch for this one. Really, all other kinds of writing must be mere extensions of the self. Novels and fiction often satisfy a kind of wish fulfillment, such as in writing a hero you wish to be, and academia is simply the obsessive research of a topic that piques your interest. While Havergal offers Writer’s Craft to spark fictive imagination and countless university preparation courses to perfect academic prose, we are left to our own devices to write purely for ourselves. How does one orthographically represent the self at its most naked and bare? How do you write for yourself?

Before getting into these “hows,” perhaps a more accessible way to begin is to ask why we should write outside of the fictive and academic. The act of journaling is one that is never out of vogue, which is something I would argue is for the better. One might commonly hear such a response from a non-journaller: “I just have nothing to write!”. This statement is always and completely untrue. You have tidbits of wisdom hidden away in your notes app, you affirm your opinions when you repost relatable TikToks, and you take so many photos that you’re constantly running out of storage. Yet, we still need to do more than this. 

We need to materialize all these profound musings and inquiries. All our teachers constantly say how taking physical notes improves memory and comprehension and this and that— but more than anything, journaling is just so romantic. To go cafe hopping downtown and pull out your journal over a glorious steaming matcha, to scribble down your honest thoughts about an art exhibition on vacation, to write down your deepest confessions watching the sunset on the lake... The journal makes all your life experiences richer and more real. I understand that it may seem like an embarrassing effort to pull out a pen and paper to jot down notes in this digital age, given much of my personal writing is actually in my notes app. Thus, I’ve started to transcribe some of my notes app poetry into my journal to better authenticate it. I won’t lie and say that journaling has helped me understand myself better (if anything it has warped my perception of self to its most incomprehensible). Yet, what it has done is allowed for copious amounts of self reflection and remembering, both joyous and painful. I feel like a historian when looking through my journals for throughlines and themes to analyze my past to better understand my present. I feel that I’m living more intensely, and with a greater purpose.

The single piece of advice I would give on how to journal would be to do whatever you want. Through trial and error, you will figure out the methods that best align with your writing habits. For me, the first entry that prompted my current collection of journals was a prolonged rant about one of the worst days in my life. To this day, I continue to simply write the date then sprawl long and spontaneous paragraphs on whatever pops into my mind. Some miscellaneous things I also keep in my journal include my 2025 bucket list (Climb a mountain) and wishlist (Diptyque's Fleur de Peau). However, I deeply empathize with those who get sweaty palms and a frozen brain when being told that it’s all up to you. For a stint in my journaling journey, I participated in those monthly journaling schedules and came up with a different prompt for each day. I enjoyed oscillating between silly questions (What is your preferred choice of milk?), nostalgic prompts (Letter to your ex-best friend), and mentally taxing philosophy debates (Do you believe in luck?). I found this method effective for the first few months, as it provided structure opposed to my baseless rambles. But ultimately, I could not keep these daily entries up as my writing started feeling lazy and forced— but many do click with this method. One of my friends does a sort of combination of these two methods, where she will write on something everyday without a specific prompt to follow. Again, it’s all up to you.

The advice I feel more apt to give is on what not to do when journaling, as so many things can inhibit the journal’s authenticity. For one, I loathe the advice of  “try not to perform for an audience.”  Instead, I say to do it if that’s what brings you joy! I found that it is nearly impossible to write with the intent of having no audience— so let your imagination wander far and wide. Although I would never want my journals published like Nin, I sometimes let myself write with the intention of reading them to my friends in 20 or so years, which makes me very giddy. Secondly, don’t feel pressured to only write about your life-changing moments. A lot of my most proud writing was done in those mundane moments where nothing interesting is going on, as I could be more introspective. Lastly, I would say to try to not have a thesis. Do not feel constrained by the guidelines we are expected to follow at school. Of course, it’s always nice to have a line of reasoning to guide your thoughts, but forcing one narrative can oftentimes prevent alternatives from coming through. Let your writing be messy and nonlinear, so as to make more of your ideas come into fruition. Be honest (and dishonest!) with yourself.

The journal need not be new nor expensive. I’ve gotten into the habit of repurposing old notebooks from uninspired birthday gifts by taping pretty keepsakes to the covers. Though, obviously, I’d admire a dazzling leather cover and well-crafted fountain pen anyday. I’d imagine keeping a beautiful journal would aid one’s writing greatly, but humble mediums are just as capable. Make it interesting for yourself. Set up esoteric routines, perform secret rituals, take on a handwriting that exudes your desired persona. Please, start writing for yourself today.