We would be talking about keeping a writer’s journal and a writer’s notebook and the difference between the two.
A writer’s journal and a writer’s notebook are often confused as one singular thing, muddled into an all-encompassing tool that writers utilise interchangeably. However, what is the exact difference between these two writing devices? When examined more thoroughly, it could be said that they differ beyond compare.
One must then ask whether these seemingly incommensurable concepts may both be used to strengthen and solidify your craft.
They do, after all, each contains one of a writer’s most essential tools beyond the pen: a blank universe of paper to spill your words onto. I would like to start by examining the idea of a journal and a notebook separately, as a way of uncovering their differences that are often overlooked.
The word “journal” stirs a special feeling from deep within me. It evokes dreaminess, self-reflection, peaceful solitude and languishing in one’s thoughts. By this definition, a journal is an essential tool for any serious writer, an object that should remain steadfastly at one’s side, ready for your soul to bleed into at any moment. Keeping a writer’s journal can somehow lend a tremendous amount of benefit to one’s writing. I can recall the first time someone handed me a journal as a gift. It was the beginning of a journey toward the serious contemplation of my thoughts, and this led to an outpouring of creative work which I didn’t even know was brewing inside my head. At first, I couldn’t comprehend why such a simple task unleashed this creativity. Throughout my career, I’ve begun to wonder why it is so important that we, as writers, reflect on our surroundings. What is it about this process of reflection that so strengthens what we have to say through our creative voices?
Simply put, keeping a journal allows us to observe the miniscule details that writers are expected to capture.
The people reading our work have certain expectations of us, they want us to offer them the world in a way that they haven’t noticed before. This is a great expectation and can be quite an arduous task, especially if we have neglected to reflect on our surroundings outside of the writing process. A journal makes it easier to approach our writing, a blank page can look a tad less daunting if we’ve already taken the time to turn inward and develop our thoughts through the written form. Taking a moment away from the real world allows us to enter this other, pseudo-world of possibility that our readers need from us and that we are called to dwell in.
When I think of the word “notebook”, however, I’m instinctively pulled towards the world of schooling and organization. It seems like a place for logistic task-making, belonging nowhere near the beautifully messy composite of the creative mind. While it’s nice to dwell in the impulsive, ravenously wild aura of the creative moment, as writers we should sometimes be able to step outside of our meanderings into the daunting ‘real world’ that we will evade. Certain tasks just wouldn’t get done without a notebook, little details can so easily slip away from us without them. It is equally imperative that one stay organized with their thoughts on some level. Otherwise, we’d miss deadlines, we would forget wisps of thought that could have been imperative to a story we’ve been working on.
Notebooks let us plan, strategize and think clearly about what we’re doing and where we want to go. There is solidity and dependability in a notebook that is simply invaluable to someone who is striving to make something concrete out of a craft that has been deemed indulgent throughout the modern world. What’s more, I’ve been just as inspired from a grocery list as I have been from a deeply thought-out journal entry. There’s something about a list reading “frozen cherries, brie, eggs, white wine (Bread & Butter?)” scribbled into a notebook that fosters a special bond between myself and the world. This type of note speaks to the beauty of our mundane existence, it lets us tap into the most simplistic version of humanity. It’s our lives in little pieces that we would normally let slip away.
When we delve into the biological differences between a notebook and a journal, it is evident that these are two very distinct things. However we have just as readily uncovered how imperative it is to have both items firmly established in your repertoire of writing utensils. Just as we are apt to forget about our deeply embedded spools of thought that lay treasured within our sanctified mind, so too do we forget the importance of the quotidian. So, while it’s nice to be laissez-faire and ‘loafe at ease’, it is imperative to shed an unwavering, stark light onto the more serious chronicles of life.
ABOUT CLAY HOLDEN
Clay Holden is a non-binary writer located in Toronto. They grew up between Saudi Arabia and Nova Scotia before moving to the city to complete a degree in arts and contemporary studies at Toronto Metropolitan University. Their literary reviews can be found in White Wall Review, and they also work as an associate editor for Hart House Review.
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