What is it about the turn of the calendar to a fresh, new year that makes us want to embark on some sort of self-improvement project? Are you ready to assess your progress after just a wink more than a week into 2005?
I want to suggest that you look into journaling. Keeping a journal is easy and does not involve counting calories or logging crunches. Journals allow us to keep track, to emote, to record dreams, to make lists, to write our Morning Pages, reflect on our blessings, or even to start our novels. The Internet has loads of journaling sites that can help give us ideas about what to write in those pretty (or handsome) little books.
Here are a few websites you may want to explore:
Creative-journal.com. One of the nice things about this website is that it provides plenty of prompts to get started. Among the prompt ideas is a visual prompt gallery with over 100 images. Articles include ways to achieve your goals and techniques for creative journal keeping. A nice set of links lead to other good sites. Do not let the lack of updates on the home page stop you from exploring the information here.
Center for Journal Therapy. Kathleen Adams has written one of the best journaling guides I have read, titled Journal to the Self. Although this site is largely commercial, Kathleen provides prompts that are worth checking out.
Progoff’s Intensive Journal Workshop. Ira Progoff”s Journal Workshop might be considered the granddaddy of journaling, period. If you are interested in much more than just dabbling in a bound journal, this is the place to be. You will keep a binder with many colored tags when you enroll in one of these Intensives, and you will not fail to gain insights into your inner workings. If you are truly committed to an in-depth method of journaling for self-improvement, this is the place to get the information you need.
About.com Journaling Group. I like to avoid About.com as much as possible because the site has a way of messing up my computer. If you do not have any type of pop-up blocker or an adware program on your machine, be warned. That said, this particular site has links to many other journaling websites that may be of interest to you. If you want to circumvent possible annoyances, go directly to one of the listed links for some good journaling information. By the way, I do have a pop-up blocker and a very good adware program on my machine, but I still run into problems here.
Personal Journaling . This print and web publication is on hiatus, according to Writers Digest. However, it is still possible to access some of the articles from past issues. One that I reviewed and recommend--20 Ways to Fill Page One.
Soul Food Café . I have saved this best of gems for last, because when you discover it you are likely to get lost in it. In a good way. Maybe to the point of not doing any writing in your journal whatsoever. Some very creative folks from Down Under have given us a menu of delightful activities to play around with and share with their website community. Look for writing prompts in their Box of Wonderment and be sure to order the Daily Grind. That link provides enough diversions to keep you online longer than you had intended. Some of the links include a tea leaf reading to get your journal writing flowing, they say. Stick around and play with the other fun links, including the Collage Machine at the Art Zone.
