Selecting a journal is a personal and sensual experience. The colors of the ink, the scent of oilcloth and leather covers, the textures of papers, the whispers of the pen scraping the pages, all combine in an endless feast of options for the writer. When you have a particular use in mind for your journal, like capturing the details of your travels, the choice becomes more thoughtful.
Journal
Scrapbooking the Rain
Sitting on the back porch of a cabin, hidden in the woods deep in the Hocking Hills of Ohio, I wrestled with one of my favorite creative writing exercises. The object of the task is to describe your immediate surroundings in different ways corresponding with different genres. This particular rainy day, it went something like this:
Travel Journal Writing Tips
Before you leave, write a list of things one would expect to see on a trip to your destination. For example, when I went to New Orleans, my list of “predictables” included the following: Mardi Gras, the tomb of Marie Laveau, drunkards on Bourbon Street, street musicians, café au lait and beignets at Café du Monde.