While I was visiting my parents this week, I found a note that I wrote to my mom in 2004 stuffed into a photo album. I was 15 at the time. It was just a regular evening that I chose to document by writing a letter and hiding it. In the letter, my dad was trying to fix the family printer (very much an early 2000s technology problem!) and my mom was cooking dinner. I was about to watch The OC. I wrote that we’d laugh about this note in the future…and I was correct. I have no recollection of writing it, but 21 years later, I’m so glad I did.
I’ve been writing since high school, but over the last 10 years it’s become more of a daily creative practice. I write every day simply because I can’t help myself. Sometimes it’s a post here or on social media and other times it’s just a few thoughts in my Notes app. When I first started daily writing, it was very factual. I would just journal about my day. It would look something like this:
First I walked 3 miles, then I drank coffee, then I read a book.
If you are just starting out on a writing journey or want to build the habit, I recommend documenting your day in the simplest way possible – you don’t even need complete sentences!
Now I look back at those early entries and I ask myself:
- Where did I walk? How did I feel while I was walking? What was the weather like? Did I listen to music? A podcast? An audiobook? What did I observe while I was walking? What was I thinking about?
- What kind of coffee was I drinking? Did I make it at home? Where did I order it? Did I walk to the coffee shop or did I drive there? Was anyone with me? Did I take it to-go or sit down at the shop?
- What book did I read? Was it a hardback, paperback, e-book, audiobook? Why prompted me to pick up that book? Did I buy it from a local bookshop or borrow it from the library? Did a friend give it to me? How did the chapter I read make me feel?
Over time, I started writing more details, including my thoughts and opinions. A few days ago, I tried to go back to writing “just the facts,” but it turned into so much more than that!
- My morning walk summary was an essay about how important it is to know your neighbors.
- Our trip to the store, where we ran into friends, turned into writing about how wonderful it is to have community you see when out and about in town.
- I was invited to book club, so I downloaded the book from the library, which then made me reflect on how thankful I am for public institutions.
- Then I dropped my son off at a birthday party, which turned into writing about my own evolution as a mother. (It’s a milestone for parents when you can just drop off!)
So, if you want to build the habit of writing, start with the basics. Here are some prompts to get you started:
- What did you today?
- Who did you see or interact with?
- What made you proud? Frustrated?
- And my personal favorite: What made you laugh?
Let me know if you have any tips to building the writing habit!
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