The Success Journal (Holly Schindler)

I'm terrible at journals. Usually. I'm one of those people with about a thousand journals stacked in a corner than run through January 14--never another entry in any of them. 

Last year, though, I got one of those five-year journals. The idea (if you haven't heard of them) is to write only one line a day, and each page covers the same date over five years. I love this idea--especially being able to see in a glance where you were over such a long period of time. So much can happen to a person in five years. People come and go. New hopes are born. Fears are overcome. (And I did it! A whole year. I actually kept a journal.)

One thing I think we're really bad at as writers (certainly I am) is tracking the small successes. After you've been in the writing game a while, you only track the biggies: book deals. Starred reviews. End-of-year lists. But so many little success have to be racked up before any of that can happen: plot holes filled, queries written, revisions started.

This year, (since I'm in the journal groove) I'm going to start another journal to track my successes--all of 'em. All the steps that would not usually be celebrated. Anything I overcome that makes me breathe a sigh of relief or smile. Those things that will be months in the rearview mirror when the next New Year rolls around. 

I hope you'll join me.

~

Holly Schindler is the author of the MG novel The Junction of Sunshine and Lucky