Many of us have kept diaries or journals; some of us have even been faithful about them. More likely, we’ve written sporadically, then left them to get dusty on shelf or under the bed. Perhaps the journals on our computers have entries dated a year or two apart. It’s easy to be enthusiastic about a fresh diary and to then give up when we don’t maintain the ideal of daily deep, fascinating entries.

But this should not stop us from writing when we want and need to. So what if you haven’t written in a year? So what if you look back on that last entry and are not sure what you were quite so upset about? Writing for ourselves is not an exercise in perfection (for that matter, no writing is).

Sometimes you just need to get your feelings and thoughts and ideas and rants out. Perhaps no one is around for you to talk to. Perhaps you don’t think anyone will understand. Perhaps you are afraid of sharing what is really going on in your mind. So put it on paper or on your computer. (I do realize that this makes it “real” in that someone could find it and read it, but there are ways of hiding or password-protecting documents.) So let it out. And don’t worry about grammar, spelling, punctuation—or even what you’re saying or how you’re saying it.

Journals are not the place to make sure that you’re making sense, to ensure that one thought leads logically to the next. They are, instead, a reflection of your mind, of how one thought leads to others in your mind, of the associations you make. That is really what is going on for you, and that is what is important. It’s the truth, or as close as you may come to it right then. You may return to your journal later and use it as a resource for other writing that you present more coherently; many writers do that. And it works because the journal entries are honest.

Not all writing for yourself has to take the shape of journal entries; you can write letters, emails, and more. One recommendation: don’t share your entry or letter or email with anyone right away. If it’s an email, don’t put the address on it; this will prevent you from just hitting send and…well…you can guess the rest. Similarly, don’t print and send a letter right away. If it’s a journal entry that can be uploaded to a blog, don’t upload it!

In all cases, put it away for a while—a day, a week, a month, if you can. Then look at it again and see if you still feel the same way. If so, revise it to say what you want to share with the other person or people in the clearest way, one which this person or people will be able to hear. (In other words, take out all the curses, the insults, the accusations; own your feelings; imagine reading it as that person. And, with journal/blog entries, while some of your blog readers will be supportive, they may also become wary of you.)

Writing is a release. And if you let yourself go, you will discover more of yourself than you thought you might.

Tags: Journaling, Blog, Email, , Revision